International
US fertility rates drop to historic low as young adults choose against having children
From LifeSiteNews
Survey participants cited not finding the right partner, a desire to ‘focus on other things,’ ‘the environment,’ and ‘financial concerns’ among their reasons for deciding against having children.
A new Pew Research Center study found that the U.S. fertility rate reached a historic low in 2023, and fewer Americans are having children than ever before. According to the study, the number of childless American adults below the age of 50 who say they are unlikely to ever have children is now 47 percent (up 10 percentage points from the same demographic in 2018).
Pew researchers surveyed 3,312 American adults ages 18 and older who are not parents, asking them whether or not they would like to have children and why. Interestingly, the answers from the adults aged 18-49 tended to be similar, while they differed from the responses given by the adults aged 50 and older, which also tended to be similar to each other.
There was an exception to this pattern. Respondents in both age groups pointed to infertility, other medical issues, and a partner opposed to having children as reasons for childlessness.
According to the study report, when the respondents were asked why they haven’t had children, “[t]he top reason cited by those ages 50 and older is that it just never happened,” while “[a]dults ages 18 to 49 are most likely to say they just don’t want to have children. These younger adults are also more likely than those in the older group to point to things like wanting to focus on other things, the state of the world or the environment, and financial concerns as major reasons they’re unlikely to have kids.”
Fifty-seven percent of the childless young adults say they chose not to have children, while 31 percent of the childless adults aged 50 and older gave the same response. More women than men under the age of 50 said that they just don’t want children (64 percent versus 50 percent).
The most common reason for not having children given by adults aged 50 and older was, “It just never happened” (39 percent), followed by, “Didn’t find the right partner” (33 percent), “Didn’t want to” (31 percent), “Wanted to focus on other things” (21 percent), and other reasons.
Of the older adults surveyed, 38 percent say that there was a time when they wanted children, however, a shocking 32 percent said that they never wanted children, and 25 percent said they are unsure about whether or not they ever wanted children.
The most common reason for not having children given by adults aged 49 and younger is “Don’t want to” (57 percent), followed by “Want to focus on other things” (44 percent), “Concerns about the state of the world” (38 percent), “Can’t afford to raise a child” (36 percent), and other reasons.
Both young adults and older adults perceive lifestyle advantages as a product of childlessness; however, fewer older adults perceive benefits, while the majority of young adults perceive benefits. Among these perceived benefits include having time for hobbies and interests, affording things they want, being able to save for the future, being successful in their careers, and having an active social life – all things respondents say are possible because they don’t have children.
The survey results show that childless adults aged 50 and older are concerned about their future welfare. According to the study, the majority of older childless Americans worry about having enough money, having someone to care for them, and being lonely, as they age. The American population is older than ever before, and that will pose significant challenges to society in the near future.
Twenty-six percent (26 percent) of the childless Americans aged 49 and younger surveyed in the study cite “climate change” as the reason they are not having children. However, as Elon Musk pointed out last year when fertility rates in the U.S. reached a historic low, the waning population poses an imminent threat to humanity.
Having children makes sense – for individuals, families, and the world at large. As Lila Rose and Dr. Pia de Solenni discussed in a recent podcast episode, all generations – particularly in the younger generations – must be shown that having children is worth it for them personally as well as for society in general.
Reprinted with permission from Live Action.
Daily Caller
Union Bigwigs Decline To Endorse Anyone For President Despite Rank-And-File Members Overwhelmingly Backing Trump
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters on Wednesday declined to make an endorsement in the 2024 presidential election just hours after releasing internal polling data showing that the workers it represents strongly favor former President Donald Trump.
Among rank-and-file members of the major union, 59.6% surveyed said they believe the Teamsters should endorse Trump, compared to just 31% voicing support for Vice President Kamala Harris, a more than 25-point gap that remained more or less unchanged after the union ordered a subsequent survey after the Sept. 10 presidential debate. Despite the poll results, the union refused to make an endorsement as there was “no majority support” for Harris and a lack of “universal support” for Trump, it revealed on Wednesday.
A Teamsters spokesperson did not immediately clarify why the union had different standards for the two candidates.
“The Teamsters thank all candidates for meeting with members face-to-face during our unprecedented roundtables,” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said. “Unfortunately, neither major candidate was able to make serious commitments to our union to ensure the interests of working people are always put before Big Business. We sought commitments from both Trump and Harris not to interfere in critical union campaigns or core Teamsters industries — and to honor our members’ right to strike — but were unable to secure those pledges.”
The union cited Trump’s refusal to commit to vetoing right-to-work legislation as part of its reasoning for not issuing an endorsement.
The Teamsters, which have historically supported Democrats and often donate to left-of-center causes, made an effort to court Republicans this election cycle. The union made a donation to the Republican National Committee, met with Trump, and O’Brien was even invited to speak at the Republican National Convention. Some on the right have resisted the union’s attempt to ingratiate itself among conservatives, like the Center for Union Facts which put up billboards outside the Republican National Convention calling the Teamsters “two-faced” over its history of liberal spending.
While Republicans were generally open to the Teamsters, the Democratic National Convention snubbed O’Brien by not allowing him to speak at the event, according to The Associated Press.
Harris is considerably less popular among rank-and-file Teamsters than President Joe Biden, who only trailed Trump by about 8 points in a survey ordered by the union prior to his withdrawal from the race. Union leadership met with Harris for a roundtable discussion on Monday, The Hill reported.
“We represent everybody from airline pilots and zookeepers, and we don’t just represent registered Democrats,” O’Brien said to reporters.
The Teamsters’ endorsement could have had a significant impact if it went to either candidate given the concentration of its members in the swing states of Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania, according to Reuters.
Daily Caller
Biden-Harris Admin’s Multi-Billion Dollar Electric School Bus Program Is A Huge Gift To China, House Report Finds
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Owen Klinsky
The Biden-Harris administration’s $5 billion Clean School Bus Program uses nearly 400% more taxpayer dollars per school bus and benefits the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), a House report revealed Tuesday.
The 51-page report from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce found promoting electric school buses and other electric vehicles (EVs) enriches the CCP as the EV supply chain is roughly 90% dependent on China, raising both national security and human rights concerns. It also highlighted immense expenses for taxpayers, with the average electric school bus under the first iteration of the Clean School Bus Program — the first of three iterations — costing $381,191, nearly four times that of a typical full-sized diesel school bus.
“It is clear the $5 billion Clean School Bus Program is overall a failure and, in many cases, a waste of Americans’ hard-earned taxpayer dollars,” Republican Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who chairs the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, said in a statement regarding the report’s findings. “The program, led by the radical Biden-Harris EPA [Environmental Protection Agency], props up a market that relies heavily upon a supply chain dominated by the Chinese Communist Party.”
Funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Clean School Bus Program provided the Biden-Harris EPA with funds over five years to “replace existing school buses with zero-emission and clean school buses.”
Kamala Harris led the Biden Administration's $5,000,000,000 EV school bus program.
After 3 years, just 60 buses are on the road.
That's over $83,300,000 per bus.
A vote for Kamala is a vote to waste more tax dollars on failed green programs.
— Daniel Turner (@DanielTurnerPTF) July 29, 2024
China currently accounts for approximately two-thirds of global EV battery cell production, while the U.S. manufactured just 7% as of 2022, raising national security concerns as the U.S. would likely have to depend on Chinese EV technology for its electric school buses, according to the report. Furthermore, the government-subsidized purchases of electric school buses under the Clean School Bus Program incentivize pre-existing human rights abuses in the EV supply, including the use of Uyghur forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region.
The report also identified limited range as an issue, with standard electric school buses from leading manufacturer BlueBird able to travel just 120 miles on a single charge, while some propane models can travel 400 miles before needing to refuel. The range problem can also be exacerbated by cold and warm weather conditions, with a study from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory finding electric transit buses lose roughly a third of their range at 25 degrees Fahrenheit compared to ideal conditions.
Electric school buses also increase the risk of fraud due to a lack of documentation requirements for contractors, with the EPA relying solely on self-certified applications and estimates created by applicants, according to the report. A separate July report from a Maryland county’s Office of the Inspector General resulted in millions of dollars in “wasteful spending.”
“The EPA launched the Clean School Bus program without sufficient safeguards and considerations for practical hurdles applicants may face. For example, the EPA did not require documentation for some of the required application information and allowed contractors enthused at the opportunity to receive federal funding to apply on behalf of unknowing school districts, some of which eventually withdraw from the program,” the report states. “The EPA failed to account for the considerable electric infrastructure upgrades that electrifying a school bus fleet could require, potentially leading to delays for schools in utilizing their new buses.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Premier: Stop sending asylum claimants to Alberta!
Police seize more than 66 kg of illicit drugs in interprovincial trafficking investigation
‘No One Is Paying Attention!’: Google Whistleblower Tells Rogan ‘Free And Fair Election’ Is An ‘Illusion’
They Were Who We Thought They Were. And Trump Let Them Off The Hook
Big Pharma’s Rap Sheet
Quebec to allow ‘advance’ requests for euthanasia in apparent violation of federal law
Involvement of non-governmental health operators could boost access to health care in Alberta, if done properly, says MEI researcher
-
Daily Caller1 day agoBiden Admin Touts Reduction In Border Crossings While Flying In Hundreds Of Thousands Of Migrants
-
Daily Caller2 days agoBP Dumping Key Green Energy Business
-
COVID-192 days agoTrial for Freedom Convoy leaders ends, verdict may take 6 months
-
Bruce Dowbiggin1 day agoiPhone Now Collects Your Mental Health Data
-
Economy21 hours agoScrap the second carbon tax: Taxpayers Federation
-
Economy1 day agoIf Canadian families spent and borrowed like the federal government, they would be $427,759 in debt
-
Economy11 hours agoOttawa’s emissions cap will impose massive costs with virtually no benefit
-
National1 day agoLiberals lose another ‘safe’ seat, Trudeau pleads with Canadians to get more ‘engaged’