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| Iraq |
| The Iraq Baby Boom |
| 2006-11-02 |
| by James Palmer, Washington Times It's the good kind of a "baby boom." In the face of relentless violence, political chaos, economic uncertainty and nightly curfews, Iraq's maternity wards are experiencing an unlikely baby boom. Despite the obstacles, the birthrate in Iraq actually has increased since the U.S.-led invasion 43 months ago, according to the country's Health Ministry. The rate of births in the country has jumped from 29 births per 1,000 people in 2003 to 37 per 1,000 last year, according to government figures. In neighboring Iran, the birthrate is half that -- 21 per 1,000 population, while the average birthrate in the Middle East is 25, according to the World Bank. The birthrate in the United States is about 14 births per 1,000 people, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is a good sign. It is sometimes said that babies are God's judgment that the world should continue. It's also an indicator of parental optimism--peoples who don't think there's anything in the future worth living for (*cough* Old Europe *cough*) don't have babies. It would seem there are a lot of people in Iraq who believe things are going to get better. |
| Posted by:Mike |
#3 James Taranto, in "Best of the Web" for today:As the 19th-century Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore observed, "Every time a child is born, it brings with it the hope that God is not yet disappointed with man." It seems the Man upstairs isn't yet ready to cut and run from Iraq. |
| Posted by: Mike 2006-11-02 15:57 |
| #2 This ties in with articles 1 - 2 years ago that marriges in Iraq have more than doubled. During the the last 10 years in Iraq, many people delayed getting married because conditions were so bad. Of course you will never hear about this in the MSM. The fact is, despite all the doom and gloom coming out of Iraq, the Iraqi are the most optimistic people in the Middle East, and their economy is booming. Al |
| Posted by: frozen Al 2006-11-02 10:20 |
| #1 Don't birth no IEDs |
| Posted by: Captain America 2006-11-02 00:36 |