Charles Murray identified this problem in an article in the Wall Street Journal. He came up with possible solutions that he felt would cure this societal illness. His suggestions were good but unreasonable. He touches on both societal and governmental reform and although many of his suggestions are valid they would cause more harm then good. His recommendations include ending governmental economic support such as welfare, subsidized housing and food stamps, increasing social stigma, and returning to the ideals held in the mid 20th century. Although these suggestions do contain some validity in theory, I don't believe that implementation would have the desired effect.

s opinion is that some women go through with pregnancy because they know the government will support them through the Welfare system. Therefore Murray feels this economic policy should be abolished. To understand his theory you must look at illegitimacy as a circle: It is a fact that women, especially teenage women, are more sexually active today than in the past. One reason for this increase is that they know the government has systems designed to support them if they become pregnant. This serves as a safety net for the women therefore they are more sexually active.

Lastly is the idea to reinforce the ideals of the mid 20th century. This would include reinstating the values of marriage and family and the morals of the 1950's. Murray want to repaint the picture of the mom and dad with 2.75 kids and a dog named Lassie. Murray makes this suggestion because the 1950's were a time when a white underclass was unheard of. He figures that by rewinding society through an old "Leave it to Beaver" episode everything will be back in shape. Well, this view is utterly out of touch. As times change so does society. This is the reason that we don't leave as they did back in the 1950's in the first place. Children of the 90's couldn't be any farther from those in the middle of the century. Children today are forced to grow up much faster then in the past because they are exposed to entirely too much, too soon.

Rather then going backwards in history we need to take steps forward. America's youth must be educated about the problems in society so that they won't relive them as they grow. The key to cutting down on illegitimacy is through the education of youth. Expose teens to the hardships of raising a child so that they think before they act. Get to the core of the problem by reaching young Americans in their prime. The young people of today are the future of tomorrow an

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1276
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)