“It’s Psychotic” — Podcaster Says Dogs Are More Welcome in Public Than Kids, Sparks Debate

Podcaster and political commentator Matt Walsh is no stranger to getting under people's skin. Recently, he sparked an online debate after posting the following remark on X.

"It's insane that we're constantly having this conversation about whether kids should be allowed in restaurants etc," he penned.

Following this, he wrote: "Meanwhile, people bring their dogs everywhere. We now live in a society where dogs are more welcome in public than human children. It's psychotic," Walsh opined.

He followed up his message by stating: "Children are members of society and should be allowed to participate in it."

Walsh added, "Dogs are not members of society at all. They are dogs. Keep your dog at home or take him to a dog park."

One but can't help wonder if Walsh is a cat person and found an attention-grabbing way of putting that out there to folks online.

His ire appears to be rooted in anti-familial sentiments that have been criticized and discussed at length by many Americans. Modern Age penned that an "anti-family turn" occurred in the United States.

This was just decades after Theodore Roosevelt, during a tour of Europe, called upon citizens to be fruitful and multiply.

Some analysts believe that sentiments towards having families in the US began to sour around the 1960s. Today, both Population Connection and the American Psychological Association have penned articles containing research and analytics that have shown US citizens are having fewer and fewer children.

Both outlets cited cost of living hikes as a primary impetus behind the jump. But that doesn't mean there aren't folks who've regretted their decisions to not procreate. The APA highlighted a highly upvoted Reddit r/fencesitter post where many users on the app weighed the pros and cons of having kids.

The post's original writer said that they broke up with a partner over whether or not they'd have children. OP averred that they didn't want them, but later, found themselves looking to extend their family's bloodline via offspring.

Others have argued that the dissolution of the family unit was a concentrated effort by corporations who influenced America's fiscal policies and government decision-making. I.e., more dual-income households meant higher profits, and maximizing profits, spending power, and revenue from the country's population.

And then there are those who believe the destruction of the American family is rooted in spiritual warfare. I.e., destroying the unity between a man and a woman and thus a family means a more divided nation.

And more divided people not tethered to families and fighting for their interests, culminate in a more easily manipulated population.

How dogs got wrapped up in this conversation is unclear. Walsh appears to have highlighted what he perceives to be a double standard where individuals prefer the company of a different species in public spaces and private businesses to the presence of children.

One woman who replied to his post argued that the reason why they prefer canines over pre-K attendees when they're out and about boils down to decorum.

"Dogs are often better behaved than children. They don't disturb anyone. If parents don't want complaints, they should teach their kids to behave better than dogs first, then we can talk," they wrote.

Another person agreed with the aforementioned X user's stance, writing: "Kids are less behaved than they used to be, and public shaming needs to return because as of right now dogs are significantly better mannered and it's not even close."

But there were also those who defended children. One mother replied to Walsh's post, stating: "I just can't understand people not wanting children around. They make everything better. Even travel. So many places I want to go and see. And I saw a lot and did a lot before, but experiencing new places with your kids is so much better."

As a father of two myself and a stepdad to one, I can personally understand why some people wouldn't want children to be present in certain locations.

But then again, I don't blame kids for not behaving correctly: it's my job as a father to ensure my kids aren't acting like savages when we're getting grub at Five Guys.

That being said, I also don't agree that dogs aren't members of society, either. While pets aren't human, having a strong bond with an animal makes them a member of your family unit. I don't think there needs to be one or the other: let's have both of them playing around and stealing chicken nuggets off your plate when you're out having a good time.