Tax babies to save planet!

[Erin]

I agree... I can't see working to pay someone else to raise your kids.  When I hear people complain that they can't afford to stay home (which makes sense if they are a single parent) usually they're driving nearly new cars which they're still paying on, living in a too big and fancy house, eating out, buying processed food when they do eat at home, and nearly every other budget buster I haven't remembered to list.  We made less that $15K a year, were not on welfare (though I was on WIC when the girls were little), and I was able to stay home with our two kids.  I figure if we could make it work, other people could too, but they just don't. Around here, our neighborhood totally clears out during the day, except for a few retirees...all the kids go to daycare or all-day kindergarten or school.  My girls get pretty lonesome for other kids to play with. 

I could have written your post, HT, with slightly larger numers. 
And StinkerBell, a good book on the subject is "The Two Income Trap"  Very enlightening!

[Drew]

Some of the stuff I've been reading indicates that China is facing a problem with its population due to the population control practices Mao put in place.  Specifically, the policy allowed one child per couple.

It's referred to as the 4-2-1 problem.  You have 4 retired grandparents that are supported by two working adults that will be replaced by one child.

Same sort of thing with Social Security only on a different scale.  I'm 42 years old and am planning to get by without SS. 

My son wants to go into a conservation sciences program.  Maybe he can repent for all the disposable diapers -I- put into the landfill.   

Heeey.  I bet someone makes compostable diapers now, in time for my grandchildren!

[Erin]

I skipped the entire issue. 

My kids were cloth diapered.   

[MountainDon]

I would have to do some research, but I believe one choice or another, it's a wash. 

That is, I think I read someplace that using disposables is not as bad as some people think. I forget all the details; but one thing that needs to be accounted for with cloth diapers is the amount of water used in laundering them, and the treatment of the waste water.

Anyways, we used cloth diapers except for trips away from home when we used disposables.

[glenn kangiser]

I have talked to several Chinese people on Skype in the last year or so.

Grand parents - older people may not be that old before they can't get a job -- 40's?  Everybody wants the young workers -- the older ones get put out to the farm early - many sell vegetables at street markets etc.  Not a lot for OLD people to do there as there are so many people.

[Erin]

I would have to do some research, but I believe one choice or another, it's a wash. 

yeah, i've read the same. 
We actually didn't think about environmetal issues one way or the other.  Our utilities are free with DH's job, so cloth was a definite way to save our pesos, if not the earth. 

[Drew]

I skipped the entire issue. 

My kids were cloth diapered.   

We did cloth diapers too when we were at home.  D&R are 54 weeks apart, so I'd tote two buckets to the porch on diaper day.  Both of us worked outside the home (and inside the home) and the diaper service was a very welcome baby shower present.  They even sent the kids bears when they "graduated"!

Still, our traveling kit included the disposables, with an ample supply of cloth ones for all kinds of uses.

One time my wife and I were in a restaurant with my mom and our son, Dave.  He was sitting in a high chair when his eyebrow twitched 3/64".  In "bullet speed", that slo-mo made popular in movies like The Matrix, I swung my arm in arc, grabbed a cloth diaper from the bag, cupped it tilted under David's chin, and caught the most prodigious projectile barf we had seen in quite some time.  I gathered the corners and got up to take care of the diaper.  My wife gave me a look that said, "Nice catch," and "How did we learn to do this?"  My mother had no idea what had happened until Dan told her where I went.