Kids, who wants them? Little crying, screaming, pooping, peeing things. Then they grow out of the cute stage and wham! You are hit with a ton of financial obligations you never expected. They disrupt your naps, cut in to time with your mate, and make unbelievable messes that you have to clean up, in short, they suck down all your time and energy. This goes on for years…..

I never felt quite like this, but I’ve known people who did. I wasn’t going to have any in my life because I didn’t want to bring a kid into a world where nothing seems right, wars are going on, and such.

When my first child defeated the IUD, a form of kid stopper that is supposed to be more than 99% effective, I went through a dramatic change that happened about two seconds after my wife announced she was pregnant. I was going to be a dad! What a rush!

My second child defeated the thing they call a dam. Some say the spelling should be damn. The dam was combined with spermicidal foam and backed up with a condom loaded with spermicide. Nothing stopped her. Nothing can stop her now.

The third was adopted because I didn’t have enough kids in my life. I love and cherish her as much as the other two.

Yes, they have cost me a lot of money over the years and a few gray hairs as well, but I’m glad to have raised these three girls into the fine ladies they are. Most of the time, I put my children first. That’s probably why they came out to be such fine adults. I’ve never regretted having children in my life.

Now, I didn’t write this to brag. Ok, I’m bragging a little. I’ve got three great kids to brag about. My main reason for writing this piece is that I see a problem with our system that is not conducive to raising well-adjusted, productive adults. The problem is in our priorities. Kids aren’t first.

We spend much of our time earning money. Kids are sequestered at the sitters, when older sent to those indoctrination centers (some call them “schools”) where they learn to be good citizens (Read: productive workers) who fit in with the system and sometimes just leave them to themselves. They don’t learn to think, let alone think critically.

Do you see the problem? Well, let me spell it out for you. Our system is designed to produce workers who produce and earn money for people who already have more than they can spend in a lifetime. The entire system revolves around money. Money is the goal of our lives.

Horse patooey! Life is so much more than that. We have been brainwashed into thinking money is the most important thing in life because it brings us so much (empty) pleasure, that is, if we have anything left over after paying the rent. Keep going after that money. Some day you’ll have enough to retire and then you can do whatever you want. Another empty promise.

We need to redesign our society so that children are first. Instead, they have become future wage slaves for the system that is busy building replacements (AI and robots) to make our lives easier (another lie). When they finish robotizing the world, what will happen next? I guarantee you it won’t be the wonderful world held out in front of us like a carrot leading a mule.

I’m not talking about a utopia like the wealthy people who are running things promise. Their utopia plans are just to lure you into a world they control. No, I’m talking about a world where you will still work, still have problems, but will get to spend more time with family growing together. It will be a better world, still with problems, but it will be better for families and, surprisingly, better for those who can’t have or don’t want children as well.

The world is falling apart, it seems, but this is just a challenge to replace what we have with something better. My new novel attempts to provide some guidance as to how we get there. The lesson is wrapped up in an entrancing story full of action and romance: The Children of Raven’s Reach. It will be out soon. I’ve had a little problem with my editor who has come down ill and cannot do the editing. Hopefully, I’ll find someone soon to help me get this exciting work out so you can read, learn, and enjoy it. It’s all about the children.