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What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

derekthompson.org

281–290 of 927 posts

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#281

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another option: In our case we both WFH which allows us to live near my wife's parents. Which means we have the luxury of an involved, local grandparent as an option over infant/childcare. We literally put the $ we'd budgeted for childcare into a 529. Certainly don't want to speak for everyone but at least for us it's an enormous cost savings and is a "win-win" for everyone involved. Another (seemingly less often dis…

same here. not near her parents but close enough to both hers and mine that we can effectively have them rotate through consistently (got a spare room and king sized bed for the g-parents). even just 2-3 days a week is huge from a mental health / down time / get things done around the house.

I think one dynamic going on here is there is more animosity between generations now than there used to be.

Many people get hyped up about their beliefs on social media, and when they go out into the real world they take some of that divisive thinking with them.

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We can’t have billionaires with their own private space programs and 5 families with more wealth than 50% of America, and have a stable society. This is just the natural and obvious outcome of what we’re already dealing with. The fertility crisis is just our refusal to deal appropriately with the ultra rich and the collapse of our institutions.

I continue to need someone to ELI5 precisely why we shouldn’t kill those 5 families and redistribute their shit.

Hench from HF?

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#283

These studies never seem to look at time spent parenting, between baby-boom years and now. My parents parented a few hours a week and were entirely typical. I parented ceaselessly, just like my parenting-peers. My parents world was possible because kids roamed with peers (and without adults) for many hours a week. This was my childhood, my parents childhood, my grandparents childhood. My kids grew up under 24/7 adult…

Don't forget the parenting of extended family and neighbors - it takes a village.. But we're moving further and further from local, village-like lives.

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#284

These studies never seem to look at time spent parenting, between baby-boom years and now. My parents parented a few hours a week and were entirely typical. I parented ceaselessly, just like my parenting-peers. My parents world was possible because kids roamed with peers (and without adults) for many hours a week. This was my childhood, my parents childhood, my grandparents childhood. My kids grew up under 24/7 adult…

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Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#285
post #264

My anecdotal experience, which illustrates how changing societal norms may be contributing. Around 1960, my grandmother scandalously fell pregnant with my mother in her late teens. The child was adopted out - well, not out - in. To her own grandmother, to be raised as a "younger sister" to her own mother. Around 1980, my mother scandalously fell pregnant with me, in her late teens. Despite family disapproval, the chi…

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I think the point of the post is that society has changed its stance on having kids. People who aren't purposefully branching out on their own and are just "going with the flow" of their external influences are more likely to not have kids. Everyone still has the choice, but the default has changed for most of us.

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#286
post #161

My $0.02 is being a mom sucks. In modern relationships, men just want to work and come home to a cooked meal and clean house, but their wives are working just as many hours the men are. Having kids means tension in relationship, unpaid labor by the woman, and stress parenting kids. Even if the husband steps up, he still can't breast feed for 3 hours per day. Pregnancy is really terrible on the woman's body. Post-part…

> In modern relationships, men just want to work and come home to a cooked meal and clean house As a man in a "modern relationship" I strenuously object to this. I mean yeah I want that (who wouldn't?), but I know I'm not going to get it because my partner has a job too so we have to help each other. Literally every one of my married male friends also regularly cooks and cleans.

They are married though. A bunch a guys stand no chance of being or staying married because they just don’t offer what it takes

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#287

Worrying about declining birth rates on Earth in 2025 is exactly as psychotic as dinosaurs worrying about their investment portfolios the day after Chicxulub. Someone said "more meat for the grinder", which is exactly correct whether it is referring to a war machine or the late-stage capitalist shithole we've created. You're all absolutely crazy if you think more fscking people on this finite planet is going to solve…

The world now is in better place than it ever was. We are less violent, live longer, live healthier, minimum wage workers can have luxuries unimaginable by kings back in time. It's time to end the nihilism epidemic.

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it depends on age. Men in their 20ies don't want kids because they still want to enjoy life without responsibility, but by the time they are in their 30ies they are ready to settle down and the idea of having a family becomes more and more appealing.

Yes and that is too late and in the meantime have wasted 10 fertile years of 2 or 3 female partners.

If 20-something women wanted kids at that age they could marry 30-something men who want to settle down if they were suitable marriage/mother material in the eyes of those men.

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#289

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No - being a mom and having to work full time sucks. Being a full time mom probably isn't that bad.

Some Women who are full time mothers report feeling isolated. Many chose to keep their job even if all the money goes to day care.

Making friends irl is hard when everyone has TVs and phones

Re: What caused the 'baby boom'? What would it take to have another?

#290

These studies never seem to look at time spent parenting, between baby-boom years and now. My parents parented a few hours a week and were entirely typical. I parented ceaselessly, just like my parenting-peers. My parents world was possible because kids roamed with peers (and without adults) for many hours a week. This was my childhood, my parents childhood, my grandparents childhood. My kids grew up under 24/7 adult…

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