Do you have Asperger's?

No. I'd think that by 37 someone would have told me if I did. I just have a very real dislike for children, and do not relate to anyone who thinks they are anything other than an annoyance.

You don't fully appreciate why it's so awesome to have a kid until you have a kid.

I can't tell you how many times I hear this. I got a friend that feels the same way as me. End up with a kid. Hates it. Absolutely hates everything about it and its a struggle everyday for him to not show his son that he never wanted a kid and feels like his life is completely destroyed. He doesn't want to ruin the kid's life, but he also wants nothing more than to never have to see the kid again. So I just don't believe that blanket statement. Some people just hate kids, and to have one would be a terrible mistake.

Some people hate cats. I'm one of those too. In fact, I really only like giant dogs. Even small ones irritate me. I view a kid as being no different than a stupid cat that exists only to annoy me. Except the cat probably won't ever grow out of that stupid phase and be potentially awesome to hang out with. And it makes life more complicated because as our friends have children, we basically end up cutting contact because we just don't care about their kids, or stories about their kids. We don't want to see them, hang out with them, or act like we think they are cute or the worst thing ever - act like they are intelligent when it's fairly obvious your 8 year old is mildly retarded.

I'm just saying you can't equate owning a pet with having a child.

Disagree completely. And whats more, a whole lot of other people do too. That to me means we're not in an area of absolute right or wrong, it's whatever works for the person. There is no universal law that says you can only care about something born from your seed, otherwise all adopted children would not be loved. There is no universal law that says you can only care about something that is intelligent on a level of a human (by care I mean love equally) otherwise mentally disabled children would not be loved either. If a mentally disabled, adopted child can be on the same level as your own human child then so can a pet. Humanity is not particularly special. I see no reason to favor another human over my dog.