[AMF]

Originally posted by psimancer:
the chinese have realized te problem for themselves and instituted a program to reduce their popuation however i have yet to see what results they have acheived (if any) in providing incentives for one child families

The Chinese don't offer a lot of incentives, they do offer a whole mess of disincentives. Basically, the One-Child policy allows you to have, er, One child. If you have a girl the first time, you can get one more shot at having a boy. Also, peasants in the country side can have up to two children in any case (they need the labor). The Chinese government enforces this law through a series of tough repercussions and forced sterilization of women. They can do this becuase the governemt is, essentially, a self-perpetuating autocracy with legitimacy shakily based on the concept that they are the inherotirs of the shared struggle of the revolution.

India is trying to enact such a policy, but as the "largest democracy in the world" it's very hard to see how it will ever bear fruit.