US Births Dip to 30-yr Low; Fertility Rate Sinks Further Below Replacement Level

Post by jacquesm » Thu, May 17, 2018, 7:54 PM UTC

rashomon wrote: post #15

0xB31B1B wrote: post #5

Student loans, housing costs, job prospects, healthcare, childcare. People are making a rational decision to avoid children they can’t afford. We as a society need to re-examine the causes of rising costs of essentials so reproduction is no longer financially infeasible.

Right in that bucket and don't think I'll ever afford being able to rear a child from a financial position of "comfort". Savings to the hilt but it's a cash flow problem. I also don't want to leave my wife and I without a child but all I envision are bars of my own making.

Post by loggedinmyphone » Thu, May 17, 2018, 7:54 PM UTC

nostromo wrote: post #35

mhneu wrote: post #8

For decades, the US birth rate has been held up by immigration. American values have been to regard the country as a nation of immigrants, who not only act as a source of youthful workers, but also have more kids than Americans who have been here longer. So the US has avoided workforce aging, as has happened in parts of Europe and especially Japan, through immigration. With the recent reduction in immigration, accele…

I don't see the value in large numbers of unskilled workers entering the US every year. With a potentially large wave of automation coming, the US shouldn't straddled itself with lots of unemployable drivers, farm workers, etc. I hope we can move to a much more sensible immigration system, similar to Canada's, for example.

Post by ghostcluster » Thu, May 17, 2018, 7:55 PM UTC

0xB31B1B wrote: post #5

Student loans, housing costs, job prospects, healthcare, childcare. People are making a rational decision to avoid children they can’t afford. We as a society need to re-examine the causes of rising costs of essentials so reproduction is no longer financially infeasible.

Post by stevecalifornia » Thu, May 17, 2018, 7:55 PM UTC

tzahola wrote: post #61

Karishma1234 wrote: post #36

Not true at all. Turns out that the poor people who actually cant afford to have kids are having more kids. Hispanic and Black growth is much higher than whites and asians. Asians with the highest income level have lowest birth rate. Given that it is mostly whites who have been leading in STEM there is a high chance that US will lose its competitive advantage in these fields.

I think the dwindling white population is actually a good thing, because it will enable people of color to assert a leading role in STEM fields!

Post by jacquesm » Thu, May 17, 2018, 7:55 PM UTC

jurassic wrote: post #18

As half of a thirty somethings couple that wants children but can’t afford the financial implications in the Bay Area, it seems pretty clear to me why fertility is down.