I've never regretted not having children. My mindset in that regard has been constant. I objected to being bor... — Robert Smith

I've never regretted not having children. My mindset in that regard has been constant. I objected to being born, and I refuse to impose life on someone else.

Author: Robert Smith

Insight: There's a particular honesty in admitting you don't want kids—not because you're too busy, not because the timing isn't right, but because you fundamentally object to existence itself. Most people who choose not to have children offer practical reasons: career, finances, the state of the world. Smith goes deeper, naming something most of us are taught never to voice: that being alive can feel like an imposition rather than a gift. What's striking is how this connects to a real tension we all navigate. We're supposed to see life as inherently worth living, worth passing on. But Smith suggests that's not an obvious truth—it's a choice we make every day, usually without examining it. By refusing to have children, he's being consistent with his own experience: if you've felt the weight of existence yourself, why would you inflict that uncertainty on someone else? It's a form of honesty that actually respects the autonomy of a hypothetical child. The surprising part? This kind of thinking doesn't require misery. Smith has had a long, creative life despite—or perhaps because of—this unflinching perspective. His point isn't that life is terrible; it's that we should stop pretending the choice to create life is ever neutral or obligation-free.