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America edging toward demographic cliff?

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    Author claims lower population could cause economic turmoil

  • Duration 2:33
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Safety Brian it's a fact modern families are shrinking and the cost of raising kids is in what used to be so more women are joining the workforce and families are waiting -- have kids.

Why is that is it because government regulations are driving up -- for making families more expensive than ever is it something else Dennis not a senior writer for the weekly standard.

And author of what to expect when no one's expecting.

America's coming demographic disaster Jonathan last sixteen -- and -- -- from the women out there who've had babies they've read those books what to expect when you're expecting and you're kind of taking a turn on that in the opposite direction.

What do you mean by your title.

So what we've seen in America over the last forty years is really plummeting of our fertility rate.

To be raised number of children at the average woman has -- right now about one point nine that's below the replacement level and we've been below replacement since the early 1970s.

-- you say forget the debt ceiling forget the fiscal cliff we have a demographic.

That demographic.

Cliff.

Meaning that.

We have more.

Older people now to -- in our society and not in enough young people coming up to the -- right and that's what happens when your below the replacement rate for prolonged period of time.

Age profile shifts and -- want to put an inverted pyramid you wanna -- many more old people.

Fewer young people support from the you have to make all sorts of choices to cut defense do you cut benefits for the older people who need prompt them to -- you raise taxes on workers.

-- want to -- that situation so let's take a look at the American family size.

In the Blue Line you're gonna see this is zero to two kids you can see that that's been.

On the rise in the red it's three plus -- which has been on the decline so I'm in the blue I have two kids here currently in the red you have.

Three kids.

But people having bigger families obviously for a variety of reasons it's just not happened.

-- -- it's harder and -- her for all sorts of reasons some which perfectly good you know college to college for instance.

Or people go to college today we think is a good thing that we are expanding educational opportunities.

But we push back college you know that involves sudden you're not looking -- former fan which are 22 at the earliest.

-- later you wait to get married believe you -- children and then eventually brought against the wall biology.

To what is the answer to try to rebalance society.

Well I think we should do primarily is just try we don't need to convince people don't wanna have kids to have to have them god knows that they're pretty good reasons not to have kids myself that this decisions.

But we should do is we try to make life easier for the people who do you wanna have children that's the book is all that's but looking at the problem where we are now.

And figure out a way forward the people who still want to have families.

Writes very interest and read Jonathan last it's called what to expect when no one's expecting -- and thanks.

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