sway2sway
09-20-2007, 02:53 PM
I am always astounded when I hear about this, paying people to have more children when fertility rates are dropping within a country, pretty much a predominantly white country kinda thing, I think. They always seem so certain that this must be done, that they are right on the money. They must have more of their own natural born citizens, as opposed to immigration.
Then on the next page, is some smut about global warming, dare I say, overpopulation and overconsumption. Why don't these 2 stories ever meet in the middle. Think global when it's convenient to whatever ingrained doctrine is the flavor, but when it comes to actual people sharing resources, well, keep those ones over there and we'll just make some more of our own people, they fit the color scheme better...it's not racism, it's purely a design thing.
anyway.....this was in the opinion section.
B.C. should consider bringing forth a baby-bonus scheme
The Province
Published: Thursday, September 20, 2007
Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams' plan to give families a $1,000 bonus for every baby born or adopted in the province is right on the money.
Declining or moribund birth rates across Canada are less than sufficient to maintain existing levels of population. And unless Canadian parents can be persuaded to produce more than the average of 1.6 children they do now, the country will soon be dependent on immigration for growth.
Canada currently ranks 176th on the world fertility chart -- among a cluster of other countries whose economic prosperity is also threatened by shrinking birth rates. Many have tackled the problem by offering incentives similar to those proposed in Newfoundland.
In Australia, a long-term decline in child-bearing was dramatically reversed when the government began offering couples $2,000 for each new baby. A Russian law entitles families to a bonus of almost $10,000 for every child after their first-born. And Britain, France, Germany and Sweden all offer variations on schemes to promote fecundity. In Japan, corporations offer employees cash incentives to build bigger families.
The baby drought has been so dramatic in Newfoundland that Williams' plan would cost only $4.5 million at current birth rates. In B.C., where the annual rate is relatively stable at around 41,000, a similar program would cost $41 million.
That's not cheap. But experts say such programs work. And we say it's something Premier Gordon Campbell should consider without delay.
Then on the next page, is some smut about global warming, dare I say, overpopulation and overconsumption. Why don't these 2 stories ever meet in the middle. Think global when it's convenient to whatever ingrained doctrine is the flavor, but when it comes to actual people sharing resources, well, keep those ones over there and we'll just make some more of our own people, they fit the color scheme better...it's not racism, it's purely a design thing.
anyway.....this was in the opinion section.
B.C. should consider bringing forth a baby-bonus scheme
The Province
Published: Thursday, September 20, 2007
Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams' plan to give families a $1,000 bonus for every baby born or adopted in the province is right on the money.
Declining or moribund birth rates across Canada are less than sufficient to maintain existing levels of population. And unless Canadian parents can be persuaded to produce more than the average of 1.6 children they do now, the country will soon be dependent on immigration for growth.
Canada currently ranks 176th on the world fertility chart -- among a cluster of other countries whose economic prosperity is also threatened by shrinking birth rates. Many have tackled the problem by offering incentives similar to those proposed in Newfoundland.
In Australia, a long-term decline in child-bearing was dramatically reversed when the government began offering couples $2,000 for each new baby. A Russian law entitles families to a bonus of almost $10,000 for every child after their first-born. And Britain, France, Germany and Sweden all offer variations on schemes to promote fecundity. In Japan, corporations offer employees cash incentives to build bigger families.
The baby drought has been so dramatic in Newfoundland that Williams' plan would cost only $4.5 million at current birth rates. In B.C., where the annual rate is relatively stable at around 41,000, a similar program would cost $41 million.
That's not cheap. But experts say such programs work. And we say it's something Premier Gordon Campbell should consider without delay.