Posted on 09/16/2011 12:51:10 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
To President Barack Obama and many other Democrats, Europe continues to exercise something of a fatal attraction. The European dream embraced by these politicians as well as by many pundits, academics and policy analysts usually consists of an America governed by an expanded bureaucracy, connected by high-speed trains and following a tough green energy policy.
One hopes that the current crisis gripping the E.U. will give even the most devoted Europhiles pause about the wisdom of such mimicry. Yet the deadliest European disease the U.S. must avoid is that of persistent demographic decline.
The gravity of Europes demographic situation became clear at a conference I attended in Singapore last year. Dieter Salomon, the green mayor of the environmentally correct Freiburg, Germany, was speaking about the future of cities. When asked what Germanys future would be like in 30 years, he answered, with a little smile, There wont be a future.
Herr Mayor was not exaggerating. For decades, Europe has experienced some of the worlds slowest population growth rates. Fertility rates have dropped well below replacement rates, and are roughly 50% lower than those in the U.S. Over time these demographic trends will have catastrophic economic consequences. By 2050, Europe, now home to 730 million people, will shrink by 75 million to 100 million and its workforce will be 25% smaller than in 2000.
The fiscal costs of this process are already evident. Countries like Spain, Italy and Greece, which rank among the most rapidly aging populations in the world, are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. One reason has to do with the lack enough productive workers to pay for generous pensions and other welfare-state provisions.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
Hurry November, 2012!!! Restore America.
BTW, this is not just a European problem.
Mark Steyn in his book America Alone, notes that Europe, is not alone in the hyper-aging phenomena. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore face a similar scenario of rapid aging, a declining workforce and gradual depopulation.
The article notes that IN THE USA, the number of unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. has decreased by 1 million from 2007. Legal immigration is also down. Meanwhile, the number of Mexicans annually leaving Mexico for the U.S. declined from more than 1 million in 2006 to 404,000 in 2010 a 60% reduction.
More troubling still, fewer immigrants are becoming naturalized residents. In 2008, there were over 1 million naturalizations; last year there were barely 600,000, a remarkable 40% drop.
Who would want to be a naturalized US citizen when doing so makes you a target for the IRS? By this, I mean, the wealth you accumulated in your own country becomes SUBJECT TO TAXATION when you become a naturalized citizen.
RE: Who would want to be a naturalized US citizen when doing so makes you a target for the IRS? By this, I mean, the wealth you accumulated in your own country becomes SUBJECT TO TAXATION when you become a naturalized citizen.
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To add to this further, there is a DISINCENTIVE for those people who have the money to want to be naturalized. The only people who would want to be naturalized are poorer people from poorer countries.
This can be gathered by noting what the article observes:
Since 2008 naturalizations have dropped by 65% from North America, 24% from Asia and 28% for Europe. In fact the only place from which naturalizations are on the rise appears to be Africa, with an 18% increase.
This drop off, if continued, will have severe consequences. Since 1990 immigrants have accounted for some 45% of all our labor force growth and have increased their share from 9.3% to 15.7% of all workers. These immigrants, and their children, have been one key reason why the U.S. has avoided the deadly demography of Europe and much of east Asia.
The abortion of 53 million people since 1973 has resulted in the loss of 1/3 of a generation. Couple that with ongoing contraception & you’ve got a population crisis.
With only 1.7 workers for every 1 person on social security, you’ve got a great case for “death panels” for the sick & elderly.
Wake up, America. You’ve got serious, serious problems. Don’t drink the popluation control kool-aide
Demographic Winter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZeyYIsGdAA
America’s current fertility rate is 2.05.
Uhhh . . . let me think.
RE: Americas current fertility rate is 2.05.
Some questions about this stat:
1) In Which states are the fertility rates increasing and in which states are they decreasing?
2) Which racial segment of the population and which segment is stagnant or declining?
The answer to the above questions will tell us the DEMOGRAPHIC DIRECTION this nation is heading.
In Europe for instance, Mark Steyn observes that the main segment of the population in France, Holland, Belgium and other countries that is growing the fastest is the MUSLIM population. In England, the name Mohammad is now the most popular name for newborn babies.
RE: Americas current fertility rate is 2.05.
Some questions about this stat:
1) In Which states are the fertility rates increasing and in which states are they decreasing?
2) Which racial segment of the population and which segment is stagnant or declining?
The answer to the above questions will tell us the DEMOGRAPHIC DIRECTION this nation is heading.
In Europe for instance, Mark Steyn observes that the main segment of the population in France, Holland, Belgium and other countries that is growing the fastest is the MUSLIM population. In England, the name Mohammad is now the most popular name for newborn babies.
“...Is U.S. Going European?”
.
Yes, inclusive of the many Muslims that we import.
So if married couples have 2 kids per couple, that means they’re not multiplying. There’s no net increase, they’re just replacing themselves.
Good questions for which I do not have answers for but I can tell that “Whitey ain’t havin’ no babies!”.
Which results in a flat economy.
We can do something about this on a personal level by having more than two children and teaching our children about demographics and encouraging them to have more than two children.
The 53 million children who were aborted would have had children of their own. Some of those children would now be in their thirties, others in their twenties, teens and childhood. That 53 million could have doubled to over a hundred million in population.
Mr. and Mrs Whitey have to both work these days so they have to pay day care. If the government didn’t take a huge chunk of our paycheck, there would be more money in the pockets of Mr. and Mrs. Whitey and maybe Mrs. Whitey could stay home with the kids and they could afford to have more than two kids. Another problem is how people are following each other into debt just to keep up with the Joneses. Houses these days are way too big whereas the homes in the fifties and sixties were half the size of the new houses. This causes another expense that supresses the population.
My newspaper reported that our town lost 39.4% of children in the past 10 years. School taxes are going through the roof, though.
“The fiscal costs of this process are already evident. Countries like Spain, Italy and Greece, which rank among the most rapidly aging populations in the world, are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. One reason has to do with the lack enough productive workers to pay for generous pensions and other welfare-state provisions.”
Insolently low birth rates is in no small part a product of the welfare state. Both in terms of the immediate costs upon the population raising the cost of raising a family too high for people to support before their child rearing years are over.
And in terms of removing one of the big incentive for starting family(future security). No longer are people having kids as a means to provide for their future.
“Demographic Winter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZeyYIsGdAA
“
We as a civilization are looking at extinction. The what is most troubling about this video is that its rather clear how much damage is already been done irrecoverably.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg. In reality we have lost a lot of our solid genetic make up largely because of the same medical technology that has made the population boom possible.
The people that do exist are living on the genetic edge like few if any species ever did. But that’s just a long term problem until we can radically change the equation again with mass Genetic Engineering.
The far more immediate problem was the low birth rates in the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, 2000’s, and today. There has been an enormous amount of damage done to our federation already. This can’t be quickly fixed!
We are going to lose a LOT of ground one way or the other because of it.
Either we solve this problem, and sooner rather then later, or we will cease to exist as a civilization.
You can’t say that with any of the other problems in today’s world. Demographics is truly by definition our most pressing problem.
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