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February 13, 2012
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Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
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February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
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Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
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Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
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January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
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John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Sept. 16, 2005
/ 12 Elul, 5765
Would a Baby Boom Redeem Social Security?
By
Drs. Michael A. Glueck & Robert J. Cihak
This is Part Two of a Two-part article.
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Last week your Medicine Men took note of one of the most unexpected and significant developments of recent decades. World population growth is slowing faster than anybody could have predicted. No one fully understands why.
However, two things are clear. First, despite centuries of dire prognostication, catastrophic overpopulation on a global scale has not happened.
And second, we're just beginning to think about how to adapt to the possible effects of stable to declining and, therefore, aging populations.
Historically, prosperity and progress have always been associated with rising populations. Eras of declining population for example, the end of the Roman Empire and the so-called Dark Ages have never been pleasant to ponder.
Now, it is not our wish to substitute one set of apocalyptic prophecies for another. We do not believe that population stability or decline spells the end of the human adventure. However, it is clear that present-day welfare states do not work very well under these (or any other) conditions.
Consider, as an example, Social Security. The original program was based on the ways and realities of a bygone era when people bred fast and died young. (Not so incidentally, it was never intended to become senior citizens' major support, but only a safety net and retirement enhancer.)
Today, we're doing the reverse, breeding more slowly and dying older.
Now consider the impact of only one of multiple possible factors: abortion on demand. Since Roe v. Wade, over thirty million Social Security cards were never issued because of babies never born. It's enough to make you wish for immediate repeal of that decision.
In any event, there's no long-term choice but to adapt to reality and reform Social Security.
One proposed economic adaptation comes from Phillip Longman, author of "The Empty Cradle: How Falling Birthrates Threaten World Prosperity and What to Do About It." Joseph D'Agostino, vice president of the Population Research Institute, explains Longman's proposal as the more children you have, the less you and your employer pay out in Social Security taxes. At retirement, benefits would be computed as though the worker had paid maximum taxes. The premise is that, by putting more kids into the system to pay taxes in the future, you've contributed more than enough to offset your own lower tax payments.
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Whether this would work, your Medicine Men cannot predict. However, it's plausible and raises the largely ignored issue of how to encourage people to respect and fulfill their natural inclinations to have children. Having and loving children is part of normal human experience. How many parents have depends on many factors, such as religious beliefs and family economic prospects.
But as economists such as Joseph Schumpeter have pointed out, when the costs of raising children become prohibitive, many people, often sadly, forego the option. Mere tinkering with economic factors, such as tax codes and Social Security rates, won't do the job.
We believe we need cultural as well as economic changes.
If children are part of a full adult life, so is work. Today, most women work. But neither our economy nor our society has yet figured out how to make having children and doing work peacefully co-exist.
Today, many women put off childbearing until they've established their careers. This is doubly nuts. Women leave the work force, at least temporarily, in their thirties or forties, so (1) they quit working just when they know what they're doing, (2) to have children when they're past their physical prime.
Several years ago, in "What Our Mothers Never Told Us," writer Danielle Crittenden suggested one possible change. What if more women started having children in their twenties, and then entered the work world after the kids had started school? At the very least, this would likely mean more kids and more women who, once hired, could stay on the job.
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Another woman writer, Erin Solaro, author of "Beyond GI Jane" (forthcoming, Seal Press) offers a more sweeping proposal to recognize a normal "parent phase" of human life: both parents would share and make adjustments, such as leaves of absence from work, to establish their family. This is not "mommy track" or "daddy track." It simply recognizes the fact that most people want children, and that our present system seems almost willfully intent on making it more and more difficult to have them.
Again, we're not going apocalyptic. But we do observe that humans are much more creative than the failed population and economic doom-and-gloomers predict.
Indeed, unless human creativity is totally spent, we believe the future will bring unpredictable and positive change. Even though the future is not totally under our control, we hope and believe the human race will adapt and prosper.
Editor's Note: Robert J. Cihak wrote this week's column.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Michael Arnold Glueck, M.D., is a multiple award winning writer who comments
on medical-legal issues. Robert J. Cihak, M.D., is a Discovery Institute
Senior Fellow and a past president of the Association of American Physicians
and Surgeons. Both JWR contributors are Harvard trained diagnostic radiologists.
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