Earth Day: Save The Planet By Not Having Children?

By on April 20, 2010 in News 25

With Earth Day 2010 on this 22nd of April, I wonder how much the Green movement and the greater media at large will debate this opinion from Lisa Hymas on Grist:
Starchild

In 1969, graduating college senior Stephanie Mills made national headlines with a commencement address exclaiming that, in the face of impending ecological devastation, she was choosing to forgo parenthood. “I am terribly saddened by the fact that the most humane thing for me to do is to have no children at all,” she told her classmates.

I come here before you today to make the same proclamation — with a twist. I am thoroughly delighted by the fact that the most humane thing for me to do is to have no children at all.

Making the green choice too often feels like a sacrifice or a hassle or an expense. In this case, it feels like a luxurious indulgence that just so happens to cost a lot less for me and weigh a lot less on the carbon-bloated atmosphere.

I call myself a GINK: green inclinations, no kids.

Read more from Lisa Hymas on Grist

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  • cosmicape

    Wised move! and let's ask a wise question, “why do the most mindless brainwashed ant-people and sheeple have the most children?” (sigh), as one radical doctor I know once said, “It's not survival of the fittest…it's survival of the most… and most are dangerous idiots” which is partially why disinformation and other such disinformanias even exists to begin with, to provide at least some homeostasis in this idiocracy. Check out the myspace page I made (http://www.myspace.com/positive_brain_change) in the section titled “Human Over Population” and “human destruction” – there's some interesting videos there which backs up Stephanie Mills' no-kids decision and a book by the tite “No Kids: 40 (or so) good reasons not to have kids”… and of course The Zeitgeist Movement http://thezeitgeistmovement.com – one of my new favorites.

  • Dr. Prof. Holierthanthou

    The answer isn't to not breed, but to develop green technologies. This a bullshit argument sterile people use to gain some moral superiority on their friends.
    Lets have all the backward ass people breed without any consequences, while the “smart ones” do the “responsible” thing and not breed.
    This chic should do the “responsible” thing and drown herself, because sticking a hose from your muffler through the car window wouldn't be green.

  • Carl

    Interesting how many people who believe that by having only two children that they are merely replacing themselves. This, however, is only true if they remove themselves from the planet when the second is born.

  • TheChaoSaysMu

    What bugs me is the fact that what is entirely overlooked in this article is adoption. She goes on and on about how wonderful it is not to have children, trying to case it in terms of making the Earth better environmentally…bullshit, her true reason seems to be that not having kids means you get to have more fun and do more of what you want as an adult.
    Don't get me wrong, I agree that we all need to stop having so many f'n kids, and that doing so would be healthy for the Earth. However, I think you can do better than simply not having kids. If you have the means, adopt! There are millions of children living in sheer hell who could be given a better chance if they were adopted. Hell, were it not for adoption I would not have had two of the greatest teachers (professors) of my life.
    I'm not quite sure how the author of this bit seemed to completely overlook that, or looking at the comments how next to no one mentions it.
    I say if you are in a position where you can have kids (biologically/finacially etc.) and want them, opt for adoption instead, in my not so humble opinion that's the most environmentally and humane choice to make.

  • iphlogiston

    Doing my part. I'm gay and loving it.

  • tonyviner

    Not only should abortion be legal, it should be mandatory. If you want a kid, adopt one. Your bloodline is not as important as you think it is. Bullshit macho posturing, that's what that is, and I think we have had quite enough of it.

    • arnold

      hey stupid,you couldn't adopt a kid if everyone had abortions.

      • tonyviner

        I guess I should clarify my statement for those of us with a tiny intellect. I meant BLACK people. Stupid.

  • scarsdontbleed

    It has surprised me to see so many judgmental people on here. So what if she chooses to not have kids because she believes it is helping the earth. Frankly, I am choosing to not have kids as well. Though not for the same reason. I just don't want any…ever! As far as saving the earth goes, I'm not losing any sleep over it. Stars die eventually…and so will the sun. Woopty fuckin' doo, earth day!

  • samthor

    well i'm sure overpopulation will be a problem at some point. but trying to regulate it seems an even bigger nightmare. look at what happened with China, they put their population even more out of whack. ideally, breeding should be an individual's responsibility using their common sense….. unfortunately common sense is the rarest commodity of all.

  • APRyason
  • eliya

    this is ludicrous! stop having kids so we can save the planet for whom exactly?

    • Fred

      For the other millions of living things on the planet, you selfish cow…

    • JohnnyUtah

      For people who don’t post stupid responses. There are 6 billion people on this planet and its dying. We need less people you fool.

  • Fred

    For the other millions of living things on the planet, you selfish cow…

  • Lzardo2003

    Not having kids IS the best we can do to the environment

    If it happens that not having kids is also the best we can do to OURSELVES, giving us more free time, saving us more money and allowing us a better career it doesn´t means that the above statement is false.

    And to say that all people who does not have kids do so because they are sterile is completely absurd, most people do that by choice…

    Unfortunately, when people are sterile, isntead of adopting a kid or accept their fate (not a so bad fate after all) they spend a lot of money in some fertilization clinic and end up with some three or four kids at once…or eight

  • ECO

    That’s very bad,are this person is mad,if you don’t have a children,humans in this planet won’t be EXIST,are you stressed out when you make that bad article,there’s so many better plans to save our earth like:use solar system,wind turbines,etc.I tell you again,childfree won’t help saving our green earth.

  • ECO

    That’s very bad,are this person is mad,if you don’t have a children,humans in this planet won’t be EXIST,are you stressed out when you make that bad article,there’s so many better plans to save our earth like:use solar system,wind turbines,etc.I tell you again,childfree won’t help saving our green earth.

  • HiPeople

    childfree is selfish

  • HiPeople

    childfree is selfish

  • BTR

    If you don’t want have kids (and if your parents do that),you won’t be born

  • JohnnyUtah

    For people who don’t post stupid responses. There are 6 billion people on this planet and its dying. We need less people you fool.

  • Anonymous

    Oh yeah?  Well I disagree with your post. So there.

  • Anonymous

    Tell the Third World. White people almost universally around the world in every country are having less children. Whites and the Japanese.

  • Wanooski

    Don’t have no children, just try to have only one.