Word: parenthood
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...None is fun." That is the slogan of the National Organization for Non-Parents (NON), a new association formed to promote "childfree" marriage and make non-parenthood "not just a word but an option." The nonparents' group is still small-only 400-but it hopes to grow. All of the members, even the parents among them, are committed to childlessness as a way of creating "social space." That means "a combination of time, money and energy" that can be used to conserve planetary resources, beat the high cost of living and free husbands and wives for political activism...
Despite its frequently childish espousal of childlessness, NON makes some valid points. It observes that the cultural bias against childless couples is so strong that husbands and wives cannot choose non-parenthood freely; they know they will be branded selfish, shallow and neurotic. In fact, the organization stresses, motives for parenthood are not always what they seem. Some parents use children, like drugs, to shield them from the realities of life. Others want offspring only to fulfill their own frustrated hopes, to have someone to possess and control, or to ensure financial support in their...
...recommends a maximum of one child for couples who really want youngsters, and no babies at all before age 21. According to Washington Psychiatrist E. James Lieberman, a member of NON's executive committee, there are good psychological reasons for practicing that restraint. "Our society thrusts people into parenthood prematurely," he says. "The best preventive psychiatry is becoming a parent at the proper time and for the right reasons...
...There should be no attempt to impose a standard of genetic normality on any segment of the population. Virtually everyone carries a small number of harmful recessive genes. To eliminate these from the gene pool might require partners who both have similar "bad" traits to avoid parenthood entirely...
...Nardil, a tranquilizer, and Mrs. Troppi later gave birth to a son. If the Troppis can prove negligence, a Michigan court of appeals ruled, a lower court can then order the druggist to pay damages. In computing the amount, the appeals bench said, the value of the joys of parenthood may be subtracted from the costs of raising a child...