Quote:
Originally Posted by im2smrt4u
In response to the original post, I think we need to remove the incentive to have children. I'm not sure how the system works exactly, but if there is an infinitely increasing scale that translates to "more kids = more money" in ghetto speak then there is a problem.
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These days, it doesn't.
There are a variety of benefits low-income parents can apply for: Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (welfare); the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); housing benefits (federally subsidized, Section 8, local housing benefits, etc); and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
TANF is
temporary. It runs out after 5 years of LIFETIME benefits.
Subsidized housing is a patchwork of programs that requires persistence to pursue as a housing option. Many waitlists are years long for housing assistance.
WIC and SNAP are probably the easiest programs for an impoverished family to avail themselves of, and why wouldn't we want to feed children and families? WIC is an especially good program--the vouchers allow the purchase of particular foods (seriously, look around your grocery store and spot the WIC stickers, you'll be impressed--no junk food). Further, millions of people use SNAP, including poor college students.
As for the question presented in the OP: I think we should make family planning more available and more easily acquired. I know I have benefited from access to family planning services. Additionally, we should increase educational access and quality in parts of the country with higher birth rates. As said in the OP, and as research shows--the better educated people are, the more likely they are to seriously think about having children before they have children.
And why am I going to have children? Because I want to raise a super-smart Mini-Me. DUH.