As I sit in my chair and look outside at thick smoky skies from a province which is literally on fire it makes me think of global warming and coming catastrophe. When I go to fill up my tank at the gas station I see expensive fuel made more expensive by a conflict in Iran. If I turn on the news I just get more depressed. I'm old and figure that I only have 20 or so years left and figure if things get really bad I've led a good life. Then I think of my sons, they are the ones who inherit this world.
Then I think about my grandchildren, should my kids choose to have any, and I shudder.
I shudder because having children these days is expensive and thankless. Young adults have to stress about trying to feed and house themselves without the added pressure of trying to raise children in a world where right and wrong are subjective. Where traditional values are trampled on. Where job prospects are weak and competition for limited resources is only going to become more and more difficult.
When my children ask if they should have children? It is a difficult question. I know that my children will have a much easier life if they just live for themselves and enjoy the life of easy and relative luxury that comes with it (at least in Canada). Then I think of the problem that comes along with that. If my children's generation don't bother making a subsequent generation. Who looks after the elderly when the next generation isn't there?
Of equal importance. My children are intelligent, capable, and principled. If they don't raise capable children to be a light in a dark world what happens then? If the best and brightest simply opt out and leave children to the uneducated and uninterested then what? I've seen the movie "Meritocracy" and it doesn't end well.
So, for the Hive Learner prompt response? The next generation is more important now than it ever has been. They will either be responsible for fixing the world or possibly be the last generation to live on it.
Image source: Dall-e
But I have a word quota to make so the rest of this article should be read as dry humor and ideally with the sound of a Monty Python skit. It is meant to be satirical, absurd, and generally in the tone of "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift back in 1729. At the time there were far too many babies and far too little jobs, support and money to look after them all. Mr. Swift's proposal was to eat the babies. It would decrease the overall burden on the parents and alleviate much of the hunger for those who were unemployed.
Of course looking at this from a modern mindset that is just preposterous. The reason is obvious of course: There are no good recipes for babies in the cookbooks. Hmmm.. come to think of it, people don't use cookbooks anymore. If you ask an AI chatbot how to cook a baby I think you will also find that it will refuse simply because it knows there is no good way to cook a baby.
A second reason that a Modest Proposal is preposterous in today's mindset is that there are simply too few babies and too many elderly. We need those babies to grow up and look after all those elderly. If Mr. Swift were alive today his proposal might be to "Eat the elderly". Of course we know that wouldn't work out well either. Simply put... How many times do you hear people saying they will "Have the Grandparents over for dinner" but then they chicken out and actually feed them instead. Of course the cookbook and recipe problem exists for the elderly also. The AI also knows that the elderly are tough and stringy and very difficult to eat so they refuse to give you recipes for the elderly as well.
Since eating the elderly isn't a viable alternative it is best to look for a different alternative.
Image source: Dall-e
Now it is easy for people to look at the demographics and simply say "Let the government take care of the problem". Now that sounds good in theory but it runs into problems. First: It assumes that the government can hire people to look after the elderly but that gets expensive and no-one wants to pay the taxes to fund that. Second: The government could allow younger immigrants to come into the country to look after the elderly. In some cases this is already happening, just look at all the Filipina nurses (like my wife), but in general a lot of people are suspicious of allowing in too many immigrants.
So how do you keep the elderly cared for while keeping taxes down and ensuring a well trained workforce.
Use current practices and procedures and adapt them to modern times.
Many young people want to enjoy a carefree lifestyle. Video games. Parties. Good food and adventure. Indeed, many young people just want to keep their money for themselves and have a good time. Why not give them what they want?
The government already has systems in place that can be very useful for helping young people have kids without all the stress and problems. In Canada the government already pays money to parents in the form of "Child support payments" and "Daycare subsidies". The government already pays for teachers and education until the end of Grade 12. The government also helps with student loans and grants to help people get a higher education.
and much of that money is never paid back.
People are using their tax dollars on the children but not seeing a return. In the Canadian army they will indeed train young men and women. They pay money up front for their training on the provision that they will return two years of service for every year of training. This service? It is something they are trained to do with favorable compensation.
Why not give our children to the government under the same criteria. If people have children and leave them with the government to raise and train many problems are solved. Of course having a well trained generation to look after others as they age is an excellent idea. Relieving people from the burden of raising children leaves them free to enjoy their life without the sleepless nights, constant worry and expenses involved. Taxes remain the same because they are already paying for education and care of children.
However, children will be raised from infancy learning the role they will play later in life. They will be trained in necessary roles and the government can determine who is needed to do what. When they graduate to adults? They get jobs for their life. They get the training they need. I daresay that government workers will be much more adept in their role than many are now if they are raised to it from birth.
Imagine a motor vehicle branch where the workers are fast and competent. Imagine a world where the bureaucracy is competent, well trained, and efficient. Where children are trained from birth for the necessary jobs without ever inconveniencing those who gave birth to them.
Of course that is just a tongue in cheek response to the Hive Learner prompt. Yes this world has problems. Yes the future is bleak. Yes it is hard to think of what the future will hold for those who are born these days. Yes that is probably a big reason why birth rates are on a global decline!
However, without strong families. Without another generation to carry on humanity and work towards a brighter future. Without hope for tomorrow and beyond, well, life becomes very temporal and somewhat meaningless.
I love my children. I look forward to someday having grandchildren. I know their lives will be tough but I also hope they will become a light for the future.
And I hope that neither generation thinks that eating their father or grandfather is a good idea. Then again, when my son asked "What's the fastest way to get rich".... I told him honestly "Shoot your mom and I". He was horrified and asked why would you say that and I told him simply "When we die, all we have is yours. The fastest way to get rich is simply to kill us as you are our future." then I prefaced it with "...but I hope I've been a good enough father that you don't think that is a good idea".
I hope you got a little smile from the article. Either way I would enjoy getting a comment or two. Just remember I believe family is the future. That giving children to the state is a bad idea. That eating people is a worse idea. But having no children and therefore giving humanity no future? Well, that's an even worse idea.
Thanks for reading.
