NYCGrrrl, you may have some insight to offer me, in case you're still reading.

Here's what we know:

1. Overpopulation is a serious problem.

2. There are many different "fixes," and that leads me to believe that all of these methods should be used together. In other words, improved education and liberation of women helps a great deal, but so does aggressive family-planning programs (not necessarily China's. I'm thinking of Iran.)

3. Many people who are least-qualified to bear children seem to be creating enormous numbers of them. That's the scenario NYCGrrrl talked about, referring to the inner-city adolescents.

4. Males don't really want children. I know this because Men Leave. Most poor people in the world are women in children, because a man without dependents can often support himself in most places, but a woman left with offspring may have no luck.

With all of that stated, here's my startup idea: We pay men to get no-scalpel vasectomies. We fund ourselves entirely through advertising (beer, video games, FUBU, assorted lowbrow crassness, it all depends on the location.) Think of it: Our outfits and vasecto-mobile(s) are covered in logos. We make it clear that the recipient can still have sex normally, but after 20 ejaculations, they are "all juice, no seeds." That could be part of our slogan.

If you're a man in Haiti, making about a dollar a day, and somebody offers you, say, ten dollars, how could you refuse, especially when there's the upside of being able to shag all you want without impregnating anybody? You'll become very popular, that's for sure.

Now imagine if this sort of thing becomes successful worldwide. A serious dent is made in the dependency ratio, which lowers poverty, which lowers population growth! Everybody wins!!

Oh, and the fear of an aging population just masks a pyramid scheme. The Muslims aren't going to take over Europe. That's ridiculous. European bosses will do anything to prevent a so-called labor shortage, and towards that end will encourage immigration from Latin America and elsewhere. This already happens in Spain and Portugal.

So, anyway, does anybody want to go into business with me? If I'm missing something, let me know.

You might already know this, but your letter didn't make it clear: Idiot, imbecile, and moron were not originally insults, they were medical terms. When they were used as slurs, they were no longer used medically, and thus became slurs. The process continues.

How about "World in Motion," by New Order. It was the theme song for the 1990 English World Cup team. It's partly a futbol song, featuring some of the team bellowing the chorus and a rap by John Barnes, but it's also about other things, like love and hope and MDMA.

... as to what Kufir wrote. I'm not suggesting that anybody should feel obligated to quote it.

I wondered the same thing.

"No 17 or 18 yr old boy is going to wax poetic about how he wants to get married and have babies to all his friends."

There are, indeed, boys like this. Early-bloomers in some cases. Many pick up microphones and/or instruments and try to prove their "emo"tional depth to the world. I'm not mocking, I actually admire this sort of thing.

Broadsheet once had an article about how teenage boys aren't all jerks, or something.

... if perhaps women have any sexual agency and might also desire a shag? All of your quotations and citations assume that women are helpless objects with no sexual desire of their own.

... somebody would have mentioned that voting for somebody for such superficial reasons is a counterproductive and completely ignorant form of identity politics. Is there any other kind?

... the convictions of the God Squad. They really do believe in their silly superstitions, and they really do want the whole world to follow suit. They really do think that abortion is the slaughter of infants, and they don't think that minimizing abortion with contraception and education and such is acceptable. It's a good idea to make contingency plans for a worst-case scenario. Take the equipment and go underground. Re-establish the Jane network. Or perhaps stand and fight! I've sometimes imagined that I'll die inside a clinic, out of ammunition, making a last stand as the TaliBaptists overrun our position.

Some of us are pro-choice and shoot back.

Yeah, why do you need religion to tell you to do what you should be doing anyway? Now, you might need religion to tell you to do things that, objectively, you shouldn't. The aforementioned "bad sides" of Christianity and Islam actually reflect what their respective holy books command their followers to do. All the so-called moderates are apostates. It's time to put up or shut up, believers. Either it's true or it isn't. Either it's all right or it's all wrong. Pick up some poisonous snakes, I dare you!

And yeah, The Last Mimzy was a good movie. I have this feeling that it'll be a longtime favorite among people who saw it as little kids and always retain a soft spot for it. I was curious, so I saw it in a crowded second-run theater full of annoying kids. That's what I get for being such a cheapskate, I guess.

... would join the Socialist Party, the one that's nominated Brian Moore and Stewart Alexander for the White House. It would open the door to some fascinating political developments, most likely.

I feel I must point out that if you had never been born, you would not be able to care.