These were offspring who had severe, incurable hereditary diseases. Half a million people were sterilized during the years of the Third Reich.
Who in their right mind would willingly have children, knowing full well they would have the same horrific disease? Realizing all the terrible problems you have as a schizophrenic, say – and the lifelong burden you are to friends and family, the government resources needed to provide for all your needs – would you, in good conscience, have children?
Governments have always done for people what they cannot or will not do for themselves. Why not sterilization? We at least owe the tragically disabled the option; we are obligated to be sure they know their offspring would likely have the same disease – then give them the choice of voluntary sterilization.
This goes to the question of how people who live in terrible ghettos can willingly have children, knowing full well their kids will grow up to the same life of misery. Not even animals procreate under such circumstances.
Even rabbits raccoons know not to have litters amidst a severe drought or in the middle of a harsh winter. Humans have no such compunctions, no basic control over their sexual urges – no cultural pressure or social mandate or personal sense of pride and dignity or basic decency to do otherwise.
Our societies are just as primitive. We don’t even have the courage to offer them voluntary sterilization. Even Stone Age societies were more advanced than that. Shame on us.