Well you're free to try and play your Fortress as a candy and gumdrops fairyland if you like. When the last dwarf gets chopped to pieces by invading goblins, imagine me saying "I told you so".
Anyways, if you want to get really fascist, I also have a state-sponsored breeding program to create super soldier. It mostly entails separating the child from the mother and chucking him in a 1x1 pit filled with dogs and cats, all burrowed on that one tile along with a stack of masterwork roasts for food, meaning they constantly attack each other. So far the kids all have good fighting/dodging, are covered in scars and "don't really care about anything anymore". I took the idea straight from the forums so I can't take credit for the sickness of it XD.
Oh and the vast majority of my dwarves live in disgusting opulence. At least 3x3 rooms for singles, 5x5 rooms with 3x3 dining rooms for families. Bunch of gold furniture, engraved walls, etc.