To be able to have your ideal number of children, you probably want to start early. Alas, in high school and college, the question is often: "Should I even bother dating? I need to excel in my education, otherwise possibilities for future stability are limited"
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Post college, same question: "I could date, but I need to work, because it's not clear whether a mate will take care of me but the state/market *definitely* won't. So it's on me to first obtain stability on this capitalist escalator"
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But then, we also define ourselves (and our worth) by our work and our "market value." Men especially, here. And as more men fall behind in education/career achievement (thank the free market for the latter, especially), there's a mismatch in availability. More women, fewer men.
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(Which is why Men Online (TM) are always crowing about how women's "sexual market value" will dip, increasing their leverage. (Also that we date in terms of market value at all!) )
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But of course, there are liberal ideals that make this all the more difficult. A focus on individualism and independence discourages you further from teaming up with another person, or subsuming your own success under the demands of a family unit.
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The elevation of sexual freedom, the ability to test the options and an ideal of self-discovery through multiple encounters makes it that much harder to choose to settle with one partner, early.
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Anyway, I could go on! But thanks
@annalouiesuss for this essay. So rich. So much to think about. And of course,@DouthatNYT for highlighting new questions. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/11/16/opinion/sunday/capitalism-children.html …Show this thread
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late capitalism?
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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Liberal ideals of individualism?
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I think it's a reference to classical liberalism, not progressivism.
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