Bi-Weekly Discussion - Sex, Demographics & Declinism
Details
Due to another engagement on Sunday (7/23), I've shifted this discussion to Saturday, and I've switched the meeting place to one of our old favorites - the Front Street Café in Fishtown, which is on the corner of Front & Girard Streets. SEPTA's Girard Station is just a block south, and there's also usually spaces available for street parking in the surrounding neighborhood. If you can't find a spot on the street, there's a paid parking lot called "Park America" a half-block north at 1320 N. Front Street.
Since we're using the cafe's space, they ask that each person attending the meetup at least purchase a drink or snack. Please don't bring any food or drinks from outside. If you're hungry enough to eat a meal, they have more substantial fare such as salads, soups & sandwiches which are all excellent, although it's a bit on the pricy side. Their brunch menu goes until 3:00pm, so if you want to eat a meal then make sure you don't show up late since you'd be stuck ordering from their limited post-brunch menu.
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SEX, DEMOGRAPHICS & DECLINISM: UNDERSTANDING TRENDS IN SEXUAL ACTIVITY, MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, EDUCATION & BIRTH RATES
This discussion will building on our discussion last time about dating & marriage markets, and we'll cover some theories about why sexual activity, marriage rates and birth rates have declined in most developed countries, with a specific focus on the United States. We'll also look at divorce rates and the questions surrounding no-fault divorce & child support. In the 4th section, we'll look at Christina Hoff Sommers's arguments that our educational system is biased against boys, and compare it to Hanna Rosin's argument that patriarchy - i.e. male dominance in society - is declining because women are better suited to a post-industrial service economy. Lastly, we'll finish up by looking at how demographic decline (sub-replacement birth rates) causes problems for a developed country's economy, and how trying to remedy this problem with immigration from developing countries with high birth rates can sometimes alleviate the problem but can also cause different problems like cultural conflicts.
The videos you see linked below are intended to give you a basic overview of the major points in the debates over the way sexual norms, gender roles, marriage rates & birth rates are tied into all sorts of complex socio-economic & demographic issues. As usual, I certainly don't expect you to watch all the videos & read all the articles prior to attending our discussion. The easiest way to prepare for our discussion is to just watch the videos linked first under each topic, which come to about 41 minutes total. I realize that's a bit more time than some of you may be able to commit, but don't worry - just watch as much as you can. The articles are there to supply additional details. You can browse and look at whichever ones you want, but don't worry - we'll cover the stuff you missed in our discussion.
In terms of the discussion format, my general idea is that we'll address the 5 topics in the order presented here and we'll spend about 20 minutes on first section and about 25 minutes for each of the following sections.
WHY ARE MILLENNIALS MORE SEXUALLY OPEN BUT HAVING LESS SEX & LESS TEEN PREGNANCIES?
1a) Julien Hugeut, "Why Aren't Millennials Having Sex?" (video - 4:29 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAMz-uxTFfw
1b) Hannah Cranston & John Iadarola, "Millennials Prefer Gay Sex Over Casual Sex?" (video - 6:06 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5e-YseeDBw
- Kate Hakala, "Here's How Many People Millennials Really Have Sex With... Versus Our Parents" (short article)
- Joy Pullman, "Why Are Millennials Having So Much Less Sex Than Their Grandparents Did?" (medium-length article)
http://thefederalist.com/2017/03/15/millennials-much-less-sex-grandparents/
- Eileen Patten & Gretchen Livingston, "Why is the teen birth rate falling?" (short article)
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/04/29/why-is-the-teen-birth-rate-falling/
SHOULD WE BE CONCERNED BY THE TREND TOWARD LATER MARRIAGES & COHABITATION? COULD REVIVING AMERICAN INDUSTRY HELP REKINDLE BLUE COLLAR MARRIAGES?
2a) Tara Long, "Why Is Everyone Waiting To Get Married?" (video - 2:34 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRXs9Om7VSw
2b) Anthony Carboni & Laci Green, "Is Living Together Before Marriage Better?" (video - 3:16 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca4J5F3M35M&t=41s
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Matt Yglesias, "The "decline" of marriage isn't a problem" (medium-length article)
https://www.vox.com/2015/3/25/8285169/marriage-decline-causes -
W. Bradford Wilcox, "Yes, Matt Yglesias, the Marriage Decline is a Problem" (long article)
http://thefederalist.com/2015/04/02/yes-matt-yglesias-the-marriage-decline-is-a-problem/ -
Danielle Paquette, "Fracking boom led to more babies outside of marriage. Women just aren’t that into the ‘marriageable male’ anymore, economists say" (short article)
DIVORCE RATES & DEADBEATS: WERE "NO FAULT DIVORCE" LAWS GOOD OR BAD FOR SOCIETY? IS IT STILL TRUE THAT HALF OF ALL MARRIAGES END IN DIVORCE? ARE CHILD SUPPORT LAWS FAIR, AND SHOULD WE JAIL PARENTS WHO FALL BEHIND ON CHILD SUPPORT?
3a) Adam Conover, "Why Divorce is Actually a Good Thing" (video - 2:11 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKgZf-m_PjE
3b) FOX 25 Boston News, "Are Child Support Rules Unfair to Fathers?" (video - 5:23 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGGhKkzkSo8
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Amanda Marcotte, "Republicans Are Quietly Trying to Kill No-Fault Divorce" (short article)
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2014/04/14/republicans_against_no_fault_divorce_gop_politicians_push_for_waiting_periods.html -
W. Bradford Wilcox, "The Divorce Revolution Has Bred An Army Of Woman Haters" (short article)
http://thefederalist.com/2016/05/19/the-divorce-revolution-has-bred-an-army-of-woman-haters/ -
David Brooks, "Why Fathers Leave Their Children" (short article)
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/16/opinion/why-fathers-leave-their-children.html -
Megan McArdle, "When Deadbeat Dads Can't Catch a Break" (short article)
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2015-04-22/when-deadbeat-dads-can-t-catch-a-break
THE "WAR ON BOYS" AND THE "END OF MEN": DO WOMEN HAVE A NATURAL ADVANTAGE IN MODERN SCHOOLS & THE POST-INDUSTRIAL SERVICE ECONOMY? IF SO, WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR MEN & RELATIONSHIPS?
4a) Christina Hoff Sommers, "War on Boys" (video - 5:37 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFpYj0E-yb4
4b) Thomas Hartman w/ Hanna Rosin, "Is It the End of Men?" (video - 5:45 min.)
https://youtu.be/CAVlbZfRLbs?t=19
- A.K. Whitney, "The “War on Boys” Narrative Is Back. Ugh." (medium-length article)
http://msmagazine.com/blog/2015/01/09/war-on-boys/
- Michelle Goldberg, "Why (Some) Men Still Have It All. Working-class men may be doomed, but the ones who run the world are doing just fine." (medium-length article)
http://democracyjournal.org/magazine/26/why-some-men-still-have-it-all/
- Leslie Loftis, "Rational Men, Irrational Women - Feminists are pronouncing the end of men but economic trends could force them to change their tune" (medium-length article)
http://thefederalist.com/2014/01/14/rational-men-irrational-women/
SHOULD MASS IMMIGRATION BE USED TO OFFSET THE EFFECTS OF POPULATION AGING & DEMOGRAPHIC DECLINE? WHAT EFFECTS COULD THIS HAVE ON AMERICAN CULTURE & POLITICS?
5a) Katharine Biek, "US birth rate falls " (video - 1:17 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiSrRHYNMfk
5b) TDC, "The Future of America" (video - 4:10 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWTYZGM8e0g
- Stephen Mihm, "Make America Mate Again. A slowing birthrate and restricted immigration could slow the economy." (short article)
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-01-03/make-america-mate-again
- Dave Merrill & Chloe Whiteaker, "How the Next President Could Save Social Security" (medium-length article)
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2016-saving-social-security/
- Richard Alba, "The Likely Persistence of a White Majority - How Census Bureau statistics have misled thinking about the American future." (long article)
http://prospect.org/article/likely-persistence-white-majority-0
- Ross Douthat, "When Assimilation Stalls" (short article)
Bi-Weekly Discussion - Sex, Demographics & Declinism