Meet the Duggar family — all 19 of them
 

The only word that comes to mind is damn. This family has 17 children and I know if I had that many I'd forget a few of their names. Personally, I don't think I'd ever want more than 3 kids(depending on whatever the woman that would actually give birth to them thought), but if I was ever going to go for it I'd shoot for 28. Eleven players on each side plus 3 substitutes per team, it would be a hell of a game. An excerpt from the article is below and there is a video of them in the link... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20134584/
(I think they missed a kid because I count 16 names up there)

Ah yes, I've been following this family since they were 14 going on 15. :)

I think it's a crime......









...to give all of them names that start with the same letter.

Tour buses for Michelle Duggar's womb will depart every 20 minutes...please line up in an orderly fashion near the entrance to her vagina....:eek:

How nice for them that they still have time for sex (note...heavy sarcasm)

Their website makes me wanna puke...oooo "daddy bible time" ooooo Daddy can override the schedule whenever he wants....

It says they are both real estate agents.....how does she have time to work since he has laid down the law that she stays home with them?

Their whole website rubs me the wrong way.

^^ My thoughts exactly, ngdawg!

Way to use up out planet's resources!

What really really bothers me is how they make the kids all look, dress, act the same. The girls are relegated to the must-haves of long hair and dresses reminiscent of "Little House on the Prairie", the boys with their Brylcreem haircuts, the gender roles that are enforced....reminds me of those reports I've seen about those radical Mormon polygamy enclaves. I'd be willing to bet that, during Homeschooling her brood, she teaches them Creationism and poopoos Evolution with a "We know this is wrong, but the state says you have to read about it".:rolleyes:
And, for God's sakes, Michelle!! Get a freakin haircut!!!! :D
Ok...done with that....if she wants to pop out kids like a Pez dispenser, fine...I think they're insane, but I'll still sleep every night.

Didn't you read the article?

Well how many kids would you THINK a man named Jim Bob Duggar would have?

It kind of comes off as a bit selfish to me... To create that many new kids when we can't even feed all the ones alive today. Adopt for gods sake. I doubt their genes are so superior that they need to pass them along by creating an army of evangeli-bots.

Just creeps me out. No need to produce that many unless your trying to make your own football team.

"yes god told us to fuck like rabbits".

Still, that's nothing.

Matty, Sally, Jenny, Jessie, Willie... um... Freddy... damn it dinner is ready!!

I know a family with 14 kids and they are not all wacked (at least somewhat, from the site) out like this. Fairly normal if you ask me.

However, this is not for me at all.

Yea, when asked about that her response was that it just kind of happened, and they didn't want anyone to feel left out. When you have 17 kids things don't just sort of happen.

I don't know, from what I've seen, they're really nice people. The family gets along fantastically. And this family isn't a burden on society or anything because they don't have any debt. They seem really hardworking and that's a lot more than even some people without kids can say.

My grandmother had 15 children, from 1922-1947. 8 died before the age of 3.

When you look at the likelihood that half (or more) of your offspring will die, then I could understand the concept of going forth and multiplying.

Given the modern state of existence, I don't think breeding like that is wise or feasible. However, the Duggar's are entitled to their own beliefs, and as long as their children are loved, well cared for and educated, then they are doing a damn fine job of raising their brood.

Here's my bitch... the logical school of thought says that once you start having problems keeping track of your kids and such, you stop having kids. Close shop, raise the ones you got to the best of your abilities and live life. Not Mrs. Duggar.

I mean, good gravy...
I don't know. I've watched the specials, read the articles and such, and I just feel sorry for these kids. Not because they're parents are lousy--I think they're fine parents as parents go, but because you see the 15-16 year old kids having to get up, get ready, get the younger kids up, get them ready, and then supervise them all the live long day, while Mom manages the managers and Daddy pops in every once in a while for some face time with the camera. I know what I wanted to do at 15-16 years old and "raise a toddler or two" wasn't on the list. Maybe I'm projecting, but it seems like these kids kind of got wrangled into playing surrogates with no hope of ever doing their own thing because to rebel against the status quo is to rebel against Mom and Dad (who the kids love) or, worse yet, their religion.

Seems I've rambled a bit...

That's they way families were raised in times gone by. Elders and older daughters watched the babies and younger children because the mothers and older sons had to assist out in the fields, gardens, and with livestock.

The responsibility of family duties was once the part of all members, not just the parents. A little different than what we've become accustomed too, but the norm in more traditional homes, and in many countries.

I first heard about them 4-5 yrs. ago and it pissed me off then and still does today. Their religion and selfishness (imho) aside, what really stuck in my craw was the donations and freebies they were taking in.

If they won't stop having sex, then use birth control. If they won't do either and want to breed their own little army, then they sure as hell should be able to support that brood without help from other people.:grumpy: :shakehead:

I have no idea if they're still accepting charity (my peaceful calm prevents me from reading their site), but Jim Bob must be one hell of a real estate agent if they paid for their 7000 sq ft compound on their own while feeding and caring for all those kids. Maybe it was child labor, The House the Duggar's Built.:lol:

Alicat, what kind of "charity" did they get? According to what I've heard and watched, they have no debt, work hard, and pinch pennies. If they get charity, I doubt it's because they ask for it- at least that's the impression I've been given by everything I've seen. And yes, the kids helped build their house.

It takes alot less time to put on a clean rubber than a clean diaper.

Makes me think about the phrase "barefoot and pregnant = slavery".

Yuck!!!!!

One thing that worries me about this family is that NONE of the children seem to have friends. They all just hang out with each other, all the time. And when they're not studying they're raising their younger siblings. Seems like a very sad existence to me.

I just don't think there's any way Jim Bob and Michelle can properly give all 17 of their children the individual attention they need and deserve. There aren't enough hours in a day! It really is a case of the siblings raising each other under management of Mr. and Mrs. Duggar.

Pathetic.

Such hostility towards the manner the in which other people live; don't judge based on your own perception and what has been offered to you in your intake of knowledge, but contemplate why this matters at all. Of all the regions of this vast globe, they interview a law-abiding family that only wishes to procreate in America where they have the freedom to do so, prejudice or not.

I have no need to be judgmental or vindictive towards others that aspire to build a loving community based on faith. I'd rather not ponder on how you all perceive this family, other than by your preconceptions and right to argue the idea, it seems.

Let it be.

TotalMILF, they do have friends. The family has get-togethers with other large families of similar beliefs.

And Jetstream, right on!

la petite moi, you cannot argue that the children are, indeed, largely raising each other under the supervision of the parents. I just think that this is a responsibility that children should not have, since they are CHILDREN and not PARENTS, and the fact that the parents more or less force it upon them is absurd. It's one thing to babysit your siblings once in a while, and help out with them as needed, but the older children in the family are doing most of the caretaking of the younger children. I just think that the parents have a responsibility to give individual attention to each and every one of their children, which is impossible when you have 17 children under the age of 19.

Yes, they have fun "playdates" with other ridiculously large families, but I'd bet money that most of those kids are socially stunted and lack any close non-family contacts.

from www.m-w.com
The Duggars are parents in the sense that they procreated and created 17 offspring, but they are not properly fulfilling their role as parents when it comes to actually CARING FOR their children. You just can't do that with 17 kids.

/rant

Only to comment on your quotations as such, I do not see how you can accurately assess that the parents are falling short of their responsibilities in any way other than by your misconceptions of what having a family of that size would affect you. Does the article state that the parents are failing their children in any way? Do any the children speak of negligence due to improper supervision? I only say this because it is a tad unfair to impose one's own opinions into a matter that, barring unseen consequences, merely portrays a family that is getting press for being none the more than what it is: a family.

It is not an institution of labor or an act to show off to the neighbors, but a household in which dominates a belief that the ties that bind are of flesh and blood, which are cared for with love.

An observation of a family should be just left at that. Admire it if you like, but there is certainly no need to become offset by them at all, regardless of what you may have to offer them because in all due respect, how can you suppose to break a family apart or moderate their actions?

A family of nineteen is most intriguing, and I would suppose in this society it would receive attention because of how we are doctrined and predisposed to think; but I would respond "whatever ensures your happiness, seek it out to its extent".

I want to know how they can afford to diaper all the infants and todlers and still continue to feed everyone with one working salary. While making a mortgage payment and paying all the bills. The water bill alone must be hellacious.

Please, someone, spell it out for me.

If they wanna screw like bunnies- so be it. I, however, fail to see how they do this without assistance. Probably government assistance. I have deep issue with supporting people who cant keep their legs closed.

They could also be debt free because their credit is shot all to hell and they filed bankruptcy.

Until proven otherwise, the above is my theory.

they have no mortgage, that much at least is detailed on their site

Jetstream, I never said the children were suffering from neglect or lack of supervision (that's what the older siblings are for!) or anything of that sort, just that they couldn't possibly get enough individual time with their parents due to the family's massive size. That, to me, is incredibly unfair to the kids and very irresponsible of the parents.

Children raised with only one parent often turn out just fine (my husband is a shining example), and there are many children who grow up without parents at all and go on to be well adjusted and productive members of society.

What I am saying is that I don't think it's fair to the children to be so socially isolated and to have to raise each other while receiving minimal face time from the parents themselves. I think large families are great, but only to an extent. When you have so many kids that you have to delegate child-rearing responsibilities to your other children, then you might just have too many damn kids.

The kids aren't going to complain because they just don't know any different. This is how life is, and since they don't seem to have too many ties to life outside of the family, they just don't question it.

How did they pay off the house with a $2,000 grocery bill?

They built it themselves, using the kids as their labor

Again, this is perhaps your predisposed perception coming into play. 'Negligence' is literally conveyed as an oversight, one which appropriately depicts what is supposed to happen here because the parents cannot fulfill their role rightfully, at least according to you. Considering the facts alone, this is a stable, well-maintained family successful enough to care for itself.

I see no reason to get involved of the affairs that this family maintains or holds because it is truly not my right to do so.

I'll float on. :surprised:

The older son, mostly, but the kids pitched in. Much of the appliances and other acoutrements were donated-they had a short series about the family, which, like a trainwreck, I'd watch while shaking my head.
Their 7,000sf house only has three bedrooms-boys' dorm, girls' dorm and the parents'.

A bunch of smug pietistic asses butting in uninvited to tell a happy, healthy family how they should live their lives. Now THERE'S something you never see.

As long as I don't have to sit next to them in the restaurant....

Personally, I think it's too many.

However, I can't see how you would call them socially stunted. As far as I can see, Dad and Mom are just not the regular kind of parents you people want them to be. Which doesn't make it wrong, just besides the norm.

The kids get enough face-time with a parent... TotalMILF just proved that with the dictionary excerpt: "A person who brings up and cares for another". They have that in their older siblings. With the added possibility of still talking to the real mother and father too.

It's not quite what you're used to. It's definitly not for everybody (organisation is everything, I know I couldn't do it). But I dare say they're probably more socially skilled than alot of people I see every day.

As far as the homeschooling goes, just let the oldest couple take a few standardised tests before you all go rolling your eyes about it.

Open mind and willingness to empathise seems to go right out the window for things that don't suit some people here.

Debt isn't a burden to society, it is a burden only to the debtor, and potentially the creditor if the debtor tries to escape that burden without full payment. Their burden is multi-fold. First, unless they farm their own food (all of it) there is an extraneous amount of food going to just this family, when still far smaller families in the US itself go without food. Wrong answer! Come college time, god-forbid they are smart and get scholarships. Again, this family could potentially have a small squadron of freely educated children at the behest of other families trying to get one kid through college. The list goes on and on, both in the definite and potential realms.


Indeed! They won't stop having children because it is not aligned with their religious practices. I have to say though, that if people are willing to give them things, more power to them. I mean, people certainly don't NEED to give them shit. I know I wouldn't. If I had the money and resources, there are far more deserving causes than a fucking human-rabbit hybrid race that the Duggar's must certainly be bringing in as our new overlords!


Yeah, I agree that the likelihood is that these children are socially stunted. It may not appear so outwardly, but all the press and specials show them in their family enclave. Show them in a few years as they head out to college and the workforce, if they are allowed to do so, and see how they fare. Kids might be cruel, but adults can be moreso. Just mark my words, it'll be ugly for most of them.


Would it not be difficult for them to judge such a thing with no outside influences in their lives? What would any of them know of a one- or two-child family with public schooling and working parents, which is more or less the societal norm these days. Take it to a more heinous level. How many abused, physicall or sexually, children really understand that something is wrong? If it's all you know it's almost never a problem for you until later in life.


Haha, this must be your vision of hell warrrreagl. If this occured, and you came on the TFP to bitch about it, I'm pretty sure for a change I would be firmly on your side!

I wonder if she realizes the dammage she is doing to her body having all of those children so fast?

IMO if they need assistance, the church should be the one to give it to them. I wonder how fast said church would go broke supporting all of its minions?

Well, if you think of it in terms of evolution (which I am QUITE SURE they do not :lol: ), they've hit the jackpot. 17 living offspring to reproduce and carry down their DNA (as well as religious beliefs)? It doesn't get much better than that, in terms of biological fitness.

:p

Not exactly, although this would rank pretty highly in terms of "major inconveniences" (included with having them sit behind me at the movies). No, my vision of hell is exactly what's happening to them right now - outraged Yankees lining up to tell them how wrong they're living.

Yeah, but how much of that is due to the intervention of modern medicine? They did say she had to have two C-sections, and she also had two sets of twins. If it weren't for modern medicine, 1) that woman would be dead by now, and 2) half of her children would have died before the age of 12.

I think this is where the liberals are losing the "war"...the bible-thumpers are out-procreating the liberals 19 to 2 or less...

And that would be applicable if Mom was out working the fields or helping run livestock instead of squeezing out another kid. And even then, I'm all for kids helping out around the home....helping, not shouldering the majority of the burden....helping.

That's my problem....I'm an outraged Yankee...nevermind the fact that I've lived a couple of hundred miles from these folks the vast majority of my life. And gods forbid one should express an opinion on a discussion board. Geez a lou, what were we thinking?

Of course, I pass judgment on these people, we all do to some extent. Aren't we supposed to? Does it not "take a village" anymore?

Those outraged Yankees and outraged Southerners, mind you, see fit to intervene when kids are beat up, mistreated and are generally neglected by those that are supposed to take care of them. Why is okay for Jim Bob and Michelle to keep their kids cloistered in a 7,000 sq ft prison in the middle of bumfuck Arkansas and when their not instructing them, working them--in little uniforms of floor length dresses and polo shirts no less--to maintain their chosen lifestyle? Should we just shuffle this off under the "it's just their way" label and keep our opinions to ourselves?

Well, evolution is all about the # of reproducing offspring, not about how they came into being... so if the couple is "fit" enough (including having access to money/resources) to draw upon modern medicine, then that only proves how biologically successful they are. And yes, even if they don't believe in evolution, they are certainly successful in the transmission of their "spiritual" DNA, if you will... imagine how many children each of those 17 will have, and so on and so on... it's an evangelical's dream.

If you're talking about their village, then yes - it still does take a village. But I hadn't noticed that their village was upset. If you're talking about someone else's village hammering their beliefs and mores from somewhere across the map, then it makes me think more of cultural chauvinism and arrogance.

Why is that okay? Because the Declaration of Independence says its okay (unalienable rights; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; all the rest of that malarkey), and I'll defer to that anytime.

Sorry I was editing my post upstairs and didn't see this one.

Having a discussion and voicing opinion on those in the village is no more elitist or arrogant than lumping all those that decry the Duggars lifestyle as "outraged Yankees," in my opinion.

The Declaration of Independence...? Really? That would be a great argument if the federal government were actually doing something to prevent Jim Bob and Michelle from creating any more khaki clad clones, but this is just a message board voicing opinion...and then, subsequently, getting roasted for voicing that opinon.

In the general sense, I generally live and let live as long as those involved know what they're getting into. The problem with the Duggars is that these kids don't know any different. They are effectively sequestered from the outside world and, consequently, have no point of reference to make any sort of decision.

If I were interested in quoting a legal document I'd have pulled something from the Constitution. "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is not law but is an ideal and it happens to be my ideal.

Anyone who can't fathom someone having 17 kids probably shouldn't have them for themselves, and that's as far as I see someone else's jurisdiction extending. But I'm not reading a lot of people saying "I'd never do that." I'm reading "THEY shouldn't do that."

Some of the responses on this thread irk me to no end.

Here you have some people criticizing another family on how their choose to raise their children, yet said people will bitch and moan when someone-- Usually of a religious faith-- Tries to cut in and criticize them for the way they raise their children. My grandfather has sixteen (I think it's sixteen) children, of which my dad is the oldest. They turned out all right :) Anyway, from what I've seen, all the children are well cared for (Which is more to say than for a lot of other families in the world) and loved and the family seems to be in pretty good financial shape. You don't have to agree with how many children they have-- Hell, even I don't agree with how many children they have-- But to instantly criticize and go on about what they shouldn't be allowed to do would make you no better than those 'religious nuts' you seem to dislike.

/end rant here

On a more serious note, though, I wonder how her vagina hasn't exploded already...

I have no strong emotions on this issue actually (unusual for me I know) but I saw this picture the other day and it sure seems to fit

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f3...ppo/vagina.jpg

I'm curious to know where the 17th child is? Because the article clearly states that they are pictured with 16 of their children, yet they have 17 in total. Did one rebel and leave the family or something?

The newborn is on the mother's lap, and the other 16 are gathered around their parents. So they're all accounted for and together. The only discrepancy is when the article lists the children's names, they list only 16 when there should be 17 names.

That fits perhaps better than you know... that IS the Duggar family in that picture. :)

She's preggie again

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080509/ap_on_re_us/18_kids

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - It's a happy Mother's Day for an Arkansas woman — she's pregnant with her 18th child. Michelle Duggar, 41, is due on New Year's Day, and the latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers. There are two sets of twins.

"We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us," she said, laughing.

The Duggars' oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.

The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children — whose names start with the letter J — are home-schooled.

Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.

The new show looks at life inside the Duggar home, where chores — or "jurisdictions" — are assigned to each child. One episode of the new show involves a "jurisdiction swap," where the boys do chores traditionally assigned to the girls, and vice versa, Duggar said.

"The girls swapped jurisdictions, changing tires, working in the garages, mowing the grass," she said. "The boys got to cook supper from start to finish, clean the bathrooms," among other chores.

Duggar said she's six weeks along and the pregnancy is going well. She and her husband, Jim Bob Duggar, said they'll keep having children as long as God wills it.

"The success in a family is first off, a love for God, and secondly, treating each other like you want to be treated," Jim Bob Duggar said. "Our goal is for each one of our children to be best friends, and everybody working together to serve each other makes that happen."

The other Duggar children, in between Joshua and Jennifer, are Jana, 18; John-David, 18; Jill, 16; Jessa, 15; Jinger, 14; Joseph, 13; Josiah, 11; Joy-Anna, 10; Jeremiah, 9; Jedidiah, 9; Jason, 7; James, 6; Justin, 5; Jackson, 3; and Johannah, 2.

They'd better be rich, have excellent jobs, top-knotch health insurance, and lots of patience.

Dang. I can't even imagine affording all of those mouths to feed. Must be cheap to live in Arkansas.

Am I the only one thinking that Jim Bob must really like screwing caverns? She probably doesn't even have to wake up at this point.....
The doctor doesn't need a stethoscope or doppler to hear the baby's heartbeat, he just puts his ear to her knee and wait for the echo.....

RFLOL! My friend just said she could use a Harley as a vibrator. :lol:

I watched their tv show where they were building a new house/compound. They got a lot of things donated and the house ain't shabby. They remind me of those polygamous families recently in the news-the females look alike and are throwbacks to the 1950's as are the males. Chores are gender-related. Momma needs to stop spitting out kids and get a make-over and cease brainwashing those kids about gender roles. She has them then everyone else gets more responsibilities-that's how it seemed on that show. She did little more than direct them all and home school.

Oh well, it's her body. I feel kinda bad for the kids, being raised ignorant of the world. And there are better places to donate washers, dryers, stoves and a piano, among other things that were handed to them.

They should donate the husband a visectamy (sp?).

I say damn good job to Jim Bob for hitting that at least 14 times.

This family is on TV all the time on TLC or some shit, they have their own show about their life, or at least some sort of mini series/special about how "amazing" their family is

It's really fucking annoying because the entire family is one gigantic douchebag because they are so obsessed with their religion

The older kid has some sort of Oedipus complex - he basically jizzed all over his mom when he was going to college, it was just cringeworthy to watch

They have "family meetings" to talk about Jesus and all sorts of weird shit, it really creeped me out - if you think the website is bad, you should see them on TV

Both my wife and I have enjoyed watching the shows featuring them on TLC/Discovery health for the past few years - the ones starting back when they had the really small house. They are an excellent example of raising children in a fiscally responsible manner (says the poster with waaay too much debt, not nearly enough income, and far less kids)
Being able to offer all of your children their own acre out of your 20 acre plot is an acomplishment in itself.

Yikes. I have a co-worker who has 9 kids...half-freaking-way! Yeesh...

They started building the house on their own, but they couldn't afford to finish it. So TLC paid to finish the house, as well as for a month long vacation. And, yes the kids swung a hammer for 10 minutes for the camera, but how much productive work do you think they actually did in dress slacks and floor length skirts?

JimBob has also had his house declared a "church" so he has tax exempt status, which means he doesn't pay property tax on their 20 acre compound, as well as not paying sales tax for anything purchased for the "church"/house/family. I sure consider that "government assistance" since they are getting a free ride on thousands and thousands of dollars in taxes that every other "regular" family has to pay.

Wow, if there was ever something that should be illegal, there ya go.

My main problem with them is how they espouse the "quiverful" philosophy, but have talked about actively trying to get pregnant, which isn't part of the quiverful teachings. She weans her children early to formula to get her fertility back and they actively track her cycles to conceive again as quickly as possible. She is, quite literally, a baby factory.

I also strongly disagree with some of their parenting philosophies, such as corporal punishment beginning at 6 months with "blanket training" infants. I won't even get into the gender roles and how their girls are prepared for little more than to marry and have kids.

As it was stated, by many more eloquent than I (before this was dredged from the archives), it is their privilege to have as many children as they like and to raise them as they see fit. This is not the way I would personally choose to live my life, but I will not object to anyone else doing so.

It is far too easy to judge others, lazy in fact.

yawn

for all those that think its such a bad thing to have so many kids.. i personally dont think so.

my mother was one of 13..yes 13.

my grandmother was married at a young age in lebanon. she popped put 13 kids, with no multiple births. thats not the amazing part. the amazing thing was that all kids were healthy..all turned out perfectly one normal people with decent jobs and families. all immigrated to australia, and assimilated just fine into the australian backdrop.. so big families dont need to be rubbished just because they are big....the best thing is..none share the same initials.

what i do have a problem with though is the religious brainwashing.
.

dlish-
Thanks for sharing such a great account. 13 kids is a LOT! And to think they all were healthy and happy. Pretty awesome.

thanks GG! its great to have 76 first cousins! although many of them share the same name (first name and surname!)

13 is a lot by todays standards, but apparently it wasnt back then in Lebanon. families of 6-10 kids were the norm in those days. i guess the word 'norm' is the key word though. times change and so do norms, and i guess norms in this day and age dont think much of large families.

large families are equated with a lot of negativity. ie: welfare, poor socio-economic status, lack of education, religious fundamentalism and poor social standing.

i can see where the ideas of some of the posters come from, i just wanted to give my experience in being associated with a large family.

dlish, 13 kids weren't many in most countries two generations ago. I know a LOT of people my parents age who were one of 8-15, and many more my grandparents age that were one of even more. Today, however, there are a lot of socio-economic reasons NOT to have so many kids. Some are micro, such as affording one kid or three, let alone a dozen or more. Some are macro, such as thinking about pollution and food supplies as well as population control and overcrowding. Personally, I only wanted two kids, one to replace me and one to replace my wife. Since I had a child with another woman 13 years ago, it looks like I'll end up with 3. I'm not a fan of that idea, but we're hoping for a daughter (which I don't have) so maybe it'll be okay. I think having more than 3 kids is socially irresponsible. I think having 18, in modern days, is utterly reprehensible.

As for large families, I don't know that I agree with you. Here in the States, at least in Michigan, most people think "large family" and equate it to a large non-primary family. Many cousins, aunts/uncles, et cetera. I don't personally know many people my age who have more than 1 or 2 siblings. but many of them have many cousins and are close to them. In that light, most people seem to think highly of large families. My wife and I want a large family. We'd LIKE a lot of kids. But we both don't think it's actually such a good idea. So, we'll hope for many grandchildren (2-3 per child of ours works great). Maybe if we live long enough to see our great grandchildren, there'll be a lot more of them :p

Five bucks says they do it simply for government money.