[Andy B]

This is funny/cute
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MbzKnB-XkY][/youtube]

This is just annoying
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qS7nqwGt4-I][/youtube]

[Yudster]

It is hard to see which is uglier though.

[Andy B]

I will give you that...A pug has a face only another pug owner could love.

[Nicola_Red]

I can't see the links, but animals are clearly better than babies in any case.

[Munki Bhoy]

Dog being cute, baby crying... hardly a fair comparison. Try the baby being cute. Or the dog barking at nothing in particular for ages.

I'm still in the Babies > Animals category. Though that's not to say I don't like animals. I'm a big fan of puppies.

[Andy B]

My mum warned me about men like you.....Charlie says......

[dimtimjim]

Animals are no comparison... Sure babies are a pain in the backside, but labra-doodles don't offer the same satisfation once grown up.... I've not once been to see my cat* doing a christmas nativity play and been proud. Never had the joy of watching my goldfish* cycling without stabilisers for the first time. And know for sure my Iguana* won't look after me in my more senior/senile years.


* I don't have any pets, animals used for example only. No animals were harmed in the typing of this post.

[Yudster]

When it comes to incredibly annoying noise, well, none of my babies have ever kept a whole street awake all night with their crying, but the dog over the road does it regularly. I swear if I had a gun I'd shoot it, put it out of everyone's misery.

[Nicola_Red]

Animals are no comparison... Sure babies are a pain in the backside, but labra-doodles don't offer the same satisfation once grown up.... I've not once been to see my cat* doing a christmas nativity play and been proud. Never had the joy of watching my goldfish* cycling without stabilisers for the first time. And know for sure my Iguana* won't look after me in my more senior/senile years..

Well, I wasn't being entirely serious. Each to their own of course. As someone who is childfree, I'm bound to prefer the relative economy and lack of responsibility of owning rats compared to to having a baby!

[Yudster]

I remember a quote from somewhere which I thought was very true - "Once the switch of parenthood is thrown it changes you forever and you can never escape the extra pull of humanity it gives". I do think thats very true - but I also understand - at least I HOPE I understand - that people see things differently, and whilst for me that quote expresses joy, and love and blessing, for others it might equally be full of horror and terror and repulsion!

[MK Chris]

I think it may be true, at least in a small way, for uncle and aunt-hood too.

[Bruvva]

"Once the switch of parenthood is thrown it changes you forever and you can never escape the extra pull of humanity it gives".

Well just imagine what Fred and Rose West would have been like if they hadn't had the "extra pull of humanity". That's just smug, self regarding, "ooh, I'm brilliant, I can reproduce" toss.

[Yudster]

"Once the switch of parenthood is thrown it changes you forever and you can never escape the extra pull of humanity it gives".

Well just imagine what Fred and Rose West would have been like if they hadn't had the "extra pull of humanity". That's just smug, self regarding, "ooh, I'm brilliant, I can reproduce" toss.

I don't think we're reading it quite the same - I don't think there's anything smug about it, I think its its humbling, which is the opposite of smug. As for parading the ability to reproduce, well, if expressing a level of awe and gratitude for that ability (which is how I interpret the "extra pull of humanity") is being self-regarding, then thats what it is. It isn't though.

And as for what on earth it has to do with the Wests, you have me completely lost there.

[Sunny So Cal]

Yuds, it was a beautiful quote and that's the meaning I took when I read it.

[Yudster]

Well, like I said, it will say different things to different people - not that that changes its meaning I suppose.

[Bruvva]

It's the implication that you're a better, more humane person if you're a parent that I take offense to, it's patent balls. But hohum.

[Yudster]

I don't think "humanity" in this context implies worth in any way - but we could go backwards and forwards with semantics forever.

[Munki Bhoy]

I'm firmly on the baby side. This is despite the fact that I have no kids of my own, nor do I regularly see anyone that does. Which given my age is actually rather strange.

[Nicola_Red]

I don't think "humanity" in this context implies worth in any way - but we could go backwards and forwards with semantics forever.

I don't really know what a "pull of humanity" is. I think the quote is trying to imply some sort of deep meaningful connection with another person on a way you wouldn't experience otherwise. Which is probably true, but it's very easy to demean the experiences of childfree people without meaning to. (Back when I was in a long term r/ship, I was told that a marriage without children would be like "an empty stage always waiting for something to happen". yeah, thanks for that!)

[dimtimjim]

I'm with the Yud - she talk a whole lotta sense.

I used to hate babies... If this thread were 7 years ago, I'da been down with the animal priase, but its as Yuds says... Throw the switch and never look at things the same again...

My daughter ROCKS!!!

[MK Chris]

All that said, certain people shouldn't be allowed to reproduce. Markool89 is one of them. She Who Shall Not Be Named is another. Foot-loose's mum was another, although that was for a different reason and she wasn't to know, bless her.

[foot-loose]

I wasn't born, I was spawned.

[Andy B]

All that said, certain people shouldn't be allowed to reproduce. Markool89 is one of them. She Who Shall Not Be Named is another. Foot-loose's mum was another, although that was for a different reason and she wasn't to know, bless her.

Nice to see I wasn't named in that list....feel free to add me if you want. Although I'm sure people said the same about my dad - he's like a magnified version of me.

[MK Chris]

It wasn't a complete list, I just said the first people who came to mind (foot-loose's mum was obviously a joke. The others weren't.)

[Andy B]

Sadly though I predict the downfall of society as the illiterati have way more kids than normal folks and they tend to start off much earlier....my ownly hope is they continue to shoot and murder each other and thus reduce the chav population.