Real Research

So far this semester, I have come to understand how important doing your own research is. Very often rumors get passed along and many of them are false, yet we tend to believe what we hear. This might be a silly example but the other night my husband and I were watching the movie Ben-Hur, the old 1959 movie which is set in ancient Rome about a Jewish prince who is betrayed and sent into slavery by his friend but escapes and returns for revenge. The story of Christ's ministry and crucifixion play a part during this movie and Ben-Hur comes to understand that love is more powerful than hate. Anyway, there is a scene where the two friends are competing in a race with horses and the guy who had banished Ben-Hur into slavery dies in the race. Back to my point. My husband and I had always been told, by friends and family, that during this scene of the movie, the stunt man actually died but they still continued with the movie. This was believed for years until we actually did our own research and found that this is simply a rumor and there were no deaths in the movie. It's so easy to believe what you hear and sometimes rumors are more exciting than the truth and we like exciting news more. In many of my classes this semester, I have been reminded how to do real research and find things out for myself. In the subject of family relations, many people still believe that our population is growing.In fact, in many countries around the world, the population is actually beginning to decrease. In America, the fertility rate is 2.13 children per woman. If the fertility rate is any lower than this, our population will also decline. As of now, America's population is sustaining. Everyone has been so focused on the increasing population and passing out birth control like candy but have you ever considered the consequences of a declining population? If the declining population continues, maybe my children will not be able to support the many elderly who are in need of social security benefits. There could be much less workers than elderly people who need support. And what about parents who are both single children and who have one child. That child will have no cousins,uncles, aunts. Not only will our economy be impacted but also our social culture. There's a lot to think about before we just decide to stop having kids. In my case, I look forward to having my own family in the future.