# I don't need your damn opinion on my family size! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 24, 2003, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175 "2003-02-24T16:12:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![PhiloVance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e19adc/32.png) [@PhiloVance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhiloVance)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/121 "2003-02-27T06:15:20Z")
Oh, Oh, Oh! Forgot the MOST IMPORTANT THING! We (my wife and I) have 8 children and 14 grand children, FTR. And anyone can ask about them! We love to talk about all of them. Also FTR, my wife was an only child and I came from a family of 7 children. And you can ask about them too. šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/122 "2003-02-27T08:08:35Z")
One doesnā€™t have to buy into Ehrlichā€™s arguments to concede that choosing the number of nonadopted kids you have is the most important environmental choice that you will make.\* _Way_ more important than recycling newspapers, for example. (For example, a kid born in the West has way more environmental impact than a kid born in the third world. Each US child born will eventually spew one million kilograms of atmospheric waste, 10 million kilograms of liquid wastes, blah blah.) Still, this is not the sort of stuff you bring up with strangers on the street. Unless you are at a protest or something, I suppose. - For example, I believe that the Club of Romeā€™s models were misleading and not particularly insightful. In addition to being empirically inaccurate. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/123 "2003-02-27T12:08:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Kricket \* > \*\*Did that sound wrong when I said it? Sometimes I donā€™t say things right. I mean about the parents of onlies not having to go through the ā€œStop touching meā€ thing. > \*\* No, you just reminded me of that Bill Cosby sketch. ā€œWill you stop touching me? And you stop and you stop and you stop and you stop! MOM! MOM! MOM! MOM!ā€ All parents should be required to listen to Bill Cosbyā€™s later routines. True stuff, I tell you. I did it to my sisters and now their children are doing it to them. šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/124 "2003-02-27T13:25:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by flowbark \* > **(For example, a kid born in the West has way more environmental impact than a kid born in the third world. Each US child born will eventually spew one million kilograms of atmospheric waste, 10 million kilograms of liquid wastes, blah blah.)** That kid will also add much more to the wealth of the world than the kid born in the underdeveloped world. The American worker is the most productive in the world, a factor that has to account for much of this pollution. Letā€™s not blindly characterize this as a complete waste. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/125 "2003-02-27T18:10:41Z")
**Mr. M:** _That [US] kid will also add much more to the wealth of the world than the kid born in the underdeveloped world._ Depends how you define ā€œwealthā€, of course. Increased per-capita industrial production and consumption have their advantages, but as you note, they also involve increased pollution, not to mention resource use. It would be hard to say which society has the best per-capita ā€œnet global impactā€ (i.e., sustainable economic development plus improved quality of life plus all the other good stuff minus pollution minus nonrenewable resource consumption minus waste minus all the other bad stuff), but given the sheer scale of our per-capita consumption and pollution levels, Iā€™m inclined to think itā€™s not the US. ---
**Author:** ![Essured](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Essured](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Essured)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/126 "2003-02-27T21:29:39Z")
[hijack] **Catsix** I tried to e-mail you but got a bounce. Could you e-mail me and Iā€™ll reply ? Thanks šŸ™‚ [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Kricket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f14d63/32.png) [@Kricket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kricket)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/127 "2003-02-27T23:06:17Z")
Oh, and BeagleDave I did forget to mention that if you really feel like climbing a clock/watch tower please let me know since the closest one I can think of is at St. Ambrose a block away from my house. ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2003, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/128 "2003-02-28T00:16:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Kricket \* > \*\*Oh, and BeagleDave I did forget to mention that if you really feel like climbing a clock/watch tower please let me know since the closest one I can think of is at St. Ambrose a block away from my house. \*\* Oh I already know where you liveā€¦ ā€¦and where TVeb livesā€¦ ā€¦not that you have anything \ to fear or anything \ā€¦Iā€™m just saying \ is allā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Bongmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Bongmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongmaster)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2003, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/129 "2003-03-04T21:33:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*Jesus, four kids at 22? Iā€™m sorry but there _is_ something wrong with that. \*\* I agree completely, the world is far too overcrowded as it is. I hate to say this, but because _so_ many people have the attitude that they are somehow entitiled to overpopulate the earth with their spawn I think its time to legally restrict it. ---
**Author:** ![Palo\_Verde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Palo\_Verde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palo_Verde)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2003, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/130 "2003-03-04T21:45:09Z")
OK, Iā€™ll bite **Bongmaster** , how are you going to 'legally restrict it"? ---
**Author:** ![Wikkit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c0e974/32.png) [@Wikkit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wikkit)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2003, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/131 "2003-03-05T00:52:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by beagledave \* > **ā€¦and where TVeb livesā€¦** Speaking of, I finally got my pictures back from the get-together way back then. Theyā€™re matte finish, though, and wonā€™t scan for crap, so Iā€™ll get them glossied and weā€™ll all get to laugh at Dr Martix dancing, next week.[/hijack] Eagerly awaiting \*\*Bong[/]'s theory of what to do with children that werenā€™t licensed to be been born. ---
**Author:** ![culture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/958977/32.png) [@culture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/culture)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2003, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/132 "2003-03-26T18:34:16Z")
You could have: Broiled baby Fried baby Boiled baby BBQ baby Stewed baby Roasted baby Breaded baby Baby on a stick Mashed baby and many, many more. ---
**Author:** ![Cerri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3bc359/32.png) [@Cerri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerri)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2003, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/133 "2003-03-26T20:13:56Z")
> [@](#): > > Except that Iā€™ve never been provided a satisfactory explanation of how my decision to have one more child would contribute to anyone elseā€™s privation, either down the street or in Ethiopia. Iā€™m sure thereā€™s plenty of Chinese people who could explain it to you. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2003, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/134 "2003-03-26T20:59:38Z")
So, **Cessandra** , Iā€™m just being nosy, but how old is your husband? ---
**Author:** ![Cessandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cessandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cessandra)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/135 "2003-03-27T03:27:57Z")
Indy, he turned 30 this year. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/136 "2003-03-27T04:06:58Z")
Goo: > [@](#): > > I wish I could get sterilized. I donā€™t know if youā€™re a man or woman or how old you are or if this is as major an issue where you live as it is where I live, but Iā€™m still fighting a losing battle. Is it not permitted in ā€œsomewhere near Pittsburghā€ to get a sterilization? Seriously? Goodness gracious! Is it illegal, or are you just having trouble finding a doctor who will agree to it? I know several people who have never had children, never wanted to, and had the appropriate operation so that it would never become an issue. On the OP, I think the response that someone else suggested, along the lines of ā€œWhy would you want to ask a personal question like that?ā€ is a good stopper. Iā€™ve always told my daughters that if they wanted to have children that would be just great, but if they didnā€™t want to, that was fine, too. Itā€™s probably been said before, but I used to get REALLY irritated ā€“ and depressed ā€“ when my mother-in-law and her old biddy friends would ask me why I didnā€™t have children, and of course the reason was an infertility problem. I used to fantasize about rude, crude responses like ā€œbecause your son canā€™t get it upā€¦ā€ (even though that wasnā€™t the problem!) but decided against it. A ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/137 "2003-03-27T04:12:22Z")
Oh, another thing: Somebody mentioned adoption. Unless things have really changed lately, it is difficult to arrange the kind of adoption most people want: a healthy newborn. Especially if you are white and want to adopt a child of your own appearance. Iā€™ve heard of people spending absolutely HUGE sums to adopt a child from another country. If you are of the temperament to be able to do so, it is easier, I have been told, to adopt a ā€œspecial needsā€ child, who is past early childhood and/or has a disability of some sort. Iā€™ve also heard tales of white people who adopt a black child and then have to deal with all kinds of sh!t from people of both races for doing so. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/138 "2003-03-27T05:02:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MLS \* > \*\*Goo: > > Is it not permitted in ā€œsomewhere near Pittsburghā€ to get a sterilization? Seriously? Goodness gracious! Is it illegal, or are you just having trouble finding a doctor who will agree to it? A \*\* It may be changing, but for a long time there was an informal ā€˜Rule of 120,ā€™ meaning doctors would refuse to sterilize you unless your age X your number of children was at least 120. They were just so afraid you would change your mind later and sue ā€“ ā€˜I wasnā€™t mature enough to know my own mind. Youā€™re the doctor, you should have protected me from myself.ā€™ ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/139 "2003-03-27T05:14:12Z")
Jeez, thatā€™s ridiculous. I can, I suppose, see a doctor being reluctant if someone is, say, 19 years old and otherwise healthy, but that rule would prevent, say a person 30 years old with 2 children from deciding 2 was enough. Perhaps Planned Parenthood could help find a doctor who was amenable? ---
**Author:** ![Essured](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Essured](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Essured)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2003, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175/140 "2003-03-27T05:15:35Z")
**MLS,** I think you have the wrong poster šŸ˜‰ Itā€™s **Catsix** that lives somewhere in Pittsburgh and is having difficulty getting sterilised. I think the old ā€œ120 ruleā€ is dead, **SBS,** though it is still difficult, almost impossible, in some areas of America to be voluntarily sterilised if you have no children. I donā€™t know what areas and I donā€™t know what the reasons are (though my opinion would be a fear of lawsuits and a paternalistic mindset) itā€™s just an impression Iā€™ve picked up from a few predominately American message boards, that are tangentially concerned with this issue. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-your-damn-opinion-on-my-family-size/157175.md?page=8)