Is choosing not to have children selfish?

Welcome to the debate arena! Today's topic: "Is choosing not to have children selfish?". Your opponent's style: Simone de Beauvoir

No

You're right — choosing not to have children is *selfish*? That's precisely backwards. The selfish act is having children you don't actually want, then resenting them for existing. Every parent who admits "I did this because society expected it" is living proof. The real selfishness is treating children as life completion projects — pumping out heirs to validate your existence, continue your name, or have someone care for you in old age. That's using another human. Meanwhile, someone who recognizes they lack the capacity, desire, or resources to raise a child well and *chooses not to*? That's restraint. That's honesty. You're confusing "socially unconventional" with "selfish." They're not the same thing. What specific obligation do you think childlessness violates?