It is 100 million times more honorable and respectable for someone to adopt a child than have one of their own.

I very well might be so inclined one day far far down the line.

AdamPee wrote:

Mark Hansen wrote:It could be argued that providing the seed is the least part of fatherhood.

I would argue that providing seed is in no part fatherhood whatsoever. It is like saying that a car is not manufactured by a company, but the mine that the metal for the chasis was mined from.

Sure, it wouldn't be there without it, but it doesn't make a damn sight of difference if it comes from someplace else entirely.

I'd rather say that 50% of the design and engineering plans for the car come from the father, but the other 50%, plus all the materials and the entire means of production are contributed by the mother.

Jesus H., dude, just stick to being an asshole from now on.

Rick Reuben wrote:

AdamPee wrote:I would argue that providing seed is in no part fatherhood whatsoever.

That's just stupid. Try and grow a watermelon without a seed.

The Japanese have done it, I'm sure

Marsupialized wrote:

Rick Reuben wrote:

AdamPee wrote:I would argue that providing seed is in no part fatherhood whatsoever.

That's just stupid. Try and grow a watermelon without a seed.

The Japanese have done it, I'm sure

And made it square instead of oval shaped, too.

Marsupialized wrote:If you are a man, a male and are sitting there thinking 'I want a baby' you are one fucked up in the head motherfucker. Seriously. That's just fucking twisted.

Think of every great man in history. Think right now of men throughout history who have done great and awesome things. Maybe just cool motherfuckers, think of them. Think of the coolest motherfuckers who have ever lived. Get it in your head. Have them all just going through your head like a photobook, one after another.

Got it? See those bad ass motherfuckers?

Do any of those pictures in your head resemble this one even a little bit?

Uh oh, some of the family friendly crowd around here come down hard and swift, just you wait.

busbus wrote:What ever. By the way, you're a fucking idiot.

Did anyone in this thread get preachy about having kids? Nope. So shut your fucking pie hole when talking about what you think I or others feel about having kids.

I have to say my younger brother is a pretty awesome dad, all things considered.

He jokes around with his kids and makes them laugh all the time. He has even taught them how to laugh at themselves and tolerate the laughter of others at their expense. A very important lesson for teenagers.

He allows them to mock and tease him in jest, but in serious matters he always maintains the upper hand, and there's no question when he's being serious. He always takes the time to explain to them the underlying reasons of any rules he makes them follow. All my nephews and my niece are very good kids with good values, lots of personality and a healthy outlook on life.

My brother is a great dad. If I ever have kids I will try to raise them in much the same way he raises his.

--EDIT-- I'm reposting this in the "Do You Plan On Having a Family" thread, 'cause it's not argumentative enough for this one.

Colonel Panic wrote:

AdamPee wrote:

Mark Hansen wrote:It could be argued that providing the seed is the least part of fatherhood.

I would argue that providing seed is in no part fatherhood whatsoever. It is like saying that a car is not manufactured by a company, but the mine that the metal for the chasis was mined from.

Sure, it wouldn't be there without it, but it doesn't make a damn sight of difference if it comes from someplace else entirely.

I'd rather say that 50% of the design and engineering plans for the car come from the father, but the other 50%, plus all the materials and the entire means of production are contributed by the mother.

I am afraid you misunderstood me, I am not meaning to discount the invaluable positive (and sure, possibly negative) impact of having a beneficial paternal influence in a child's life, but my point was more that the location of the materials (or if you leave the metaphor, semen) is so comparatively unimportant when compared to the people who raise the child (or, in the metaphor, the people who designed the car).

And Mr. Ruben, if I were to poke a hole in a condom and get a lady knocked up against her will, should I be entitled to determine whether the woman carries the child, or would it be a mutual decision?

To be more crass, if I were to rape a woman, would I be entitled to parental rights until I was proven guilty? As I am presumed innocent and the proceedings would inevitably drag out for longer than nine months, would I be entitled to these parental rights until I am convicted? This system would have the dual effect of bogging down our court system with bogus claims of abuse to deny people care that they require if they have actually been in a crisis.

Finally, if there were a risk to the mother's life, and the father wanted her to hold on to the child if I meant the woman's death, and the woman would rather live, would she be forced to die for the child?

If the decision does not have to be mutual, who would decide which member has the greater claim? Would we further expand government bureaucracy (that if I am not mistaken from your former posts, you are against)? Who would be willing to foot the bill for endless mediations between the parties?

How could this system possibly ever work in any facet whatsoever?

I feel like you are the one ignoring the relevant parts of the argument.

I am asking how you would support such a logistically huge and cavernous process such as determining which people are and are not allowed to have a say in the decision of the woman? What would it take for the man to be disqualified from the system?

EDIT: Also, my argument remains exactly the same in a marriage, sexual abuse occurs just as much in committed relationships as it does in other relationships.

Rick Reuben wrote:

Marsupialized wrote:It is 100 million times more honorable and respectable for someone to adopt a child than have one of their own.

I very well might be so inclined one day far far down the line.

Don't wait too long. The way the economy is going, that kid is going to need about 20 years of your earning power to pay his way into college. Unless he can get in on a scholarship. Pick an Asian or an Indian to ensure that.

No kid of mine is going to fucking college!

As long as it's not some fucked up Russian kid, I'm cool with whatever.

What those people are thinking taking a Russian kid, chromosomes all scrambled up from biological weapons and radiation sprayed on their mothers for the last 50 years I'll never know.