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I know very few people that have kids and I have none myself. The ones I know who do live out in ultra conservative religious areas like Kansas or Missouri. For me it is partly economic (great recession disaster), partly a reality of moving more frequently, and the reality that I want to live somewhere near a lake in retirement. It all takes investments and hard work to be able to achieve these things. Unfortunately, more people have to make even more extreme sacrifices to be able to achieve particular goals of their choosing given the ever increasing costs of many items.
I agree.
I've never had any real desire to be a father, but anymore, it just seems less and less worth it.
I didn't get my first "real job" until I was 27 - almost 28. That job was pretty crazy with people being hired and fired left and right, so I left it and ended up with an even worse job. I didn't get my "career track, stable job" until I was 30.
I've had quite a few relationships, but only one with an age-appropriate partner where marriage and children were even discussions. She had a lot of health issues where I don't know if she could have even handled the pregnancy.
At 34, I don't want to be "that old dad." 40 is probably going to be my cut off limit.
so many people in their 30's and 40's that never launched these days. They have don't have their own lives in order and never will, they shouldn't have children.
The economic consequence 21 years from now in 2041 will be severe. Every credible econometric model of the US economy shows population growth as a principle driver of future economic growth.
In many senses, this decline is associated with the incredibly strong economy we've enjoyed over the past several years - economic opportunity for women has resulted in their personal decisions to work and defer/decline to procreated.
More and more, it is clear the USA needs a policy of encouraging immigration of fertile women who are of childbearing age.
What the United States needs is an increase in wages commensurate with the growth in the GDP. The inflation needle has been balanced on the backs of workers for 50 years. They have doubled and tripled their productivity for the same wages their grandparents earned in 1970.
Most Americans of child bearing years cannot afford to support a family, so they don't have one. Except for a minority of high earners, having a child is a one way ticket to poverty.
What the United States needs is an increase in wages commensurate with the growth in the GDP. The inflation needle has been balanced on the backs of workers for 50 years. They have doubled and tripled their productivity for the same wages their grandparents earned in 1970.
Most Americans of child bearing years cannot afford to support a family, so they don't have one. Except for a minority of high earners, having a child is a one way ticket to poverty.
That is correct, and it is not sustainable. Something will have to change sooner or later. Wages were rising a bit more very recently, but then the disaster of 2020 hit with lower to middle income people more greatly impacted.
They have doubled and tripled their productivity for the same wages their grandparents earned in 1970.
I'm not sure that someone who used to write down the manifest numbers with a pencil in 1970 but now uses a barcode scanner to accomplish 5x more in the same amount of time deserves to earn more (inflation adjusted) money for that time. They are paid for their labor and both are simple jobs that require little training.
The company had to buy the barcode scanenr and computer system that goes with it, somewhere some engineers are making more money from having designed it and their job is far more complex than the guy scanning at the warehouse.
What the United States needs is an increase in wages commensurate with the growth in the GDP.
What the United States needs is a (downward) realignment between available worker hours
...and the work that is a) needed a1) valuable to the business and b) worth paying people more to do it.
I've never had any real desire to be a father, but anymore, it just seems less and less worth it.
Until I was mid-30s, I focused 100% on career and making money. Then, fairly rapidly, I pivoted. As they say in the movies, "The future hasn't been written yet." One never knows.
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On a practical note, if you don't have children, who will decide what old-folks home to stick you in 35 years from now?
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