Eventually, most women I date or fuck for awhile open up about wanting children or marriage. My current strategy (which is working just fine) is to simply nod along and sometimes play the game of talking about kid's names or dream weddings, etc. Sometimes, I feel like a real asshole for this charade, but it seems to help with comfort and retention.

I try to appreciate that this stuff is important to women--it used to be important to me. I recognize that I am essentially lying when I show a modicum of interest but secretly would never get married, but I've had some negative results when I've been too blunt about my disinterest in legally-binding commitment, especially as I've gotten older and date more conservative girls and women in their mid-late twenties.

How do you guys handle discussions of marriage and child-rearing in casual or committed relationships? How important is honesty, really?