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Comment by Jedd | Hacker News Reader

Counterpoint - the best single thing you can do for the planet, in terms of minimising your consumption / ecological footprint, is to not spawn.

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No need to blame it on one’s spawn, one can start now…

Also why is ecological footprint even important itself? Our eco system has no more reason to exist than any of its components, including humans.

This will only result in others reproducing more to replace those who are predispositioned to think like you.

Also, have fun not having anyone to take care about you when you grow old. And your retirement won't be worth shit either without a new generation to keep the economy going.

Yeah no thanks, fuck your anti-natalism. You might as well remove your own ecological footprint if you would deny your children's their existence for that reason.

I think perhaps you have misunderstood what a counterpoint is.

While true, it's functionally irrelevant. Humans are animals, animals procreate. Telling people not to do it because reasons is going to be about as effective as telling them not to eat or sleep.

What I would like to see is a norm on numbers of children. Personally, I think that having more than the replacement number - i.e. more than 2 - is straightforwardly unethical given the stress our planet is under. But by the same token, 2 or fewer is fine. And it would be nice if those who choose to have none got a little more respect for it.

But humans can actually make conscious choices beyond their base animal pressures. We use prophylactics even though those go against our animal pressure to procreate. We help strangers even if it won't improve our own situation and without any expectation of future reciprocation. We have to eat and sleep to live, we don't have to have children.

We also have cultural pressures, which can shape individual behavior. We could have a culture where the default is not to have kids, but that you should not have kids unless you are stable and secure enough to have then and are prepared to invest sufficiently in raising them.

Worse, than that, if you preach antinatalism it has any chance of catching up with people of some knowledge and reflection, leaving the Earth to the children of those of less knowledge and reflection.

1) This is simply not true. 2) Why tf should I car about the planet over human happiness?

It is true. And google sociopathy.

the planet is a rock

Probably the single best thing you can do for the planet is become a green energy lobbyist.

Only if the deal includes a private jet.

You mean by getting nuclear plants shut down, which are then replaced by increased gas and coal energy production because those are the only realistic alternatives?

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