Infertile Half-Breeds?

[Markdoc]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

But I think the reason why it is so important, is because the survival of our species demanded it to be important. If not, our Caveman ancestors would have played Stone-checkers all day long and would have died out

Of course the instincts haven't caught up to ideas like infertility, birthcontrol, homsexuality and willfull abstinence yet. But from an evolutionary point of view those are propably not relevant. If they have genetic origins/roots, they very effectively select against themself.

 

Sex is said to have (among other things) the following effects:

Relieve of stress (or is it rather that not having it causes stress?)

Endorphins

Increases Emotional Binding (apperently that needs a different hormon)

 

Afaih Sperm has in addition to the primary function, the at least following effects for women:

Anti-depressant

Improves Immune system

Nutrients (it's sugar solution for most parts)

 

 

In that case apparenty our reproduction instinct is stronger than our mind. Wich only proves that having children is important. And that our instict hasn't selected to inlcude things like "prevention of gene defects" yet.

Also keep in mind that people in those times you talk about rarely had the understanding of how genetics work. Or why some children die or are born with defects, while others live and prosper. They might have understood the concept of Illness and maybe how to coutner one. But they lack 95% of the knowledge we take for granted today.

 

 

I think infertility is a different thing compared to any other Chilbirth problem. In all other instances the child could survive and repruduce themself.

In this, they never, ever could.

 

Also as a tie in to other childhood defects:

In no other case do people nessesarily know why it happens. They don't understand genetics or even illness nearly as good as we do. Even for us genetics is a new area (20-50 Years?).

In case of infertility, the why is clear: They are infertile, because they are half-breeds. That's how it always is, that is how it always will be. The controll group is the entire planets population. How underdeveloped medicine is has no relevance for this.

 

All potentially true, all irrelevant.

Back in the day, learned men speculated over whether matings between Europeans and Africans would produce fertile offspring (and there were some who asserted that the progeny would be infertile like mules). It didn't stop people making the beast with 2 backs across racial lines at every possible opportunity. I really doubt people in a mock-medival fantasy milieu would be any different.

 

cheers, Mark

[McCoy]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

I think more to the point, philosophy apart, the purpose of sex, for most people (beings?) is sex. Kids are a potential downstream effect, and the exaggerated care and consideration displayed for them in Western societies is not only specific to western societies, but also a relatively recent social change in those societies. In the relatively recent past, people who knew that their family had a risk for serious and even fatal congenital diseases continued to to make babies. Even today, it is within my personal experience that people do this, when IVF is out of their financial reach.

 

So ... I honestly doubt that the fertility of any potential offspring would have the slightest effect on their behaviour. In fact, based on current and historical human behaviour, we can be pretty much certain of it.

 

cheers, Mark

 

All potentially true, all irrelevant.

Back in the day, learned men speculated over whether matings between Europeans and Africans would produce fertile offspring (and there were some who asserted that the progeny would be infertile like mules). It didn't stop people making the beast with 2 backs across racial lines at every possible opportunity. I really doubt people in a mock-medival fantasy milieu would be any different.

 

cheers, Mark

Thanks to my witness for his expert testimony, rep when I'm able, and Respondent rest.

 

Personally' date=' if I knew I had certain "bad" genes, I'd make sure I never reproduced, so that they couldn't be passed on. But as to whether my kids could have kids? That would never enter the equation.[/quote']

My father lost two siblings in childhood, out of seven children. When I was 12 I was reading up on genetics, and the math sounded like a Mendelian recessive. Some more research, and I came up with Tay-Sachs disease, Or something like it. Checked with adults in the extended family, yes, undiagnosed while Wilma and Katey were alive, it was Tay-Sachs. Turns out my grandfather's ethnic group has the second highest risk for Tay-Sachs, after Ashkenazi Jews. (The Tay-Sachs diagnosis has been clinically conformed.)

 

So I did the math. My dad had a two-out-of-three chance of carrying the defective allele, and a one-in-three chance of passing it on to me. (Does everyone understand why, or do I need to show the work?)

 

That's when I made my choice to remain childless, a choice I'll admit became easier to live with when I figured out (many years later) I was Gay.

[The Weapon]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

Actually' date=' comparing them to eunuchs is an idea I had not considered. Since they can't found dynasties through progeny, taking a society like ancient China's and saying the bureaucracy only accepts half-elves gives it an interesting spin. Imagine half-elves as bureaucrats and courtiers. Since we would be talking about both males and females, other ramifications could be considered.[/quote']

 

Sure they don't have children but they have nephews. The Catholic Church found out that can be almost as bad for celibate/infertile managers. The term "nepotism" comes from the Italian for nephew. Fathering children that qualify for powerful bureaucratic positions can be very beneficial for their half-siblings.

[Clonus]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

Sure they don't have children but they have nephews. The Catholic Church found out that can be almost as bad for celibate/infertile managers. The term "nepotism" comes from the Italian for nephew. Fathering children that qualify for powerful bureaucratic positions can be very beneficial for their half-siblings.

 

Neither China nor Byzantium were all that opposed that kind of preference. Indeed it was necessary to get high ranking families to put up their sons for for that treatment. They just wanted those closest to the throne to not be in a position to father a new dynasty. However the idea does work better when the royals live just as long or longer than their bureaucrats.

[Markdoc]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

Sure they don't have children but they have nephews. The Catholic Church found out that can be almost as bad for celibate/infertile managers. The term "nepotism" comes from the Italian for nephew. Fathering children that qualify for powerful bureaucratic positions can be very beneficial for their half-siblings.

 

Actually the "nephew" thing came about not just because of family ties (after all, brothers and uncles were just as likely to want benefices ...) but because it was a convenient way of explaining otherwise embarrassing young men.

 

"So Alexander, who's that young guy who just started in Treasury?"

"What? Who? Oh, umm, that's probably Cesare"

"Cesare huh? Family member? Sure looks a lot like you."

"Who? Cesare? Well, maybe, he's umm... my nephew! Yeah, that's it! Totally nephew"

 

For a long time, having some young guy pop up and be introduced as "So-and so's nephew" meant lots of nudge-nudge-wink-wink-didn't-think-the-old-guy-had-it-in-him-it-wasn't-him-it-went-into-dumbass, etc etc.

 

cheers, Mark

[dmjalund]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

also covers younger boyfriends

[Lawnmower Boy]

Re: Infertile Half-Breeds?

 

"Yep, there's a railway down the valley over there, down past the woods and over that little crick there. That be how this here train got here, I guess. Must 'a been going like sixty to get this far once it jumped the tracks."