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Should voluntarily childless couples be allowed to get married?

[Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0
edited November 2016 in Off-Topic
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  1. Should voluntarily childless couples be allowed to get married?40 votes
    1. yes
      92.50%
    2. no
        2.50%
    3. other (elaborate, please)
        5.00%
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0
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  • dunbardunbar Member Posts: 1,603
    One possible reason that I can see: So far the polls have been about marriage and the answers have been a fairly obvious "yes". At what point (if any) do people start saying "no"? These polls could be laying the groundwork for exploring why some people don't want to allow marriages between certain types of people because of one aspect of their lifestyle.
  • Grond0Grond0 Member Posts: 7,320
    If this was a verbal series of questions I would expect a trick one to be thrown in. I was once embarrassed in front of an audience of hundreds by someone demonstrating the difficulty of answering simple questions instantly under pressure (what is your name, where do you live etc). The trick question thrown in was "what do cows drink" - and I didn't answer water ...

    In this case though I'm struggling to understand the purpose of these questions - they appear to me to be so one-sided as to invalidate an academic study around marriage. They could of course be testing something else - like the degree to which people can be persuaded to debate pointless questions or take up devil's advocate positions. Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised when the rationale for these questions is eventually revealed, but for now (as they say on Dragon's Den) I'm out.
  • O_BruceO_Bruce Member Posts: 2,790
    No purpose of these pool stated = no opinion from me. Sorry.
  • AedanAedan Member, Translator (NDA) Posts: 8,550
    @Shandyr
    Why this pool?
    I do not get it.
  • TheElfTheElf Member Posts: 798
    Kamigoroshi said:


    I am anticipating the next poll question will be "Should unmarried couples be allowed to get matching outfits and wear them outside?"

    That would be a tough one tbh.
  • semiticgoddesssemiticgoddess Member Posts: 14,903
    Some people like getting married.
  • smeagolheartsmeagolheart Member Posts: 7,963
    edited November 2016
    What's wrong with being childless if that's what you want to do?
  • NonnahswriterNonnahswriter Member Posts: 2,520
    edited November 2016
    You forgot the "are also financially healthy enough to support a child if they want to, but they don't" reason. Because even if I'm biologically healthy enough to have a child, having the money to support him or her after birth is an entirely different story.
  • deltagodeltago Member Posts: 7,811
    Ya. Once again it is going into the religious territory of marriage instead of the civil territory. Some religious groups may object to a childless marriage but their opinion matters little.
  • FinneousPJFinneousPJ Member Posts: 6,455
    At least christiany considers marriage a pre-requisite for children, not the other way around, does it not...
  • smeagolheartsmeagolheart Member Posts: 7,963
    FinneousPJ said:

    At least christiany considers marriage a pre-requisite for children, not the other way around, does it not...

    In practice what happens is the girl gets pregnant then the couple gets married, right?
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    See, I think Shandyr has someone who has hounded his life and tried to ruin everything Shandyr has worked for. Shandyr knows they frequents this forum, but not who they are. Luckily this mystery enemy has incredibly specific views on marriage and religion. These polls are Shandyr slowly narrowing down the list of suspects until our mystery person slips up.
  • FinneousPJFinneousPJ Member Posts: 6,455
    @smeagolheart I wouldn't know, but that's not how I understand the doctrine.
  • Troodon80Troodon80 Member, Developer Posts: 4,110
    Yes to the first question. No to the second question. The potential for procreation is not, or rather should not be, a prerequisite for marriage—be that political/legal, social, or religious—and thus the second question makes the first a little bit obsolete in the asking.

    I could probably provide a more in-depth answer if context was provided for the question. Is it intended to be religious or legal... or... both?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0
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  • Troodon80Troodon80 Member, Developer Posts: 4,110
    Shandyr said:

    No, I wanted specifically to ask about couples who could have children on their own but don't want to.

    The second question also includes couples who cannot have children for medical or other reasons.

    The answer to the follow-up question is still no. Children are not, in most countries, a requirement for marriage. It's up to the individuals who want to get married if they want to make a contract (e.g. prenuptial agreement) stipulating that they must have children... but I'd imagine that to be extraordinarily rare.

    So... if children are not a requirement for marriage, then the first question is redundant as it would never come up. Why would anyone not allow it if it wasn't a requirement?

    This is also why I was asking for context—let's pretend I have no idea why the question was asked or what the potential answers will be: why would anyone make the distinction of not wanting to versus biologically incapable?

    From a legal point, laws regarding children and marriage usually only cover people who want to have children in their marriage (i.e. this isn't a requirement for marriage, but a decision during marriage and what could potentially happen in the case of a divorce or some other event). From a religious point, and depending on which religion, it's up for debate as to whether people should even have children after they are married.
  • AnduinAnduin Member Posts: 5,745
    Uhm... Not sure on theses polls but I'll answer 'cause I feel a friend of a friend of a friend is having some issues with marriage and it's meaning.

    So re-stating.

    A marriage is the union of two people.

    Children, or the wanting of children, is not a prerequisite.

    Other questions surrounding on whether you should or not will always go back to this one fact.

    ...

    Oddly, in my experience, couples who are adamant they do not want kids, have kids. People are allowed to change their minds.

    On occasion, whilst arguing that I really do not want my nails painted or wear an Elsa hair braid with a three year old at the same time as changing and cleaning up the messy results from an overflowing nappy of a 1 year old with a bowel that can empty three days of nutrients in three minutes, in the dark as light will only wake them more, at 3:27 in the morning... I have thought long and hard about not wanting kids...
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    As a fairly new parent, I can say with some confidence that having a child comes with some kind of re programming. I stopped caring about the more annoying bits of parenting so much.
  • mashedtatersmashedtaters Member Posts: 2,266
    I'll just cut to what I believe the last poll will be.

    I'm firmly religious, and yes I believe homosexual people should be allowed to be married, even though my religion doesn't condone it. I believe that anyone can and should be allowed to experience the rewards and downs of marriage regardless of whatever they are.
    And yes, I believe they should be allowed to adopt/have kids if they want. Honestly, it's not my business, or anyone's business, what you do with your family.
    But I also believe that people should provide a responsible environment for children, whether gay or straight, and that they should be firmly, even legally committed to each other before having children: otherwise, in the case that they decide to split up, it is very difficult to establish a legal claim for the children upon their parent or the parent upon their children, especially if they are not blood related or legally adopted by both parents.
    In my opinion, having children should be a strong team commitment performed by mentally healthy adults to raising the child(ren) with morals valuable to the parents. Kids raised in cruelty by screwed up parents are, or one day will be, everyone's business, whether we want to accept it or not.
    I have had animals and now I have children, and, unlike animals, children are not "cute" enough to justify the work they require. There is nothing similar at all between raising a child and having a pet. It needs to be a team effort of devotion, love, and sacrifice for the children.
    People who don't want children should either keep it in their pants or use effective birth control. I don't condone killing a child in utero as a form of birth control. (Abortion for rape, incest, and when the child or mother is at significant risk is different and maybe necessary, depending on the person's decision.)
    Having children is a very, very important decision and should not be taken lightly. In fact, I think it should be licensed and regulated...oh wait...it used to be...it was called a marriage license...we did away with those as a pre-requisite for having children. Damn.
    In short, I believe the opposite of the follow up question, not that having children is a pre-requisite to marriage, but that marriage should be a pre-requisite to having children.
    Should that last one be in the unpopular opinions thread?


    In answer to this poll, mashedtaters! Yes, mashedtaters should be allowed to be married, if they want. And childless couples. And chairs, monkeys, toadstools, Martians, undead gnome liches, broccoli, popcorn, and even cauliflower. Whatever, let them all marry and be given in marriage.
  • FardragonFardragon Member Posts: 4,511
    edited November 2016
    FinneousPJ said:

    Let me skip the BS:

    Should two consenting, legally accountable adults be allowed to Marry?

    Yes

    Or any three or four or five. And whether or not they are human or not is irrelevant.

    Anyone should be allowed to go through whatever farcical religious ceremony they like, and anyone who tries to tell them otherwise should be strung up by bits that hurt.

    As for childlessness, it should be encouraged. This planet has far to many humans.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0
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  • NonnahswriterNonnahswriter Member Posts: 2,520
    Fardragon said:

    Shandyr said:

    New point for discussion:

    If religious belief and having children are not mandatory for marriage, then what is?
    What defines marriage?

    a) consent.

    b) whatever the participants believe.
    Yeah, that's...pretty much it. :/
  • dunbardunbar Member Posts: 1,603
    I would add

    c) commitment.

    but maybe that's just my generation/upbringing.
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