Conscientious Nonprocreator

I am a conscientious nonprocreator. I started the Yahoo group Conscientious Nonprocreators Contranational. The URL is:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/conscientiousnonprocreators/

It has not, so far, been an 'active' group. Still, it continues to present a voice against 'pronatalism'.

By 18, I decided to remain childless (I do not remember exactly when I made the decision). I am now 47, and I never had a split second of regret over my decision not to have a child. This does not, however, suggest that my view of having children is pessimistic --from my own perspective. Of course, if I had a child like Shirley Temple, Craig Kielburger, Greg Smith, Alia Sabur, ... , I could personally benefit from parenthood. Although I do not think it prudent to assume that I would be that lucky, my conclusion about nonprocreation is a moral one. I believe that my decision was morally right. Holding the values that I do, I could not have a clear conscience even if I found myself blessed to have a one-in-a-million child. Put differently, I can easily imagine myself being 'rich and famous' mainly due to an exceptional child, but I cannot imagine myself feeling any better about the matter of procreation/nonprocreation.

I am generally kind to children. I was raised in a place where (and at a time when) most grown-ups were friendly to and protective of children --anybody's children. Perhaps my own parents were also close to 'good enough', when it comes to kindness to children. Thanks in part to these facts, I often make faces at other's children, even tap their heads occasionally, and show kindness and generosity when I am allowed to interact with them (which is not often enough). I wish there were a shortcut gesture that could tell the parents: "Hey! I am kind to babies and children. I want to 'welcome' them, in my capacity. But I do not condone your decision to add another human being to this planet!"

"Babies are not responsible for population growth. Parents are."