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Polybius (200 BC - 120 BC)

Depopulation of Greece

As I blame those who assign fortune and destiny as the Limits to the belief of the direct interference of Providence in human affairs. moving causes in common events and catastrophes, I wish now to enter as minutely on the discussion of this subject as the nature of an historical work will admit. Those things of which it is impossible or difficult for a mere man to ascertain the causes, such as a continuous fall of rains and unseasonable wet, or, on the contrary, droughts and frosts, one may reasonably impute to God and Fortune, in default of any other explanation; and from them come destruction of fruits, as well as long-continued epidemics, and other similar things, of which it is not easy to find the cause. On such matters then, we, in default of a better, follow the prevailing opinions of the multitude, attempting by supplications and sacrifices to appease the wrath of heaven, and sending to ask the gods by what words or actions on our part a change for the better may be brought about, and a respite be obtained for the evils which are afflicting us. But those things, of which it is possible to find the origin and cause of their occurrence, I do not think we should refer to the gods. I mean such a thing as the following. In our time all Greece was visited by a dearth of children and generally a decay of population, owing to which the cities were denuded of inhabitants, and a failure of productiveness resulted, though there were no long-continued wars or serious pestilences among us. If, then, any one had advised our sending to ask the gods in regard to this, what we were to do or say in order to become more numerous and better fill our cities,—would he not have seemed a futile person, when the cause was manifest and the cure in our own hands? For this evil grew upon us rapidly, and without attracting attention, by our men becoming perverted to a passion for show and money and the pleasures of an idle life, and accordingly either not marrying at all, or, if they did marry, refusing to rear the children that were born, or at most one or two out of a great number, for the sake of leaving them well off or bringing them up in extravagant luxury. For when there are only one or two sons, it is evident that, if war or pestilence carries off one, the houses must be left heirless: and, like swarms of bees, little by little the cities become sparsely inhabited and weak. On this subject there is no need to ask the gods how we are to be relieved from such a curse: for any one in the world will tell you that it is by the men themselves if possible changing their objects of ambition; or, if that cannot be done, by passing laws for the preservation of infants.

1 posted on 11/07/2022 12:52:38 AM PST by CharlesOConnell
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To: CharlesOConnell

One child policy is a sham. I made business with the Chinese family 20+ years ago. They had one son with a certificate of birth and several more undocumented children.


2 posted on 11/07/2022 1:53:12 AM PST by NorseViking
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To: CharlesOConnell

Mao Zedong died in September 1876, more than two years after Nixon left office.


3 posted on 11/07/2022 2:10:25 AM PST by nickcarraway
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To: CharlesOConnell

(Caution: Epoch Times is associated with Falun Gong.)

So what?

CC


6 posted on 11/07/2022 3:34:09 AM PST by Celtic Conservative (My cats are more amusing than 200 channels worth of TV.)
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To: CharlesOConnell

For Chinese over 30, the sex ratio is the normal 105 males per 100 females. For Chinese under 30, the ratio varies but is between 110 and 116 males per 100 females for various cohorts.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/282119/china-sex-ratio-by-age-group/

The sex ratio is probably less of a problem in China than it is in Islamic countries where males marry multiple females.


9 posted on 11/07/2022 3:54:15 AM PST by FarCenter
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To: CharlesOConnell

Did the one child policy raise several generations of spoiled brats?


11 posted on 11/07/2022 4:08:24 AM PST by tired&retired (Blessings )
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To: CharlesOConnell
(though there's much less difference between capitalism and communism than is commonly understood).

The author of the article gets many things wrong.

What is clear, is the people who claim to be able to predict the future, can't and are constantly undone by unforeseen consequences.

12 posted on 11/07/2022 4:16:52 AM PST by marktwain
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To: CharlesOConnell

“Henry Kissinger, a Rockefeller associate”

Kissinger promoted Klaus Schawb.


21 posted on 11/07/2022 8:07:25 AM PST by dljordan
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