tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post115207560269438093..comments2023-10-31T05:03:38.910-07:00Comments on Letters from a broad...: Fertility, Mortality or Sex vs. DeathC. L. Hansonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-55384163963864309272010-09-20T05:09:51.853-07:002010-09-20T05:09:51.853-07:00Hey Carla!!!
I'm currently reading In Sacred ...Hey Carla!!!<br /><br />I'm currently reading <i>In Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith</i>, and one of the most striking things about it is how many children these women lost. Nearly all of them had to see at least one of her own children die. Among the last few I've read about, one lady had nine children and only two lived to adulthood; another had five, and every one of them died as a baby. And that's not just a Mormon thing -- any histories of families from that time period are like that. Go back another century or so in Europe or America, and not only are the kids (and adults) dying right and left, but it's kind of astonishing to see how unnoteworthy it was when one citizen would openly kill another with a sword; public executions were common public spectacles, etc. That's basically what's it's been like for most of human history (except that before people started gathering in large enough towns, instead of public executions, you'd have people getting eaten by wolves and other predators...).<br /><br />This is one of the ways our modern society (in the rich, developed countries) is most strikingly different from essentially all other human societies that have even been: the degree to which death has become alien to our daily lives.C. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-30225651483080681682010-09-19T23:08:26.067-07:002010-09-19T23:08:26.067-07:00Funny how I was raised with the Catholic mindset t...Funny how I was raised with the Catholic mindset that this modern age is a culture of death (based on the support for abortion, war, death penalty, etc).<br /><br />I see all that a bit differently now, although I don't like many of the above examples either.Carla Schmidt Hollowayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12947846629735463824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152292035108633382006-07-07T10:07:00.000-07:002006-07-07T10:07:00.000-07:00I don't remember the title of it. I don't think i...I don't remember the title of it. I don't think it was something famous. She reads a lot of books and is involved in organizing book club discussions, etc.C. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152291791218399682006-07-07T10:03:00.000-07:002006-07-07T10:03:00.000-07:00I never asked though - what book was your sister r...I never asked though - what book was your sister reading that provoked this comment? The House of Mirth? Tess of the D'Ubervilles?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152271213837499242006-07-07T04:20:00.000-07:002006-07-07T04:20:00.000-07:00They sound so adorable!!!I hope you guys have a fu...They sound so adorable!!!<BR/><BR/>I hope you guys have a fun trip!!! Travelling by car with kids that age usually isn't too bad. Riding in their little car seats tends to relax them.C. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152216535477589352006-07-06T13:08:00.000-07:002006-07-06T13:08:00.000-07:00The twins are doing phenomonal! They are climbing...The twins are doing phenomonal! They are climbing everywhere and into just about everything. No words or walking yet - but my daughter likes to say da-da-da as if she were talking almost constantly. <BR/><BR/>They are sleeping well (thank goodness). We are actually preparing for a trip (just mom and twins) to Chicago next week. I'll be staying at my parents' house. <BR/><BR/>I have your flight last year with your two in mind - but I think we'll be okay because I'm driving (and therefore not at the whim of flight schedules).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152209064551274452006-07-06T11:04:00.000-07:002006-07-06T11:04:00.000-07:00Hey Rachel!!!These days -- given that a typical fa...Hey Rachel!!!<BR/><BR/>These days -- given that a typical family has zero, one, two, or three kids -- the possibility of twins makes a real difference in family size planning.<BR/><BR/>When my husband and I were talking about the possibility of a third, we always considered what would happen if it were twins. We might possibly be okay with three, but it's borderline. Four would really push us over the limit of the number we feel like we could parent effectively...<BR/><BR/>A propos -- how are your adorable little twins doing? :DC. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152206434195091262006-07-06T10:20:00.000-07:002006-07-06T10:20:00.000-07:00Very interesting thoughts - I've been thinking abo...Very interesting thoughts - I've been thinking about this article for the past day and a half. How many children people decide to have and how they raise them can be very contraversial (as you know!) - <BR/><BR/>I have read that unstructured play is very important for children and child development - exactly what that involves, I'm not certain. <BR/><BR/>As far as family size goes - when you realize that 1 out of 90 pregnancies naturally could be fraternal twins - it also makes a difference in family size planning.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152205958822955582006-07-06T10:12:00.000-07:002006-07-06T10:12:00.000-07:00Hey Rebecca!!!I know, just think -- I could have a...Hey Rebecca!!!<BR/><BR/>I know, just think -- I could have a Nobel Prize right now, if only that other guy hadn't thought of this first!!! ;-)<BR/><BR/>Hey Cynthia!!!<BR/><BR/>I'ts true we're kind of acting against natural selection here, but I like to think of it as a bold experiment... ;-)C. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152202203381220042006-07-06T09:10:00.000-07:002006-07-06T09:10:00.000-07:00Good ideas. I had a professor that felt that many ...Good ideas. I had a professor that felt that many of the people living today... would have died due to childhood diseases etc.<BR/><BR/>He went on to say that because of this problem that we had too many people living who did not live up to their evolutionary potential. LOL<BR/><BR/>He felt the evolutionary human tree needed some pruning. :-)Cyn Bagleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08404416186783891402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152118872511492262006-07-05T10:01:00.000-07:002006-07-05T10:01:00.000-07:00Hey, you had the same ideas as a NOBEL PRIZE winne...Hey, you had the same ideas as a NOBEL PRIZE winner! That's just cool.Rebeccahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10006115623631732544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152104702629153842006-07-05T06:05:00.000-07:002006-07-05T06:05:00.000-07:00And there I thought my little analysis here was so...And there I thought my little analysis here was so original!!! LOL!!!<BR/><BR/>Actually though I was looking forward to getting some feedback from you on this because it's true that it's fundamentally an essay on economics, which is a field where I don't have a lot of formal training. So I'm glad to see that my thoughts on the subject aren't totally off the wall. :DC. L. Hansonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12698855413639518095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19053670.post-1152101218904649452006-07-05T05:06:00.000-07:002006-07-05T05:06:00.000-07:00Crazy theories, my foot! Gary Becker won the 1992...Crazy theories, my foot! Gary Becker won the 1992 Nobel prize in economics for saying these things, among others. His research on family decision-making is the main reason I decided to go to graduate school in economics.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1992/press.html" REL="nofollow">1992 Nobel Prize press release</A>AnnMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08504450005600933157noreply@blogger.com