Since the conversation has gone this way I figured I would share with this group an idea that I have been tossing around with some colleagues (I work at a Canadian University so it is a pretty liberal crowd, although the government does support the Catholic Church in Ontario).
The largest problem facing the world today (and standing in the way of a high quality of life for all the world's citizens) is over population. Over population at our standard of living creates huge issues with the environment, fossil fuels, fisheries, coast lines, greenhouse gasses.... Now in the face of this our governments are encouraging us to have children by subsidizing the cost of raising those children via tax breaks and other head start and school programs. Our actions and policies do not match up with solving the largest environmental problem, over population.
So that being said, the government should halt giving any child tax credits and instead give tax breaks (very small but a good gesture) to people of reproductive years who chose not to have children. This will align policy with an attempt to solve our biggest environmental crisis.
By the way that is the argument I give when people hound me about not having children (believe me they do). I say I am more "green" than them because of my conscious decision not to procreate. I then follow it up by saying that they are selfish.
