I am assuming that this, along with the elimination of earlier one-child policy, is a part of a response to the demographic time bomb China is facing. The most

I am assuming that this, along with the elimination of earlier one-child policy, is a part of a response to the demographic time bomb China is facing. The most important question they have faced for the past thirty or so years is whether China would grow rich before it grew old. I think we now see that the answer is that they are, at best, going to be middle class when the demographics of the country turn against them. If you look at a population pyramid of China you will see two things that should be worrisome: the male/female ratio for 30 and under is heavily skewed towards surplus males, and there are not enough children under 30 to support the two big population bulges who were born just after the cultural revolution and another born in the early 90s. Given these demographic realities they need to do anything they can to prop up the birth rate, and I am sure someone thought that attacking 'girly men' was a worthwhile effort. (If you want to see some really wacky responses to this sort of demographic scare, check out the things Russia has been trying to do for the past couple of decades to increase its birth rate.)