exactly. It's not fair to anyone when the parents are in disagreement about a pregnancy - especially the child.
and Cdn Bear... you made a comment about a man getting screwed over for the rest of his life for a casual romp... well I think that's the whole point some of us are trying to get across here... of course it's not fair to the guy... but it's kind of a case of too bad so sad... this consequence sucks, but it's not a consequence that only the man pays... let me assure you, he doesn't pay that monetary price alone... the courts usually award child support based on both parties income, but the woman does indeed have to share her portion of the costs... and in most cases (and I may be generalizing here) the woman ends up taking on far more than half the costs of raising the child... getting even a bit of money from the father helps, but it doesn't usualy come close to what the actual costs are. It's not exactly a get rich quick scheme or a free ride for the woman! It's a natural consequence to unplanned pregnancy for both parties. Just as the wear and tear on a woman's body, and the ultimate 'raising' of the child, which OFTEN falls squarely and soley on the woman's shoulders is a natural consequence... one the man often can and does escape - and that consequence cannot have a price tag placed upon it... it also changes one's life forever - as a parent you know this - and having to take on that responsibility alone is much more difficult with far more long reaching impacts upon one's life than simply having to shell out a few bucks from one's paycheck every month. We could go on and on about what's not fair to whom in an unplannged pregnancy. I think if one really wanted to tally up the consequences to see who shoulders a heavier burden, it would end up pretty indisputably the woman who takes on the bulk of the consequences... So I reiterate: It's not fair to ANYONE. And at the end of the day, I still think the courts do their best to respond to this issue by asking the only question that should be asked, which is "What's fair to the child?"