Canada the Old

[ytz]

35 of 41 CMAs now have more seniors than children, as per StatsCan data.

Seniors outnumber children in 35 of Canada's 41 metropolitan areas - Inspurious

The widest margins are in Trois-Rivières (QC) and Saguenay (QC), where residents 65 and older are about 26% of the population and children under 15 are 14%. Onl

inspurious.com

 

[ytz]

What exactly are we rebuilding the CAF to defend if the country is slowly committing demographic suicide.

I know some will be tempted to blame one political party or another. But the country hasn't had birth rates above replacement in half a century. Lots of blame to go around.

 

[Humphrey Bogart]

What exactly are we rebuilding the CAF to defend if the country is slowly committing demographic suicide.

I know some will be tempted to blame one political party or another. But the country hasn't had birth rates above replacement in half a century. Lots of blame to go around.

Hey I am doing my part. Sad part is his family and my family have more kids than all our friends combined.

I was speaking about this with my wife. She is the only one with kids in her entire friend group. It's not like her friends are young either, they are all women in their mid 30s, no kids, no plan to have kids.

Government policies basically punish you for having kids and having a parent stay home to raise them. I make enough money that my wife doesn't have to work. She can stay home and look after our family. We are penalized at tax time because of that due to not being allowed to income split.

 

[Halifax Tar]

What exactly are we rebuilding the CAF to defend if the country is slowly committing demographic suicide.

I know some will be tempted to blame one political party or another. But the country hasn't had birth rates above replacement in half a century. Lots of blame to go around.

A party ? No. No one political leaning owns this.

Now if you wanna talk generations there's definitely fingers that can be pointed.

 

[GR66]

What exactly are we rebuilding the CAF to defend if the country is slowly committing demographic suicide.

I know some will be tempted to blame one political party or another. But the country the developed World hasn't had birth rates above replacement in half a century. Lots of blame to go around.

This isn't a Canadian problem only. It's a natural result of greater health, reduced child mortality and prosperity from technology. Parents don't need large families to compensate for the fact that many children won't survive to adulthood. They also don't need large families to provide manual labour on the farm due to much improved technology. And with overall far fewer people being at borderline sustenance levels of poverty (and the existence of government safety nets) they don't need extra children to support them in their old age.

That's why in every region and country of the World as you see them move up the economic ladder you see a marked reduction in the number of children per family. When children stop being an economic asset (in the form of free labour or economic support in old age) and instead become an economic expense to support then it's natural that families will choose to have less children. Individual choices of course may vary, but overall the stats Worldwide show this to be true.

 

[mariomike]

Every generation
Blames the one before
And all of their frustrations
Come beating on your door

If people enjoy pointing fingers, some like to blame others for taking early retirement.

Or, on the other finger , for - not - retiring . Lol

I remember having to compete with a lot of other young men [ this was before Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) ] for the job.

My former department put it this way,

The 'Baby Boom' generation is aging. Simultaneously, all of those 'boomers' employed by the service in the early 1970s are reaching the end of their careers and retiring. Since subsequent generations are typically much smaller, the service is experiencing difficulty in recruiting suitably trained replacement staff, just as demand for services is increasing.

Personally, I just wanted to be like my father , and the men of his generation that I worked with.

Do your work, live your life. Simple as that.

 

[AKa]

It's also a function of women both wanting more options in life and being leery of the economic dependence of being stay-at-home mothers. Large families are hard work that is often unappreciated and is largely unremunerated. And once you leave the workforce for any length of time, earning potential tanks. Unless you are wealthy, this can mean being stuck together long after the marriage has gone sour. Lots of women look at the lives of their mothers and say, "hell no".

 

[YZT580]

I'll bite. How about

What exactly are we rebuilding the CAF to defend if the country is slowly committing demographic suicide.

I know some will be tempted to blame one political party or another. But the country hasn't had birth rates above replacement in half a century. Lots of blame to go around.

the cost of living as a starter. I am part of the last generation that could economically live on a single income. That same generation could afford a 1200 sq. ft. detached or semi that was located in a neighbourhood with parks and within walking distance of most of the essentials for daily living i.e. grocery stores, shoe stores, clothing shops, churches etc. We also generally lived in the same area that we worked and didn't spend an hour each way commuting. The 401 was two lanes each direction across the city and there was grass and trees along the perimeter. There wasn't the same necessity to obtain toys such as boats, snowmobiles and 48" TVs. Heck a 17" set cost 500 dollars at a time when salaries were less than 7000 per annum. Minimum wage was $1.25 and I could afford an apartment in Mississauga at that rate. I wouldn't fault government so much as individual and collective greed.

It's also a function of women both wanting more options in life and being leery of the economic dependence of being stay-at-home mothers. Large families are hard work that is often unappreciated and is largely unremunerated. And once you leave the workforce for any length of time, earning potential tanks. Unless you are wealthy, this can mean being stuck together long after the marriage has gone sour. Lots of women look at the lives of their mothers and say, "hell no".

and just how many couples that you know can afford to take time off to have kids or even more relevant have a residence that is kid friendly. Condos may suit couples but they are definitely not designed for families and for most couples condos are about all they can afford.