Teenagers suck

2 days ago

Children are a gift

It has been said that children are a gift. I firmly believe that. However there is a time that children must become adults and leave home. I think teenagers become horrible for a reason: So that their parents aren't too sad to let them leave.

As for the teenagers? They are just trying to spread their wings. They are tired of the stifling rules of parents. They want to become adults and exercise their autonomy. They want to try things and find out who they are and what they will become. Unfortunately the parents are still trying to keep them safe and protect them from bad decisions which ultimately leads to a lot of friction.

I am so very glad I survived the teenage years and my children are older now.

But what does that have to do with the Hive Learner topic "Designer Babies"?

If you could choose your babies genes?

When I read that my first thought was: "What a horrible idea"! I simply look at dog breeds and how people choose purebred breeds to fit their lifestyle.

Chihuahua for those who want a feisty small dog.
Poodles for those who want an intelligent dress up dog
Retrievers who want a big friendly dog

and I could go on and on.

Stupid Joke break

How can you tell the difference between a regular dog and an inbred dog?

Sorry for the interruption but talking about designer babies and dog breeds... I just had to throw that in there

If people treated their children like that? Can you imagine if...

... "I want a big strong son"... I'll take the Saint Bernard package.

... "I want a cute little child" ... I'll take the Pekenese package.

... "I want a child who will love me forever" ... I'll take the Golden Retriever package.

then I shudder if the government got involved.

... "We need more soldiers" ... bring on the Pitbull / Kangal cross mix.

Treating children as a designer fashion or custom design for a lifestyle just seems like a bad idea for me. It also misses one more major point.

Purebred dogs tend to have far more health problems than those without a pedigree.

If we were to allow genetic engineering of babies would we not be introducing genetic frailty into the overall mix?

Children forever

Another worry I have is that parents would want to have "easy" kids. Kids who go to bed on time. Eat without complaining. Do what they are told and follow their parents rules. Add in kids who sleep well through the night and you have great little children.

But here is something I read that I found interesting. Humans like dogs not wolves because dogs are genetically engineered to never really leave the toddler stage while wolves become adults. Looking at the dog temperament of clinging to their pack and generally being lovable and goofy over problem solving leads me to believe there is something to that.

To function as adults, Children need to grow up and become independent. Genetically engineer babies to be great kids? You end up with weak adults who are great at taking orders and doing what they are told but does that make for strong adults? For some reason I think ... No.

Now those are decent arguments against changing a baby to fit

But my real reason is that teenagers suck.

Well, that is a little tongue in cheek but here is my rationale.

If a parent was to choose traits for their children I am almost certain that their children would blame them for it later in life.

As an example: Suppose the parents choose "Tall, blonde hair, blue eye girl". Sounds fine. What if the girl wanted to pursue gymnastics only to find that taller athletes tend to have a much harder time in the sport. Now its the parents fault that their daughter isn't excelling. Or perhaps they have brown hair and the person they have a crush on only likes redheads. Now its the parents fault. Or if they want to play rugby but the parents chose the "slender model" build.

I would absolutely think that teenagers would blame the parents choice in their genetics for the teenagers problems

Sure when they are small children things might be great but I have a feeling that when they get older...ugh. Then again, if genetic engineering babies became a thing I'm sure teenagers would blame the parents for not getting the augmentation they prefer. It would be a lose / lose for the parents.

But there would also be almost no end of unsatisfied customers

If you take the same blonde hair, blue eyed girl? Then you find out they sunburn very quickly. Or perhaps they get too much attention from the boys. Or perhaps they become commonplace because that is the package everyone chooses...so now the brunettes get all the attention.

But childcare and parenting would also play a huge role. Sure the parents might choose the "Guaranteed 6' tall variety" but if they don't provide proper nutrition? Don't enforce proper rest and vitamins? That 6' potential may never ever happen. Then you get the inevitable "But I paid for a tall daughter" only to find out that genetics is only a small portion of the package.

Where would I support a little tweaking... maybe?

Genetic abnormalities

There are certain genetic conditions which can make life challenging for a child. There are some that may be obvious and controversial. Down Syndrome? Albinism? However, I will look at a couple which I believe would be less controversial.

Sickle Cell Anemia

If I was able to do something to prevent children from having sickle cell disease? Make sure my child never had to deal with the pain, shortened life expectancy, and general debilitation it can cause when flares arise? I think I would be happy to make that change.. even if it did leave them somewhat more prone to get malaria.

Haemophilia

Another disease I would happily keep my child from. Making sure that they aren't put in mortal danger from a simple bruise, bump or fall? Seems like something wise to protect my child from.

I will admit I'm glad that I never had to make that decision. My teenagers were hard enough to raise. They got angry with me about enough things which I had no control over. Having them get mad at me over things that changed their entire life and I was in control of? That would be way worse.

And thats my thought on today's Hive Learner prompt. Feel free to offer comments as I always love hearing other opinions. Comment or not, thanks for reading. I always appreciate eyes on my writing.