This is the audio version of The direct reason which takes place every Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern Time.
This week’s topic was whether declining birth rates in the United States and other countries is a bad thing that governments should try to reverse. My guests were Raison Senior Writer Elizabeth Nolan Brownof which June cover is “Storks don’t take orders from the state” and Scott Winshipwho directs the American Enterprise Institute’s Center on Opportunity and Social Mobility and has written extensively on the myths And realities on economic and cultural decline.
We discuss whether past government policies have proven effective in altering birth rates, whether the state should be involved in such decisions from a moral standpoint, and why the right and left are at odds with each other. increasingly committed to pro-natalist policies.
Sponsors today:
- The Soho forum. Raison is proud to sponsor the Soho Forum, a monthly Oxford-style debate held in New York on topics of particular interest to libertarians. The next one will take place on Monday, May 22 and will feature Andrew Koppelman and Gene Epstein debating the proposition: “Libertarianism has been completely corrupted by delusion, greed and disdain for the weak.” For more information and to purchase tickets, go here.
- THE Raison speakeasy. THE Raison Speakeasy is a live, unscripted monthly event that doubles as a recording of Reason’s interview with Nick Gillespie podcast. The next one is on Monday, June 5, and Nick Gillespie will speak with Fox News contributor Kat Timpf about his bestseller, You can’t joke about it. Tickets are $10 and include beer, wine, soda, and food. For more details and to purchase tickets, go here.