End of the World

Earthquakes, global warming, poverty, serial killers and loneliness why would anyone bring a child into this world is the question that Peter Singer poses in his article for the New York TImes. He offers the idea of sterilizing the human race as a solution to the problems of the world and to protect the future generations, but what would that truly solve?

People are often unhappy with how their lives turn out but that does not justify the right to never give them a chance to live. Our lives are not so terrible that you could not stand to live in this world. Everyone goes through bad times but on the other side it makes you appreciate all the good things in your life that much more. 

Singer says that, "we think it is wrong to bring into the world a child whose prospects for a happy, healthy life are poor, but we don’t usually think the fact that a child is likely to have a happy, healthy life is a reason for bringing the child into existence." No couple wants to have a child if they believe they will live an unhappy life, every parent desires the best for their child even if they cannot always give it to them. The statement Singer makes is not true because every parent hopes that their child will be able to live the best life possible and even though having a baby is not usually based on how happy they may be in the future it is just assumed that a new life has so many new opportunities to have happiness. 

There is not a person who has ever lived who has been happy their entire life, life is a constant struggle to get by or to achieve something. There always seems to be something wrong but despite that life has its moments where you are just lucky to be alive and those are the moments that parents envision when they have children; their graduation, their wedding, having a baby. Its a process of life that we have all gone through, emotions and struggles, problems and happiness all come in a package. No one has it all, even if it seems that way. 

How in the world could we all, the entire human race, decide not to reproduce anymore to just cause our own extinction? Is anyones life that terrible that they couldn't imagine bringing a child into this world. We can't predict the future, we cannot know that the climate issues are going to get better but we can't just give up. Thats what sterilizing  everyone would do, we would just throw in the towel on our fight to save the planet, on the fight against everything. Quitting reproducing won't solve any problems on its own we have to be here to help our planet. 

Some commenters argue "The only certain thing you are creating with a pregnancy is a death" yet how can you be so pessimistic about life there are much greater things than just death. Loathing life you may as well be dead, you have to embrace everything and enjoy every sudden change that life throws at you. 

I agree more with this comment left by Peter from LA, "Your pessimistic argument about the state of life as being all suffering, does not fit with the solution of not having children and throwing a big party. Instead everyone in the world who agrees should commit suicide, as they are harming themselves by choosing to remain alive." His bluntness is how I feel toward the pessimists whose only solution to the worlds problems are to just end everything.

Our life is what we make of it, if you are able to embrace life and accept things are not always going to go your way but that you can always make the best out of a bad situation. Life is much more fulfilling and raising a child with those views then no matter how life turns out they can always be happy.