Reville’s (2008) article “Fewer children not the answer to global warming,” he discusses how the population in some European countries is at its lowest point. That is a massive problem that European governments must solve. First, he shows that world population growth will increase to nine billion by 2050. Also, population growth is high among poor people in least developed countries. However, he states that some people support boosting birth rates in the developed countries where the population has declined. Second, he claims that it is necessary to keep the birth rate at an average of 2.1 children, because some developing countries will get below replacement rates, such as Japan, Italy, Germany, and Spain. Third, he argues that low birth rate in these countries will cause calamitous effects, so these governments concern it. They encourage women to have more kids. Finally, Reville states that when fertility rates are below replacement rates, there are fewer available working people to pay taxes and welfare. He affirms that the solution for the global warming is not to decrease population in the world.
Have you ever thought about a society in which there are more old people than young? What do you think will happen to this society? That is a difficult question that many governments face when they have to balance between young and old people. One country facing this dilemma is Germany. In “German birth rate falls to lowest in Europe” the author claims “Germany now has the lowest birth rate in Europe, with 8.5 births per 1,000 inhabitants” (Harding, 2006, para.2). The German government is worried about this and is trying to boost its birth rate. Controlling population is a controversial issue. Personally, I agree with the Reville because I believe that raising the German population at this time is necessary for three main reasons: balancing the working class people, improving economy, and keeping its culture.
To begin with, it is difficult for Germany when the population of working class people decreases gradually. A consequence of less people being born there is fewer people going to work. When there are a few people who can work, employers have to pay more for capable workers. Due to the shortage of capable workers, there will be less competition among applicants for good jobs. This will cause people to become less qualified for jobs. For example, the people who graduated from high schools in Germany can get a job easily while in America people need bachelor’s degree to get good jobs. Thus, intellectual standards will fall when the German population decreases.
Second, there are fewer young people working and paying taxes that will pay for the increase in welfare, retirement, and health care for old people. That means there will be less money in the future for these programs. The German government will have to get this money in other ways. At that time welfare, and retirement fees for old people will be cut. That means young people in their family will be responsible for their parents. The economy will be down because people are spending their money only on their living expenses. For example, young people cannot spend their money on traveling or entertainment because they have to save their money for their parents in case of emergency. It is dangerous for the German economy when young people make less money.
Finally, immigrants will affect the German culture when fewer native German people are born in the future. Incoming immigrants can change the traditional customs. When fewer native German people are born, their race will be shrunk. Young Germans can get married to other nationalities, causing their culture to change in the future. Keeping a high fertility rate will help Germany keep their culture for a long time.
In conclusion, Germany faces a massive problem with low birth rate. The low birth fertility rates will affect many aspects of German life such as fewer young working class people, economy problems, and mixed culture. The German government has to find appropriate solutions for this problem.
Reference
Harding, Luke (2006, Mar. 15). German birth rate falls to lowest in Europe. Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved on January 22, 2009, from http://www.guardian.co.uk
Reville, William (2008, Sept. 4). Fewer children not the answer to global warming. The Irish Times. Retrieved on January 22, 2009, from LexisNexis database.
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