06/05: Choosing Not to Have Children
Category: American Culture
Posted by: an okie gardener
This article from the Washington Post offers a sobering, even frightening, look at the future of Japan.
An excerpt:
The proportion of children in the population fell to an all-time low of 13.5 percent. That number has been falling for 34 straight years and is the lowest among 31 major countries, according to the report. In the United States, children account for about 20 percent of the population.
Japan also has a surfeit of the elderly. About 22 percent of the population is 65 or older, the highest proportion in the world. And that number is on the rise. By 2020, the elderly will outnumber children by nearly 3 to 1, the government report predicted. By 2040, they will outnumber them by nearly 4 to 1.
The economic and social consequences of these trends are difficult to overstate.
In the U.S. we have seen an overall decline in the birthrate for decades. Why? Many causes, but let me raise a few possibilities and questions.
When the social ideal for both sexes is a successful career, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the economic ideal for couples is a house their grandparents would have regarded as a mansion, plus travel and at least two nice cars, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the societal ideal for old age is a carefree extended vacation requiring invested money, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When self-satisfaction and personal leisure are high priorities, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When stable family life until death seems an impossible ideal, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the social ideal of the child-centered household means that children are terribly expensive, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
I do think that it is a responsible decision to choose to have a limited number of children for the sake of the environment (we seem to have obeyed one of God's commands, to fill the earth), but I suspect we have fewer children for lots of not-so-good reasons.
An excerpt:
The proportion of children in the population fell to an all-time low of 13.5 percent. That number has been falling for 34 straight years and is the lowest among 31 major countries, according to the report. In the United States, children account for about 20 percent of the population.
Japan also has a surfeit of the elderly. About 22 percent of the population is 65 or older, the highest proportion in the world. And that number is on the rise. By 2020, the elderly will outnumber children by nearly 3 to 1, the government report predicted. By 2040, they will outnumber them by nearly 4 to 1.
The economic and social consequences of these trends are difficult to overstate.
In the U.S. we have seen an overall decline in the birthrate for decades. Why? Many causes, but let me raise a few possibilities and questions.
When the social ideal for both sexes is a successful career, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the economic ideal for couples is a house their grandparents would have regarded as a mansion, plus travel and at least two nice cars, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the societal ideal for old age is a carefree extended vacation requiring invested money, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When self-satisfaction and personal leisure are high priorities, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When stable family life until death seems an impossible ideal, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
When the social ideal of the child-centered household means that children are terribly expensive, then couples will choose to have fewer children.
I do think that it is a responsible decision to choose to have a limited number of children for the sake of the environment (we seem to have obeyed one of God's commands, to fill the earth), but I suspect we have fewer children for lots of not-so-good reasons.
Tocqueville wrote:
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