Amidst a downhill employment trend for men aged 25-54, employers are reportedly begging for workers. At the same time, the fertility rate is veering well below the replacement level (13 min read.)
I have pondered this question at length.. and I don't know the answer.. my sons are in that age range. both of them have informed me that I for sure will not be a grand mother. I actually worked through a mini grieving process for many personal reasons. My sons are every gainfully employed as well as wife and other significant other, she has a child from a previous marriage. Employment and the low birth rage among educated Americans of European descent (our family) should be viewed as two different and separate issues. I normally would not have even responded but I did spend lot of time thinking about this. I was divorced from their father, many of their peers.. also came from divorced families.. and we are live in what would be middle to upper middle environments; I took a look at my family Heritage and other sites of my sons fathers, both sides of family were hard working in all areas; from the trades, engineers, metal workers, many military, my own grand father was a Phd in Chemistry,, MIT.. etc. all the way to coal miners on my Italian side, and many families had between five and 12 children per couple, e.g. I do have hundreds of cousins,, by blood: what struck me was with a couple exceptions, and those were because one of the spouses died young and then usually man or woman remarried and had MORE kids was: first, faith,, Catholic or Lutheran or Episcopal., baptisms and church records, and secondly as I mentioned because the deep faith aspect of my family tree, very few documented divorce. I am talking about not anecdotal.. I have thousands of DNA relatives which go back to the 1600s.. even 1500s. (I started doing this recently) and I was actually extremely shocked. Anyone can go on Family ark.. something like that see for themselves.. all people.. all walks of life. America has gone secularly woke. In my opinion will get worse before it gets better. anyway, IMHO. :) isabell
I really appreciate you sharing your story. I think that Eberstadt’s analysis highlights a challenge within a subset of men who fall into traditionally working-class to lower-middle-class households; these are men who, as Eberstadt’s says, have gradually “checked out of the workforce” over the past 40 years. We can examine health and employment statistics to better understand the gravity of the situation. I found Eberstadt’s data-driven analysis fascinating and illuminating as well, and indeed, he echoes your point that "America has gone secularly woke." I agree, the nation is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.
Very interesting read. I kept thinking about Darwin:
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change, that lives within the means available and works co-operatively against common threats. Charles Darwin
You are right on about the university system and schools in general. Students do not ever rise above their teachers. You are also correct in starting those under 40 have no clue about what this country was like before 1970... like many of us who where around back then!
Thank you for commenting; I appreciate it. Feel free to add if your personal judgment on some issues differs from Nicholas Eberstadt's analysis. While examining Eberstadt's work, I found genuinely intriguing the "workplace participation rate" and how we can restore pride towards employment in a subset of 25-54 aged people who have supposedly "checked out."
I came from a huge family, 16 kids when you count step, half, and full. Our family reunions are big. I only had one biological child because of how poor having all of those kids made us financially. That was what I could afford at the time. I married into 4 more later in life and have never looked back. Grandbabies and Great Gandbabbies galore. Life is good, wouldn't have it any other way. We are truly blessed.
I feel sorry for these kids not having children, or at least one. They are missing out on so much. The biggest thing they miss out on is the act of loving someone more than yourself. Someone you would give up your life for. In a word, unselfishness.
On the other hand there are people who are probably better off not having kids. Perhaps they know that they do not have the ability of putting someone ahead of them, or sacrificing for a child. It is not for everybody.
I hear you loud and clear. Indeed, raising children requires selflessness, unselfishness and a remarkable amount of emotional energy. Of course, many new parents, particularly millennials and Generation Z, will be dedicated to child-rearing. Still, many couples, to your point, are better off avoiding having children if that's their prerogative.
I have pondered this question at length.. and I don't know the answer.. my sons are in that age range. both of them have informed me that I for sure will not be a grand mother. I actually worked through a mini grieving process for many personal reasons. My sons are every gainfully employed as well as wife and other significant other, she has a child from a previous marriage. Employment and the low birth rage among educated Americans of European descent (our family) should be viewed as two different and separate issues. I normally would not have even responded but I did spend lot of time thinking about this. I was divorced from their father, many of their peers.. also came from divorced families.. and we are live in what would be middle to upper middle environments; I took a look at my family Heritage and other sites of my sons fathers, both sides of family were hard working in all areas; from the trades, engineers, metal workers, many military, my own grand father was a Phd in Chemistry,, MIT.. etc. all the way to coal miners on my Italian side, and many families had between five and 12 children per couple, e.g. I do have hundreds of cousins,, by blood: what struck me was with a couple exceptions, and those were because one of the spouses died young and then usually man or woman remarried and had MORE kids was: first, faith,, Catholic or Lutheran or Episcopal., baptisms and church records, and secondly as I mentioned because the deep faith aspect of my family tree, very few documented divorce. I am talking about not anecdotal.. I have thousands of DNA relatives which go back to the 1600s.. even 1500s. (I started doing this recently) and I was actually extremely shocked. Anyone can go on Family ark.. something like that see for themselves.. all people.. all walks of life. America has gone secularly woke. In my opinion will get worse before it gets better. anyway, IMHO. :) isabell
I really appreciate you sharing your story. I think that Eberstadt’s analysis highlights a challenge within a subset of men who fall into traditionally working-class to lower-middle-class households; these are men who, as Eberstadt’s says, have gradually “checked out of the workforce” over the past 40 years. We can examine health and employment statistics to better understand the gravity of the situation. I found Eberstadt’s data-driven analysis fascinating and illuminating as well, and indeed, he echoes your point that "America has gone secularly woke." I agree, the nation is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.
Great essay!
and very thought provoking.. :) awesome.
Thank you.
Thank you.
"Deaths of despair" is such an apt descriptor and category.
Love your commitment to the empirical in a discussion such as this one!
Childless Millennial here (shrug). And the beginning, at least, of your diagnosis of our generation seems on point.
Thank you for your comment, much appreciated.
Very interesting read. I kept thinking about Darwin:
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change, that lives within the means available and works co-operatively against common threats. Charles Darwin
Thank you for sharing this interesting point, which leads me to the following question: what kind of "changes" are we, the people, willing to adapt?
It depends on what people see as a common threat. We’re headed down some bad paths. I guess we’re going to find out aren’t we?
Absolutely.
You are right on about the university system and schools in general. Students do not ever rise above their teachers. You are also correct in starting those under 40 have no clue about what this country was like before 1970... like many of us who where around back then!
Thank you for commenting; I appreciate it. Feel free to add if your personal judgment on some issues differs from Nicholas Eberstadt's analysis. While examining Eberstadt's work, I found genuinely intriguing the "workplace participation rate" and how we can restore pride towards employment in a subset of 25-54 aged people who have supposedly "checked out."
It seems that the word "pride" has been hijacked by the LGBTQ folks to mean something else entirely, especially to those under 40.
Yes, indeed. Very good point. Thank you.
I came from a huge family, 16 kids when you count step, half, and full. Our family reunions are big. I only had one biological child because of how poor having all of those kids made us financially. That was what I could afford at the time. I married into 4 more later in life and have never looked back. Grandbabies and Great Gandbabbies galore. Life is good, wouldn't have it any other way. We are truly blessed.
I feel sorry for these kids not having children, or at least one. They are missing out on so much. The biggest thing they miss out on is the act of loving someone more than yourself. Someone you would give up your life for. In a word, unselfishness.
On the other hand there are people who are probably better off not having kids. Perhaps they know that they do not have the ability of putting someone ahead of them, or sacrificing for a child. It is not for everybody.
I hear you loud and clear. Indeed, raising children requires selflessness, unselfishness and a remarkable amount of emotional energy. Of course, many new parents, particularly millennials and Generation Z, will be dedicated to child-rearing. Still, many couples, to your point, are better off avoiding having children if that's their prerogative.
It turns into a personal choice, when all is said and done.
Very interesting essay! There is a great deal to think about and I am going to be thinking about it!
Thank you.