[tsol]

>200 years ago, there was no reason to suspect the next generation would be worse off than this one

Wars, plagues, famines, economic issues and tyranny all existed 200 years ago. Only someone living in a very cushy position in the first world would be reasonably assured that life wouldn't be worse in the future. The future is always uncertain. Even now, for all we know the covid 19 virus may evolve into some incredibly virulent and deadly disease at any time. That was doubly so when the black death was still occurring, before antibiotics, along with a plethora of diseases we're only somewhat aware of today such as polio and leprosy.

You have an inaccurate view of the world if you think the bottom 25% of humans ever had any real assurance life was going to get better rather than worse. Making moral judgements on them is an easy way to sound naive. For example you're implying African slaves in the Americas were "bad people"(your words) because they had children despite knowing their children would be enslaved. It's incredibly simplistic to think that anyone ever had that kind of assurance except for the very most privileged in society. We're not in a wholly novel situation, we're returning to the uncertainty that our ancestors had to deal with. Forever chemicals and microplastics are a new poison, and one I really am concerned about to tell you the truth, but poison itself isn't new.

And you're just as ethically required to commit suicide as you are to not have kids-- they both are means to lower the anguish in the world. How can only be ethically required to care about my kids possible pain, but simultaneously not required to care about about the billions of working class around the world working their fingers to their bones mining our lithium and making our food and goods, for pennies a day, just to survive? The lithium batteries in our phones that were using to discuss this, are a testament to the way we are engaged in this awful system. I don't know why one humans anguish is acceptable to be a part of while another unborn humans anguish would be a moral sin. Either contributing to the pain and blood inherent in the system is bad, or its okay. It doesn't really matter whose kids are suffering, in the grand picture of morality-- you owe the same moral duty to do no harm to the kids other people created as you owe to your potential kids