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The national argument over who will be the next President of the United States has boiled over, with Democrats in Virginia smearing feces on Romney signs and Republicans dumping a truck-load of manure in front of the Democratic headquarters in Cincinnatti. Few have noticed what Professor David Talcott observes as a much more significant problem: a society in “self-caused decline.”
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In “Debates Matter; Babies Matter More,” Talcott discusses the dangerously low population growth rate in the U.S. and argues that though presidential debates matter, “by the most basic measure of societal well-being, we are in trouble.”
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A CDC report on American population growth serves as the basis for Talcott’s article, posted on First Thoughts. He points out that,
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"In order to maintain the overall size of the population, each woman must have, on average, 2.1 children. Two children replace the two parents and then a few more need to be born to make up for untimely deaths and infertility. The CDC report tells us that the Total Fertility Rate for 2011 was 1.89, well off the replacement pace. The United States simply is not reproducing itself."
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Talcott argues that the problems run deeper than just lower birth numbers. He writes that, "Over 40% of births were to unmarried women (a number 0.1 percent better than last year). This means that two out of five American children are starting their lives without a married mom and dad."
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Click here to read the full article on FirstThings.com.
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The King’s College educates students in the ideas upon which nations rise and fall. With a focused curriculum in the liberal arts tradition, students are prepared to help shape, and eventually to lead, the institutions of government, civil society, media, law, business, education, the arts, and the church. King’s is a Christian college located in New York City.
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