Posted on 04/08/2010 6:56:47 AM PDT by NYer
.- The U.S. birthrate fell from 2007 to 2008 and is now below replacement rate. One population expert, noting that children are the “only future a country has,” warns that a scarcity of children condemns a country to stagnation, bankruptcy and eventually death.
The U.S. National Vital Statistics Report for April 2010 shows that the U.S. birthrate fell two percent from 2007 to 2008. It is a drop below the replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman.
In 2008 there were 41.5 births per 1,000 teens aged 15 to 19, also a two percent drop. The report also indicates that more U.S. children are being born out of wedlock than ever before.
According to the Washington Post, an October survey by the Pew Research Center said that 14 percent of Americans ages 18 to 34 and eight percent of those aged 35 to 44 said they postponed having a child because of the recession.
CNA discussed the report in a Wednesday e-mail interview with Steven Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute (PRI).
Asked whether the drop in births could be attributed to the economic downturn, he replied:
“Children are an expression of hope in the future. With the downturn in housing prices, and the upswing in the unemployment rate, it is not surprising that many couples decided to defer having children until the economic downturn had corrected itself. We will, I predict, see a bigger drop in the birthrate in 2009, when the unemployment rate closed in on 10 percent, 9.3 percent according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
He said birth rates have fallen in Europe and other developed countries, “for the same reason.”
CNA asked whether an increase in the abortion rate could have been a factor in the falling birth rate.
Mosher said “anecdotal evidence” suggests Americans are “increasingly aborting babies who were unfortunate enough to be conceived during this economic recession.”
He reported that more men and women are having themselves sterilized and contraceptive use is also up.
Asked about the broader consequences for a country below a replacement birth rate, Mosher commented:
“Look at present-day Greece, which is going over a demographic cliff because of a scarcity of children. Too few young people are entering the work force to replace retiring workers, entitlement spending is increasing at the same time that tax revenues are leveling off, and the government is technically bankrupt.
“Children are the only future a country has, and countries that fail to provide for the future in the most fundamental way--by providing the future generation--are condemned to stagnation, bankruptcy, and death.”
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2445726/posts?page=157#157
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2434789/posts?page=29#29
No, America would not be happy with a stagnant population. Healthy civilizations are growing not shrinking. This is the major goal of Obamacare to eliminate American exceptionalism and to bring the fertility rate to match that of Europe.
Someone has to buy the goods and services being made. What happens when the young people can no longer afford them? Then they will do without and demand will plummet and people will lose jobs.
Amnesty now. We the reproductive power of illegals.. Everyone gets an anchor baby!
Here’s a news flash: Many young American couples would like to have children, but they are working to provide subsidized homes, free food, free medical and dental care, subsidized transportation, free education, free legal advice, free cellphones, and money for clothing for all the recipients of government-mandated charity. MANY YOUNG COUPLES CAN’T AFFORD TO HAVE CHILDREN. After years op preparing for a career with advanced degrees, they now are being taxed to death. Financially, they are hanging on by their teeth and toenails.
Mark Steyn has an excellent thesis on this. Socialist states turn out dependent adults who are perpetually infantile, hedonistic and self-centered. These people do not believe in progeny — why have children with all the sacrifice that entails when you have nirvana on earth, provided by your government? And, as the article points out, if you are convinced that the future is not brighter, why bring children into the world.
These are very sad outcomes of socialist/marxist governments and it has been proven empirically all over the world. If this comes true in the U.S., we will definitely have “guest worker” programs like Western Europe and bring in lots of muslims and even more Mexicans. You can see Obama the communist bringing the rampant problems in Germany, France, Sweden, Netherlands, Belgium and England down on our heads.
Only on the Caucasian side. The Mooselimbs and others are taking control between the sheets.
China will end up paying dearly, look at the fact they have “extra males” around. Armed forces materal.
Not really. Older people need the care of younger people, even if the government is not involved.
“Chicom” bullshit?
Is that why we owe China nearly $1 trillion?
And is that why America’s credit rating came under pressure recently, just from the Chinese making noises that maybe they might not buy so much of our bonds as before and maybe even sell our bonds?
“China is going to hit a wall in 20 years.”
Congratulations!
Your crystal ball can see a heck of lot more into the future than almost anybody’s. We'll put you on Wall Street.
“ But go on, preach it brother.”
I don't need to. Your own words will do you in.
Wait till abortion becomes compulsory for whites.
We need more fundamentalist Christians then - families routinely have 3,4,5 or more kids.
Amen to your comments. Hit it on the nail!
Who needs birthrates when we can offer a “path to citizenship”
I cynically chuckle when I see the phrase “more diverse”,
because it doesn’t mean “more diverse”, it means
“fewer white people”.
Correlation does not equal causation. There have been some other changes in China that have affected their economy. Having too many men for the number of women is going to be a problem - not just for China, but for the rest of the world. Imagine a rich China with plenty of single men to serve in the military.
This is a BS to push for more illegals. The leftist Islamists pulled this crap on the UK.
Now, this might be approaching paranoid, but...
what about the increased fuel efficiency requirements (smaller cars)
combined with car seat laws (more space req’d per child).
This combination, whether they intend it or not (see tagline), disincentivizes larger families, making them unaffordable and inconvenient.
That is what I also had said.
Demographic Winter
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