Friday, August 06, 2004
So just why do we have children?
First, a public service announcement: If you are considering having children, get kittens first
For the record, I will stipulate that if I released my kittens Mancha and Niebla, and my theoretical first-born child into the wild at the same time, the kittens would manage to surrvive and perhaps even thrive on their own.
But my kittens aren't allowed outside. As a result, they are dependent upon me for food, water, a safe and clean living environment, and (indirectly) medical care.
In addition, they have a very limited capacity for expressing desire and displeasure, sometimes leaving me at a loss to figure out just what I should or shouldn't be doing. And they don't understand that some of the things that I do to keep them healthy and happy have short-term unpleasant aspects associated with them.
For example, I find myself picking "dirty" cat litter out of the fur that is between Niebla's toes far more often than I'd like. And Mancha sometimes requires the same treatment. It's somewhat like changing a diaper, except that babies don't complain because you're trying to keep them clean, and they don't have the means to do you physical harm while you're trying to keep them clean. In fact, the next of God's creations for whom I expect to be doing anything this remotely disgusting is my infant child. (Yeah, like that's ever going to happen...)
In return for my efforts, I get company (usually), indifference and avoidance (although it's getting less often), injury (although that's usually by accident), occasional affection (but it's only been a month, so I expect things to improve in that department), general bewilderment (obviously, they don't understand me) and a vague feeling of accomplishment. I draw a distinction here between love and affection that might be worth discussing at a later date.
The bottom line is that on the balance of things, I derive very little tangible benefit from sharing my home and my life with a couple of animals who, developmentally, will never progress beyond being eighteen-month old toddlers. At least my children will be able to come see me in the retirement home, and, if it hasn't gone bankrupt by then, labor to keep my Social Security checks coming in.
So why did I do it? Could it have been for some of the same reasons that people have children? Well, that depends on why you think people have children. Tom Leykis is fond of pointing out that there are no reasons to have children of one's own that are entirely selfless - it's done because two people think that their genes, name, values, and so forth are important enough to keep in the world. He goes on to say that he has no problem with people doing things that are in their own self-interests (that's human nature), but that just about all of those things could be accomplished by adopting.
And to connect back to a previous discussion that Jody and I had, (and to give him more credit than I might have at the time) will the achievement of our actuarial escape velocity make those reasons moot? If there's a reason for the birth rate to drop to zero, then that's it.
Anyway, since I was in no danger of ever having kittens of my own, I decided to adopt. What will come of it? Stay tuned.
Comments(0) |
For the record, I will stipulate that if I released my kittens Mancha and Niebla, and my theoretical first-born child into the wild at the same time, the kittens would manage to surrvive and perhaps even thrive on their own.
But my kittens aren't allowed outside. As a result, they are dependent upon me for food, water, a safe and clean living environment, and (indirectly) medical care.
Aside:
They sell medical insurance for pets now. There was a moment where I thought that Dr. Thomas was kidding, until she showed me the brochure...
In addition, they have a very limited capacity for expressing desire and displeasure, sometimes leaving me at a loss to figure out just what I should or shouldn't be doing. And they don't understand that some of the things that I do to keep them healthy and happy have short-term unpleasant aspects associated with them.
For example, I find myself picking "dirty" cat litter out of the fur that is between Niebla's toes far more often than I'd like. And Mancha sometimes requires the same treatment. It's somewhat like changing a diaper, except that babies don't complain because you're trying to keep them clean, and they don't have the means to do you physical harm while you're trying to keep them clean. In fact, the next of God's creations for whom I expect to be doing anything this remotely disgusting is my infant child. (Yeah, like that's ever going to happen...)
In return for my efforts, I get company (usually), indifference and avoidance (although it's getting less often), injury (although that's usually by accident), occasional affection (but it's only been a month, so I expect things to improve in that department), general bewilderment (obviously, they don't understand me) and a vague feeling of accomplishment. I draw a distinction here between love and affection that might be worth discussing at a later date.
The bottom line is that on the balance of things, I derive very little tangible benefit from sharing my home and my life with a couple of animals who, developmentally, will never progress beyond being eighteen-month old toddlers. At least my children will be able to come see me in the retirement home, and, if it hasn't gone bankrupt by then, labor to keep my Social Security checks coming in.
So why did I do it? Could it have been for some of the same reasons that people have children? Well, that depends on why you think people have children. Tom Leykis is fond of pointing out that there are no reasons to have children of one's own that are entirely selfless - it's done because two people think that their genes, name, values, and so forth are important enough to keep in the world. He goes on to say that he has no problem with people doing things that are in their own self-interests (that's human nature), but that just about all of those things could be accomplished by adopting.
And to connect back to a previous discussion that Jody and I had, (and to give him more credit than I might have at the time) will the achievement of our actuarial escape velocity make those reasons moot? If there's a reason for the birth rate to drop to zero, then that's it.
Anyway, since I was in no danger of ever having kittens of my own, I decided to adopt. What will come of it? Stay tuned.
Comments(0) |
