4 ms·

Spain needs to breed. Their median age is ~41 (US at about 37... ). Not as bad as Japan, but very ominous when you've got a society built on pensions. Ireland

• greenyoda 14y ago
  That might be the long-term solution to the nation's problems. But on an individual level, it would be disastrous for an unemployed person or someone worried about losing their job to increase their financial responsibilities by having kids.
  • apalmer 14y ago
    Yes and No In societies of extreme poverty children have long been viewed a hedge against old age
    • w1ntermute 14y ago
      That only works because of the lack of child labor laws and the lack of an advanced economy in which education is required in order to get a well-paying job in countries where extreme poverty is commonplace.
      • seanmcdirmid 14y ago
        You didn't read parent right: the child will be an adult when the parents are older. The more kids you have, the more likely at least one will be successful enough as an adult to take care of you.
        • w1ntermute 14y ago
          No, I read the parent just fine. The child may be an adult when the parents are older, but that means nothing when the adults are bankrupted trying to give the child an education so that he/she can support the parents, and the child can't work until he's an adult anyway. Of course the probability will be higher with more children, but the cost of having more children in a developed country far outweighs the benefits. There's a huge difference in the results when you do it in a developing country and when you do it in Spain.
    • return0 14y ago
      Just to make it clear: Spain, and the rest of Southern Europe are developed countries with high standards of living; extreme poverty is not even a prospect now.
• jwilliams 14y ago
  Spain's youth unemployment is astronomical (55%+). Young people with useful skills are increasing choosing to emigrate -- With lots of encouragement too. e.g. Germany is actively recruiting Spanish Engineers to fill labour gaps there. Without structural changes, no amount of youth is going to dig them out.
  • futhey 14y ago
    Yes, and in recent years Spaniards have been immigrating to South America to take incredible cuts in pay to do jobs (Often regardless of legal status) that require few of the qualifications, if any, they had earned in Spain.
    • seanmcdirmid 14y ago
      How is this comment related to parent? As long as we are wildly off topic, a lot of young people in Japan are "encouraged" to move to Bangkok to do Japanese customer service jobs, where they can be paid less.
• kayoone 14y ago
  Germanys is 42 and they are doing fine, its a longterm issue though. Theyd need something like germanies dual education system that has classic University/College Education plus on the Job apprenticeships were companies train young People for several years. These companies get some Financial benefits and the young get excellent job training plus a low income during that time. Afterwards they are qualified to tackle the more senior jobs. Of course this is a long term process as well, seems already too late.
  • lolcraft 14y ago
    There already is a dual education system. It's called Formación Profesional. Includes on the job apprenticeships, plus a "senior" track, or qualification to college.
• fixxxxer 14y ago
  Was any part of the above comment offensive? I'm a little perplexed as to why I've been (I assume) banned... I personally don't find my observation about Ireland's large population of pale children particularly offensive. I happen to be pale and half-Irish myself (mom from Cork), as well as married to a pale Irish girl. As for statistics to back up my claim that Ireland is a good bet relative to the remaining PIIGS, here is the % of population under 18 (from 2007, http://childrensdatabase.ie/sonc2008/part1/ http://childrensdatabase.ie/sonc2008/part1/): Ireland: 24.4 Italy: 17.1 Spain: 17.5 Greece: 17.4 Portugal: 18.7 Regardless, if I offended anyone, I apologize. I still think youth is a strong sign of a resilient economy. True, Germany doesn't seem to be effected...I'd argue there are other issues there (a phenomenal capital market, for a start).
  • CamperBob2 14y ago
    Was any part of the above comment offensive? Yes, in the sense that no matter what you post, if there's any substance to your point at all, someone will be offended by it. Don't sweat it. (You're not hellbanned as of this post, if that's what you're wondering.)
    • fixxer 14y ago
      I somehow got an IP ban. That was annoying.
• homosaur 14y ago
  I feel you on this but the youth that are at breeding age are not going to really be down for that when they can't find work.