Intergenerational Transfers of Wealth, a Window into Abortion Decisions



Has raising a child changed over the last few decades? Everyone knows it is far more expensive. There are tomes published with explain why this has happened.  Economic forces have change many things. 

In my Sunday paper today is an article discussing how vast the practice of retired age parents giving financial aid to adult children has become. Nearly half of retired parents with children do this. This reason they do this surely is because their children or grandchildren need this money. That this economic situation exists has to affect the decisions of children and grandchildren as well and the older generation. 

The anti-abortion industry tries to blow off the economics of giving birth and raising a child. It never, ever, mentions the lives lost in childbirth. Instead, it blames decisions to have abortions, by pills or surgery, on "abortion clinics," "women who do not want to be held accountable for their sin" and "the culture." I've pointed out before these are macro-economic variable. Women face micro economies. They might not be able to afford a child. If their parents rely on their parents for some of the money they need for living expenses it may well affect the woman who is two generations down-stream. She may take into account the circumstances of both parents and grandparents before the birth/abortion decision.

I can't get out of my head the column I cited some days ago, an article by preacher/politician/businessman Tony Perkins. He said he was surprised at "how deeply abortion is embedded in our culture." What nonsense. Tony knows all about money, he makes a lot of it off of gullible anti-abortion people in the pews. Some honesty about the economics of our times would be more refreshing.

In the meantime, grandparents, parents and young women will make decisions about abortions that fit their economic circumstances. 

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