18 Comments
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Byron B. Carrier's avatar

No matter the sex or setup, babies didn't ask to be born. Once born, I think all babies should have the right to know who their father is and be supported by him. They should have the right to know their own genetic makeup. Mothers typically inherit lifelong obligations; too many fathers skip out. Babies are innocent and deserve to know exactly who their parents are and get the support they are due. Such laws would change sexual dynamics.

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Trey S's avatar

Genuine question, we already have laws that include paternal child support so what hypothetical change are you imagining?

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Byron B. Carrier's avatar

Perhaps I'm wrong, but I suspect "parental" means legally married. I'm concerned for the offspring of men who skip out from hook-ups, rapes, and artificial insemination. With genetic testing, we can know exactly who a father is. That person should then incur financial and emotional responsibility. The child is due knowledge of its genetic makeup as well as support. Such long-term responsibility would change the sex dynamic of those who want to score and skip. They don't deserve the right to evade. The offspring, who did not ask to be born, deserve some reasonable support and knowledge of their genetic inheritance.

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Trey S's avatar

I wrote "paternal" not "parental". "Paternal" as in originating from the father.

I'm not sure where you live, but in every state and territory of the United States there is a well-established legal regime that does exactly what you're saying. When a man has a child with a woman and then abandons her, the woman has the right to take the man to court where a judge will sentence a mandatory garnishing of the father's wages for childcare related expenses until the child turns 18 years old. It's called "child support" and it's very widespread and common. I was wondering what changes you were proposing to the current child support laws, but it sounds like maybe you've just never heard of child support?

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Byron B. Carrier's avatar

Thanks, Trey. I know less about child support than you. You note "the woman has the right," but I'm also saying the child has rights, whether they stem from a fling or artificial insemination. Too often, women bear the lasting brunt of sex while men skip out. Too often, both mothers and children are abandoned by irresponsible fathers. If such men knew how it might impact their lives, they'd be more careful.

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Marc Novicoff's avatar

Ashley St. Clair says in her paternity suit that they did conceive the kid naturally (with sex) while in St. Barts https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/elon-musk-ashley-st-clair-sues-paternity-custody-child-1235276863/

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Magdalene J. Taylor's avatar

Well, fuck! My point about natalism and IVF still stands.

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Kate Reynolds's avatar

His first child Nevada was also naturally conceived.

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Chandler Klang Smith's avatar

Okay, that point still stands but the misinformation you're confidently disseminating doesn't? I came here to leave this same comment today -- it's very weird to me that you haven't edited the post. (Maybe you don't want to start your argument out with, "I think Elon Musk is almost kind of cool!" though, LOL)

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Magdalene J. Taylor's avatar

I said "wouldn't be it almost kind of cool," implying that I obviously do not think he is cool at all. I'll add a note that I'm wrong, but I would rather keep my mistake in the piece for transparency rather than pretend I was never wrong in the first place.

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Chandler Klang Smith's avatar

I meant that an ill-advised revision would start with "He's almost kind of cool," since you previously said he would be "almost kind of cool" if only he did what, unbeknownst to you, he actually did do. So your ill-advised revision would look like this:

Elon Musk is almost kind of cool for impregnating and abandoning Ashley St. Clair, since he didn't use IVF to do it! Yay for unprotected sex 😍

However, I think readers would find that pretty strange.

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nb's avatar
Mar 6Edited

Lady, these children were conceived in different worlds, thus the use of IVF. The eggs are 'transferred' (or duplicated) via quantum physics and implanted using IVF, so the children may be born, even if the parents did not date or see each other within this particular timeline; they were merely informed that they had, and had had a child. Sex is the least of their problems

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Haley Young's avatar

Thank you for sharing this and the podcast ep link/code! I like this kind of digest format.

I do want to add in regards to this paragraph “The reasons why otherwise stable, happy couples are choosing to not have children are the same reasons why people are spending more time alone, why they’re ordering all their meals from DoorDash, why their screen time mirrors their waking hours, why they report having fewer friends. They’re anxious and addled as it is, and feel as though they can’t justify bringing new life into this world to experience the same horrors they do. They also can’t really afford it, anyway.” that some of us stable, happy couples also just… do not want to be parents. (Maybe I’m feeling prickly because I’ve been seeing a lot of childfree-by-choice discourse lately, so feel free to ignore me if this isn’t relevant. Felt worth mentioning to round out the generalization!)

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Kate Reynolds's avatar

Congrats on the podcast ep!

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Bethani's avatar

Hello, love your writing. I wanted to hear the podcast but the code isn't working for me.

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Bill Canzoneri's avatar

“We are what we consume” or whatever karmic phrase you want to say

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Anonymous Dude's avatar

Could be a carryover of the days when film was more important and big movies had a bigger cultural impact than they do now--look at all the people talking about getting x-'pilled' 26 years after the Matrix came out.

Or, you know, journalists like to exaggerate their importance, like everyone else whose job involves self-promotion, which is a lot of us now.

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Erwin Cuellar's avatar

Wow conference is $1k. I’m in Austin. Maybe someone here could go for you as a reporter

https://lu.ma/zw2e4lff

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