In 1987 syndicated columnist Ben J. Wattenberg wrote a book titled, “The Birth Dearth.” In it he explains how a declining population effects a nation’s economic, political and military standing in a global community. He posits a declining population eventually means a declining influence economically, politically, and militarily among the world’s nations.
America is already far behind the populations of China and India, and China is exerting a strong challenge to America’s financial might. Because of the U.S.’s economic superiority the lingua franca (the common language of commerce and trade) is English. If current population trajectories continue, we may need to teach our children Chinese.
Two practices that have help put a dent in live births are abortion and same-sex marriage. Since, Roe v. Wade there have been an estimated 70 million abortions, and since Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex marriages have been on the rise. The first one is killing the next generation, and the second one cannot produce the next generation. I first wrote about this in May of 2021.
Our Creator knew what was best for human flourishing when he told our first parents to, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth…” Genesis 1:28. But our culture seems to think we can ignore divine direction given for our wellbeing and we will continue to prosper as a nation.
A few weeks back I read an article with the following headline, “America is refusing to do the one simple thing that would solve the Great People Shortage.” The article was addressing the issue of the shortage of Americans to fill needed vacancies within our work force. It ignored the contributing factors of abortion and same-sex marriage in our work force shortage and said the answer to America’s Great People Shortage was immigration.
It seems a declining birth rate’s pending impact has not gone unnoticed. Its impact is beginning to be felt, but the answer according to the article is not restricting abortions or abolishing same-sex marriage but depending on immigration to make up the needed positions.
I was somewhat surprised when Dr. Albert Mohler, Jr., addressed the issue of declining birth rates in his podcast of the briefing recently. In his Thursday, June 19, 2023, podcast he said, “Now, the reason we’re talking about this today is that the dramatic fall off in the birth rate, the fertility rate when it comes to human beings all over the world, is now getting attention even among people who aren’t primarily concerned about this in worldview terms, certainly not in moral or in biblical terms. They’re concerned about this in social and specifically in economic terms, because as it turns out, a lower birth rate is going to mean severe strains on our economy.”
For decades now the financial foundation of our democracy has been undermined by a dwindling birthrate. Our government will try to prop up our economy as long as it can but will eventually run out of money when future wage earners and taxpayers are not around to pay the bills.
Judgment does not always come in the form of fire and brimstone raining down from above, sometimes it comes in the form of letting us make our own decisions and then just letting us live and die with the consequences.
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