Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Are we heading for an idiocracy?

I watched the movie Idiocracy the other day, and it got me thinking. Everywhere you look, it seems like stupid people are breeding like rabbits, while more intelligent people have few or no children.
Even though it's a comedy, I think the first 10 minutes of Idiocracy illustrates this concept well.

A certain amount of intelligence is genetic (genotypic IQ). Some scientists estimate that to be as much as 70%. And more intelligent people have fewer children than less intelligent people. In the US, average SAT scores by state were compared with fertility rates (number of children a person has) by state, and found that the more intelligent a person is, the fewer children they have. (Another study showing the correlation between education and fertility can be found here).

Additionally, a study conducted at the University of Ulster found that the world's IQ is declining. They found that from 1950 - 2000, the world's IQ declined by 0.86 IQ points. They project that between 2000 and 2050, the world's IQ will further decline by 1.28 IQ points.

So it seems that society really is getting dumber.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Childless couples have a higher rate of divorce?

This really surprised me. I heard once that couples with twins, triplets, quadruplets etc. had a higher rate of divorce than couples with fewer children (which isn't actually true, but then again, I heard it from Kate Gosselin), I thought that if that was true, then couples without children must have a much lower rate of divorce than the average. When I began researching it, I found out how wrong I was.
According to Divorcerate.org, "Sociologists believe that childlessness is also a common cause of divorce. The absence of children leads to loneliness and weariness and even in the United States, at least 66 per cent of all divorced couples are childless."

That might be true, but I think that a big part of it is the fact that since there are no children involved, couples don't feel the need to stay together, as many couples with children do for the sake of the children.
This quote also seems to suggest that these couples want children and can't have them, which causes problems in the marriage. This obviously isn't the case for childfree couples.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Considering getting a tubal ligation

I've been considering getting a tubal ligation for about 12 years, but when I think about actually starting the process and making an appointment, I hesitate. I know I never want to have kids, but the permanence of having my tubes tied makes me hesitate. It doesn't make any sense.
I've been thinking about it today, and even if I had a kid now, (I'd be 35 when the baby was born) I would be 58 when they graduated from high school. I would probably be at least 60 before they moved out of the house. That means that the best years of my life would be gone - devoted to changing diapers, potty training, dealing with temper tantrums, piles and piles of laundry, after school activities, homework, etc. etc. etc. Not to mention all of my disposable income would be gone. I'd never be able to go anywhere unless I either take the kid with me, find a babysitter, or don't go.
I don't want to be tied down like that.

A couple of years ago, I told myself that if I still haven't changed my mind by the time I'm 35, I'll get my tubes tied. Maybe in 3 months when I turn 35 (lol), I won't be so hesitant.