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It's remarkable that anyone could with a straight face say that the drive and desire for children is a "cultural dogma". In the nature vs. nurture debate, not e

It's remarkable that anyone could with a straight face say that the drive and desire for children is a "cultural dogma". In the nature vs. nurture debate, not everything is a tie.

brndnmtthws 9y ago
It's strictly subjective.
- dionidium 9y ago
  No, it's not. We don't just throw our hands in the air and say, "I guess we'll never know!" It's not a tie. There is evidence for one side or the other. And in this case, the evidence couldn't possibly be stronger for one particular side.
  - brndnmtthws 9y ago
    I'm not convinced. Is there evidence that the parent/child bonding only occurs if you share DNA? My personal experience suggests otherwise, especially given that my mother was adopted.
underbluewaters 9y ago
There are a lot of folks making this same argument. I studied evolutionary biology in University and can say confidently that you are on a lot shakier ground than you think. There is not necessarily an innate drive to make a traditional family. Sex, sure. Most people have a sex drive but what happens afterword need not be familial bliss, or even sticking around to raise the child at all. In fact there a lot of very successful strategies in nature to offload that work to the other parent or even fool unrelated adoptive parents.
- dionidium 9y ago
  Thanks for responding! If you have some favorite sources that would help me learn more about this, please pass them along.
- burfog 9y ago
  Evolution can go quickly if the selection pressure is high. (example: done in under 24 hours if we shot everybody without blue eyes) Our environment has been drastically changed by birth control. Previously, a desire for sex was essentially equal to a desire for reproduction. Selection for one would select for the other, so they didn't need to be distinguished. So essentially we are now unfit for our environment. We will rapidly evolve to fit this new environment. People of the future will desire actual reproduction, not just sex.

It's remarkable that anyone could with a straight face say that the drive and desire for children is a "cultural dogma". In the nature vs. nurture debate, not everything is a tie.

brndnmtthws 9y ago

It's strictly subjective.

dionidium 9y ago
No, it's not. We don't just throw our hands in the air and say, "I guess we'll never know!" It's not a tie. There is evidence for one side or the other. And in this case, the evidence couldn't possibly be stronger for one particular side.
- brndnmtthws 9y ago
  I'm not convinced. Is there evidence that the parent/child bonding only occurs if you share DNA? My personal experience suggests otherwise, especially given that my mother was adopted.

underbluewaters 9y ago

There are a lot of folks making this same argument. I studied evolutionary biology in University and can say confidently that you are on a lot shakier ground than you think. There is not necessarily an innate drive to make a traditional family. Sex, sure. Most people have a sex drive but what happens afterword need not be familial bliss, or even sticking around to raise the child at all. In fact there a lot of very successful strategies in nature to offload that work to the other parent or even fool unrelated adoptive parents.

dionidium 9y ago
Thanks for responding! If you have some favorite sources that would help me learn more about this, please pass them along.
burfog 9y ago
Evolution can go quickly if the selection pressure is high. (example: done in under 24 hours if we shot everybody without blue eyes) Our environment has been drastically changed by birth control. Previously, a desire for sex was essentially equal to a desire for reproduction. Selection for one would select for the other, so they didn't need to be distinguished. So essentially we are now unfit for our environment. We will rapidly evolve to fit this new environment. People of the future will desire actual reproduction, not just sex.