The reality of the issue is no longer in question, what about the reality of solutions?
How do we entice the jaded, comfortable, and in the end, self centered people in the West to love themselves, to start families and form and maintain communities?
To what extent are idealised social media expectations resulting in parents having fewer children?
I think today the idea of siblings sharing a bedroom or even a bunkbed feels embarrassing, almost Dickensian to many!
If you feel that being a good parent means 1 bedroom per child, designer clothes, and 2 foreign holidays a year it's no surprise birth rates are so low.
Given the great leaps forward in reproductive science and cloning, could you imagine a future where an authoritarian regime like China might secretly begin creating human life and allocating it from a central crèche to the military and citizens?...Shades of Brave New World.
Please comment on the sociological factors, in addition to personal, affecting people’s reluctance to take parenting. Much has been made of the daunting financial demands but I believe a bigger factor is the lack of community leaving many couples feeling isolated.
One of the examples of a "western" country with a higher birth rate is Israel. What is it about that country that explains how it bucks the trend? Are differences mostly cultural or due to political decisions?
The answer is simple! Deregulate child seats! Most cars have space on the back seat for only 2 child seats. Most Western countries have introduced strict regulations requiring the use of approved child seats for the transport of children up to 12 years old. This makes families of >2 children impractical for most.
1)Anecdotally, women are talking about more miscarriages and more difficulty conceiving post COVID/COVID mRNA vaccines. Does the data support these conclusions?
2) What impacts, if any, have NICU "miracle stories" and St. Jude's Cancer Center ads had on potential parents' risk calculus for becoming a parent?
How much is society becoming less friendly to children? For example, taking your child out at a restaurant or many people stating they don't want them at parties or weddings? How much is this impacting on childlessness as people don't want to be excluded?
From my point of view, the advertising and entertainment industries started more than 50 years ago to foist on us unrealistic images of a suitable spouse. If you are an ordinary person, you cannot find such a spouse. You might pair up, but you stay on the lookout, in the vain hope that someday, you'll find… To have children responsibly, don't we need at least a reasonable expectation that our spouse will stay with us?
Here is a speculation: Children are an extended economic liability, not a value. until they are in their early twenties. K-12 and college primarily serve warehousing rather than educational functions. Farm children had value if only in weeding the garden and feeding the animals. The fact that they have little immediate value for society is as much a problem for themselves as for the community. Thanks.
The reality of the issue is no longer in question, what about the reality of solutions?
How do we entice the jaded, comfortable, and in the end, self centered people in the West to love themselves, to start families and form and maintain communities?
Is it even possible?
To what extent are idealised social media expectations resulting in parents having fewer children?
I think today the idea of siblings sharing a bedroom or even a bunkbed feels embarrassing, almost Dickensian to many!
If you feel that being a good parent means 1 bedroom per child, designer clothes, and 2 foreign holidays a year it's no surprise birth rates are so low.
Given the great leaps forward in reproductive science and cloning, could you imagine a future where an authoritarian regime like China might secretly begin creating human life and allocating it from a central crèche to the military and citizens?...Shades of Brave New World.
Please comment on the sociological factors, in addition to personal, affecting people’s reluctance to take parenting. Much has been made of the daunting financial demands but I believe a bigger factor is the lack of community leaving many couples feeling isolated.
One of the examples of a "western" country with a higher birth rate is Israel. What is it about that country that explains how it bucks the trend? Are differences mostly cultural or due to political decisions?
The answer is simple! Deregulate child seats! Most cars have space on the back seat for only 2 child seats. Most Western countries have introduced strict regulations requiring the use of approved child seats for the transport of children up to 12 years old. This makes families of >2 children impractical for most.
1)Anecdotally, women are talking about more miscarriages and more difficulty conceiving post COVID/COVID mRNA vaccines. Does the data support these conclusions?
2) What impacts, if any, have NICU "miracle stories" and St. Jude's Cancer Center ads had on potential parents' risk calculus for becoming a parent?
How much is society becoming less friendly to children? For example, taking your child out at a restaurant or many people stating they don't want them at parties or weddings? How much is this impacting on childlessness as people don't want to be excluded?
From my point of view, the advertising and entertainment industries started more than 50 years ago to foist on us unrealistic images of a suitable spouse. If you are an ordinary person, you cannot find such a spouse. You might pair up, but you stay on the lookout, in the vain hope that someday, you'll find… To have children responsibly, don't we need at least a reasonable expectation that our spouse will stay with us?
Here is a speculation: Children are an extended economic liability, not a value. until they are in their early twenties. K-12 and college primarily serve warehousing rather than educational functions. Farm children had value if only in weeding the garden and feeding the animals. The fact that they have little immediate value for society is as much a problem for themselves as for the community. Thanks.
What has happened to the Tommy Robinson interview that was being recorded a couple of weeks back?
He had to postpone. Will be recorded in a couple of weeks