Birthrate of a Nation

 

If nothing else, the current debate over abortion following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision is reminding us that pregnancy isn’t just about the miracle of human life. For women, it’s a major altered condition of their bodies, and weathering it requires months of discomfort. And it doesn’t always end well, with doctors fearful of prosecution in some states if they try to help a woman with a risky pregnancy.

There are politicians, mostly male, pushing the idea that women are supposed to want to have children. If they don’t, it’s just not normal. Especially if they live with a cat.

Ah, that “N” word. Normal, in most usages, has come to mean “correct.” But It seems correct only because most people act in a certain way, which leads us to normal’s narrower mathematical meaning. Remember the old bell curve?

Which brings us to a real numbers issue. The US birthrate has been declining for decades, for a number of reasons, One of the biggest is, young people have been postponing having children, or not having them at all, due to the sheer cost. That seems sensible, except that a population imbalance is looming. We are not replacing ourselves, which has consequences. For example, with more older people on Social Security and Medicare and fewer young people working and paying into the system, there is a problem.

As many have said, if men had to go through pregnancy themselves, Roe would still be the law of the land, no questions asked. But forcing women to have children, either by law or by shame, doesn’t work. Free choice isn’t just about abortion. It’s also about the freedom NOT to have children in the first place.

Just to be clear, I’m OK with not being a father, I prize sleep and free time too much, and trust me, I would never make it through the first tantrum in the supermarket. But I deeply admire those who do make the commitment to raise a child, even if it’s the toddler in the grocery cart behind me in the checkout line screaming.

Government could actually play a role here by helping couples who want to have families start them, via natural birth, IVF, and adoption. Child tax credits may be just the beginning. The goal should be to help parents BE parents, as children aren’t just cost centers but investments in the future.

I hate to throw THIS into the mix, but it’s said that one of the things keeping our population from falling into real imbalance is immigration, but that’s a discussion for another day.