Who Will Shape the Future of Humanity? | Ultimate Issues Hour

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On today's episode of Timeless Wisdom.

There are 4 ideologies competing for humanity's future, and, uh, in no specific order, they are Islam, the secular left, American/Judeo-Christian, and chaos.

I disagree with all of the statements or positions or comments that you've made. Um, I think the worst of all is man's ego.

That's coming up on Timeless Wisdom with Dennis Prager.

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Just text Welcome to Timeless Wisdom with Dennis Prager. Hear thousands of hours of Dennis's lectures, courses, and classic radio programs. And to purchase Dennis Prager's Rational Bibles, go to dennisprager.com.

To be or not to be.

To be?

That is the question.

Where was God?

Isn't God supposed to be good? Isn't he supposed to love us? Does God want us to suffer? 10 years, you're not finished yet? Marty! Why did you do this to me?

Who are you?

Bruce, I am God.

Bingo!

Yahtzee!

Is that your final answer?

Our survey says God!

Bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing!

Well, it was nice to meet you, God.

Thank you for the Grand Canyon, and good luck with the apocalypse. It's the Ultimate Issues Hour on the Dennis Prager Show. Yes, indeed, every week at this time, meaning the 3rd hour of the Tuesday show, is devoted to some great issue of life. And I often say what I'm about to say, it doesn't get greater than the following issue, because it doesn't. Is the future of humanity a big enough issue? Does that qualify? Well, if it doesn't, nothing does. So here we go. You've heard me say this, but I have never developed it to the best of my knowledge at any length. I believe that the world has 4 competing ideologies under which more and more people will or won't live. But there are 4 competing— well, one of them is not an ideology. One is a non-ideology, but so be it. There are 4 ideologies competing for humanity's future. And in no specific order, they are Islam, the secular left, American/Judeo-Christian, and chaos. I don't see any place— I don't know of a 5th possibility. If you do, I'm more than happy to entertain it, or at least respond to it. What could there— what could a 5th be? Let me, uh, let me begin with the 4th, chaos, to explain that, because the other 3 are perhaps more inherently clear. Chaos reigns when no ideology, none of those three or any other ideology, is dominant. Simply, there is anarchy. Anarchy may be better than chaos, actually, and anarchy may be a more precise term. But I don't care which term you use—anarchy or chaos. Anarchy or chaos is taking place right now in a place like the Congo, where more than I believe it is, which is astonishing most of you unless you've heard me or maybe one or two others. don't even know about this because the press doesn't find it interesting. Why they don't find it interesting is a reflection on the press. But about 3 million people have been slaughtered in all sorts of civil war and just barbarity for the sake of barbarity in the Congo in the last few years. That's a lot of people. That is beyond belief number.

3 million.

You have the potential for anarchy in Pakistan. You have some degree of anarchy right now in Mexico with the vast numbers of people who are simply kidnapped and never found again, or kidnapped and tortured, or kidnapped and then let go even. But it's still chaos. It's still an anarchy. Of course, it isn't all of Mexico, but I'm saying— likewise, Russia. Russia doesn't fit any of the above: Islamic, American Judeo-Christian, or secular left. It's closer to secular left, but it isn't. It's not really an ideology at all. It's just power. Those are your 4 competitors. And I'll tell you what isn't competing, so you'll understand how I came up with this list. There are— I didn't mention every religion. I didn't mention Buddhism or Hinduism, for example. And I have great respect for both. Many of you know how much I love going to India. I've been there 4 times. I would go tomorrow if I could for a 5th visit. And Buddhism has a great deal to commend to it. There is a great deal of profundity in Buddhism. But there is no chance that Hinduism or Buddhism will be a transnational dominant movement. Yes, Hinduism is essentially confined to the blood of the Hindu. It's not a religion one converts to in any event, nor does it have any proselytizing element within it. There's nobody to proselytize. You're either born it or you're not, like Zoroastrianism. And Buddhism may have some degree of proselytizing in it, but it is not particularly violent, nor does it seek to proselytize particularly, because you don't gain any credits, as it were, by making somebody else Buddhist. So those 2 aren't possible. What else? Let's look. Africa is— in Africa, the dominant religions are Islam and Christianity. Christianity is so strong in Africa that— Islam is not. The betting is that the next pope, whenever that will be, will be an African. That, by the way, that's Catholicism. In Protestantism, it is in the Anglican Church, it is now becoming a dominant force, challenging the left-wing movement of the Anglican Church and of other Protestants. So Africa is not producing— well, it is producing, it's producing Christians. But that's already covered in the list of 4. Asia? Well, Asia has Buddhism and it has secular leftism. So Buddhism is not an issue for the world's future, but leftism, secular left, as in China. China, which is the dominant force in Asia. Asia is secular left. Then in Europe, Europe is almost all secular left with pockets of Christianity. South America is secular left or Christian. North America is secular left or Christian. And that covers the world. I've just covered the continents. So those are Except, of course, I didn't cover— well, Asia, of course, is a tremendous amount of Muslims. Africa, as I said, is divided between Islam and Christianity. Asia, the country with the largest number of Muslims is an Asian country, Indonesia. So Indonesia and Malaysia and India are huge areas of Muslims. And Muslim is— Islam is growing in Europe tremendously, both by birth rates and by conviction, because there's no religious competition to Islam in Europe. None. Christianity is moribund in Europe. Secular leftism has won in Europe, especially Western Europe. So let me review. The world's future is either Islam American/Judeo-Christian, uh, or, uh, secular left, or anarchy. Now, the, uh, the— I believe anarchy is a real possibility. However, anarchy leads to tyranny because people can't handle anarchy. The thing that people want more than anything else before sex Before television, before, almost before food, is order. The human being, and totally understandably, I mean, the thought that you have, there is no protection against marauding, raping bands, is what helped produce government in the Middle Ages in Europe. Read A Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuchman and you'll see what I mean. They were just banned in the 13th century, which is what A Distant Mirror was about, 13th century Europe. There were just marauding bands who would come and steal from every little hut in villages. They would often torture the man to death by roasting him on a fire and rape the women. And this helped create government. People banded together to make order. So if the future, wherever the future is, this sort of anarchy, chaos, that will lead to tyranny, not to democratic government necessarily. So let's talk about the other 3: Islam, American/Judeo-Christian, and secular left. Those 3, I don't know who will predominate. If I had to bet, I would flip a coin. I have no idea. I would say at this time that the American Judeo-Christian value system is the weakest of the 3 between or among Islam, secular left, and America Judeo-Christian. And what is American? American is 2 things. It is, well, America is Oh. It's 3 things. In God We Trust, E Pluribus Unum, and Liberty. That's the American Trinity. In God We Trust was the God, the Judeo-Christian God, God of Israel, and his revealed laws such as the 10 Commandments. That is, that is what is the moral basis of American civilization. All right. I'll take your calls and I will explain much more when we come back on the Ultimate Issues Hour. 1-800-PRAGER-776.

This episode of Timeless Wisdom will continue right after this.

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Now back to more of Dennis Prager's timeless wisdom.

And while I gave you 4 choices, and there are 4, there really are 3 that are dominant as ideologies, and they are Islam, American/Judeo-Christian, and secular left. If you think that there is a 4th ideology, Not one you're rooting for. One that is as strong as the others as possibilities for the world's future. Obviously, I'd be curious to hear. I cannot think of any. And I think I've reviewed the ideologies that tend to predominate in the world at this time. If I had to bet on one, did I say this earlier? What would I bet on?

No.

What did I bet on?

No, you didn't say what you bet on. You said what was the weakest.

Oh, I said which was the weakest. Yeah. Well, if I had to bet on one, it seems to me that the secular left and Islam are the dominant, because I said the weakest was American Judeo-Christian. And I would— there would seem to be a competition. The interesting thing, or an interesting thing, is that right now the left and Islamic forces are often united in the antipathy toward American values. American values, again, are on your coins. In God we trust, e pluribus unum, and liberty. Those three together—no other society has ever put those three together. The United States is unique in that way, and the In God we trust is a very big part of it. But that is being fought by by the secular left. The secular left is fighting the all three actually. It doesn't believe in e pluribus unum; it believes in multiculturalism. It believes in equality more than it believes in liberty, and it believes that God is unnecessary for morality. So, all 3 aspects of the American trinity are being fought by the secular left, both within America and outside of America. Islam is gaining, of course, in various parts of the world. And of course, not all Islam is militant Islam or violent Islam. Obviously not. And I'm not— I haven't insinuated that it is. I'm merely talking about what— whether violent or nonviolent, it's still under the rubric of Islam. And it is making major headway in Europe. That's an important factor in what I'm saying. It's not making much of a headway in the United States, but it is in Europe, which is even allowing Uh, even allowing, uh, for Sharia, Islamic law, and Islamic law in the most fundamentalist way to be implemented, uh, in places like Britain. And of course, there are tens of millions of Muslims in Europe. You don't have tens of millions of Judeo-Christians, uh, in, in the Islamic world, in Islamic countries. By the way, I keep saying Judeo-Christian, not just Christian, because America is founded by Christians rooted in the Jewish scriptures. That's why the Hebrew scriptures. They, they, that, that's why. I mean, the Liberty Bell has a verse from the Torah and not from the New Testament, and it was Christians who put it there. Okay, we go to Let's see, Houston, Texas, and Larry. Hello, Larry. Dennis Prager.

Yes, you mentioned how Christianity was, was, was growing in Africa, but you didn't make any mention of Asia. And it's still relatively small, but as a percentage, Christianity is, is bigger here. But numerically, there are more Christians in China than there are in the United States. They're near 100 million Christians, and China's trying to figure out how to deal with them. They've, for decades, they persecuted them, but it's getting so big now that they're trying to figure out how to bargain with them, give them some legitimacy, but keep them a non-threat.

Right, but they're not strong, to the best of my knowledge, and I wish they were, believe me. I'm not saying this with any happiness, I'm just trying to be accurate. The strong is the secular left in China. That's the strong ideology. If China exports any ideology, it will be secular left ideology, obviously not Christianity. But I'm glad for the demographic update. And let's go to West Chester, Pennsylvania, and Don. Hello, Don. Dennis Prager.

Yes, sir. Good afternoon. How are you today?

I am well, thank you.

Good. I would like to modify it, suggest a modification in how you're phrasing the, the particular adjective that describe the Judeo-Christian American. Rather than weakest, I would suggest it is the most fragile. We— I reject or suggest the weakest is not appropriate because we have seen 6, 7 times in the 20th century how when riled, when push comes to shove, the American/Judeo-Christian has defeated Totalitarian, secular left, communist, fascist, and at least the first round of the Islamofascists. Yeah, but since—

well, you're right.

Yeah, go on. So I would suggest that in its place, the term fragile.

Okay, fine. All right, I'll live with it. I'll live with it, since it means the same thing in terms of what will happen. Its fragility— I know fragile and weak are not the same thing. You can be strong and fragile, although it's a very subtle distinction, I must say. I personally think that weak is in fact an appropriate term. 15% of Americans say they have no religion. It is higher than ever before in American history. Vast numbers have no knowledge let alone conviction about the Bible. I mean, 100 years ago, you made references— were routinely made in popular culture to Cain and Abel, to the prodigal son, to Jezebel, to Ahab, who becomes a key figure in Moby Dick, but nobody knows why because they don't know their Bible. It's just, it's, it's Adam and Eve, the apple. If you said to a college kid today, well, you know, ever since Adam ate from the apple or ate from the tree, I don't know if many of them would know what you're talking about. That's weak, not fragile. Okay, 1-800-PRAGER-776. And we will continue in a moment. And we have a call from a Muslim who believes that ideologies should not compete. Well, whether or not they should, they do. I mean, they all want to be strong. But anyway, that'll be an interesting call. 1-800-PRAGER-776 is the number, which is 877-243-7776.

Hi, this is a message for Dennis Prager at the Happiness Hour and Choosing to Be Happy. I also have been very emotional and very moody. I let myself, for no real reason, in college, I thought the artistic side of me being genuine to my emotions, um, spiral down into depression. And it was so bad. I mean, literally, I got to the point of almost being like suicidal. But, but what I learned was it's a constant choice. You do have to fight it. But all you got to do is just one Domino at a time. That's Mike. And so I love Dennis Prager. Thank you. I hope this will help. And this is one of the most important things I've learned in my life, to have— going from an emotional person to being— people love my positivity and happiness, but I choose it and I fight it. Thank you, Dennis and Jennifer and everybody else. Love you guys. Bye.

Are you enjoying Timeless Wisdom? We'd love to hear from you. Call 877-243-7776 and leave a review, share your thoughts, or just even An encouraging word for Dennis. Your voicemail might just make it on the show. That's 877-243-7776. That's 877-243-7776. Thanks for listening and for your support.

My subject today is the future of humanity, nothing less than that, and it will be either secular left, second American Judeo-Christian, or third Islam. Whether militant or non-militant is not my point here. These are the 3 possibilities. The 4th, as I mentioned in the very beginning, was anarchy. But anarchy doesn't last for all that long, as in the Congo now. It's usually replaced by tyranny. Alrighty, so let's go to some more of your calls. Claremont, California, and Hannah. Hi, Hannah. Thank you for calling. This is Dennis Prager.

Hi, Dennis.

Hi, Dennis. Good to talk to you.

Thank you.

Uh, I have no idea why all those 4 elements, they should compete. I've— I— all I know that since creation of civilization, those elements almost like in order, they existed. For 1,500 years, Islam existed. 2,000 years, Judeo-Christian and Judaism existed. And since creation of a human being, non-believer existed. And my feeling, and what I learned in my book, in the Quran, that they're going to keep existing until the Day of Judgment. It is in the Quran that God created us different, and so we could meet and learn about each other and live together. It's not supposed to be like only one— he could have created only one element, so why should we be—

Well, actually, ironically, I think the Quranic view is that he did create one true religion, and it's called Islam.

Islam by itself, what he meant by creating Islam, that submission to God.

Correct.

Islam, that's submission to God's will. Doesn't have to be— Islam is not like actually what's understood right now. You are a Muslim if you are Jewish and you submit to God. We believe that means Islam, that means you're submitted to God's will. If you are Christian and submitted to God's will, you are a Muslim because you submitted to God's will. That's what means that.

Then why, then why are people who convert from Islam to Judaism or Christianity punished?

Actually, I think that should be rethought.

Oh, okay, okay. Wait, wait, wait, Hannah. I agree it should be rethought, but, uh, but what you're describing is Hannahism, not Islam. And I love you, Hannah. I, I wish, I wish that you were the, the chief theologian at Al-Azhar University in Al-Qahira, in Cairo, but you're not. You're a wonderfully Americanized Muslim, and God bless you. But in fact, what you're saying has not been the reality. And the reality in any event is competition doesn't mean violence. Competition doesn't mean hurt each other. But there's an inevitability. People in a free market of ideas, people will choose. Now, there— it's not just a free market. There's also, there's also violence. But that, that's, that's not been my point. My point is the reality, and not in theory, but in reality. These are the 3 competitors for humanity at this time. The problem is American Judeo-Christian values don't export themselves. The secular left exports itself, and Islam exports itself. American values do not export themselves. They used to. We used to think that we could, we could do this and that we had even a noble mission to do so. But we can't even keep Americans American/Judeo-Christian in terms of values. The secular left is more and more dominant in the United States because they have taken over the educational system. and the media, with the exception of talk radio. Okay, let's thank you, Hannah, and as I said earlier, God bless you. Washington, D.C., and Terry. Hello, Terry. Dennis Prager.

Hello, Dennis.

I have an idea. I'm not gonna predict the future because if I could, I'd have made a lot of money in my life at the racetrack. So, but what I would suggest is there's a possibility that in Western Europe The clash is going to come between the secular left and Islamic fundamentalism. And then what I think is going to happen is you're going to have a merging of the secular left and the American Judeo-Christian.

In Europe or all over?

No, that'll happen in Europe at some point, but it will—

Well, but there is no American Judeo-Christian in Europe to begin with.

Yeah, here's what I think could happen. I'm not saying it will. that there'll be a— and this will probably start in France, I think, where that's going to be the, the real— again, it's probably the home of the secular left, but it's also—

All right, hold on, we got to take a break. You're listening to The Dennis Prager Show.

This episode of Timeless Wisdom will continue right after this.

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Now back to more of Dennis Prager's timeless wisdom.

Secular left Islam American, Judeo-Christian, the 3 possible ideologies competing for humanity's future. 2 of them are proselytizing, one is not. And that is the— Islam proselytizes, the secular left proselytizes, American Judeo-Christian doesn't. There are Christians who proselytize, they are a small number, and I'm talking about the combination of American and Judeo-Christian values which constitutes the American Trinity of In God We Trust, E Pluribus Unum, unum, and liberty. Those are the 3 ideologies competing for humanity's future. Terry in, uh, Terry in Washington, D.C. says the secular left and Christianity will merge, right? Is that right, Terry?

Well, I don't say they'll merge. I think they will ally themselves against militant Islam. And the figure that I think is key to this is someone like Christopher Hitchens, who could function in America, he'd have a much harder time in Western Europe. And I think what's going to happen—

Well, all right, so, well, he's secular, okay, yeah, though he's not— he's left vis-à-vis religion, but he's not left vis-à-vis international politics.

Right, but see, he is a member of the Secular—

All right, so fine, so the point is?

Well, the point is, is that as there's— the explosion, I think, is going to come in France, and when the secular left has to fight it out with Islam, with militant Islam, they're going to look for allies, and the allies are going to be coming from the United States, and it'll be not only just the secular left, but also the Judeo-Christian conservatives in America. That's what I think may happen.

All right, listen, it might. I have predicted civil war or the Islamification of Europe for a number of years now, that that's the future of Europe, either civil war or an actual strongly Islamified Europe. All right, I thank you for that call. And let's go to— let me see if I have the city right. Is this Newark, Delaware, Carl?

Yes, it is.

Okay, thank you for calling.

How are you?

Good.

I'm good too. I disagree with all of the statements or positions or comments that you made. Um, I think the worst of all is man's ego.

Yeah, but, but ego is not an ideology. Ego is part of human nature.

But it is the basis for all of the religion.

Well, you might as well say the basis of all religion.

Yes.

Well, I would think that believing that there is a God that is higher of you is, is quite antithetical to a big ego.

But what religion does God have?

Well, that's not the point. God, the God, whatever—

Is he vegetarian?

No, no, no, wait, wait, that's— Carl, I have to let you go because of a terrible hum, unfortunately. See, this was, this was a non sequitur. What religion God has is irrelevant to the first claim that ego is the basis of all religion. It's, it's the basis of perhaps some, but not most, because religion holds that there's something higher than you. So you might as well say that all secularism is based on ego because it says that there's nothing higher than, than yourself. All right. I'm sorry though. I would have liked to continue but for that hum. And let's go to Dallas, Texas and Tim. Hello, Tim. Dennis Prager. Hello, Dennis.

Hey Dennis, thanks. Uh, the way I see it going down is that this elitist power of Islamic ideology— and I'm talking more about the ideology itself— is too powerful for the West to fight with our liberal tolerance-type values. That what will happen is Russia is going to support Persia getting a nuclear weapon, such as through the UN Security Council. So basically I'm saying that your communist states are going to Unite— I shouldn't say unite, but facilitate Islam to bring down the West. And then Russia is going to, in a way, be united with China. You know, in communism, the workers of the world unite—

Yeah, but Russia's not a communist regime.

Oh, it's going to be.

Oh, I see. All right, that's your prediction. OK, it's very— no, no, no, I'm not saying you're wrong. Then they— and it may be communism without calling it such.

Yeah, but—

But I mean, you all, you know, after all, the most powerful man in Russia is a KGB agent, a former KGB agent.

Right. And they've got oil to support themselves, and we are dependent on oil.

Well, right now, there's a lot of truth to what you say, Tim. Look, right now, the Islamists— I don't mean normative Islam, but the Islamists and the left feel that they do have a common enemy. It was George Bush, for example. The left fought George Bush much harder than it fought the Islamists. It fights Israel far more than it fights the Islamists who want to crush Israel. That's correct. That is absolutely correct. Look, I'm not— to use a fancy word— I'm not sanguine. I'm not optimistic, because if there's no renaissance in America of American Judeo-Christian values, then we're doomed. There's an article in The American Thinker to this effect, and we're going to have him on, by one of my One of my favorite thinkers, Charles Murray, and he writes exactly that. Americans better realize the exceptional values that Americans have or we're doomed.

It's The American, not The American Prospect.

It's just called The American.

Oh, just The American? It wasn't The American Thinker? I said American Thinker. Oh, it isn't American Thinker? Okay, The American. Anyway, that's wherever it is, that's a Charles Murray piece, and that's exactly what I've been arguing for quite a long time. Alrighty, we'll continue. We have more challenges. What about places like Denmark which are secular but happy and moral? And I'll answer that, Hanan, or Hanan, when we come back. And let's see, why has the left sided with Islam? Good, some good calls coming up still. If you have theories on this, I'd love to hear from you. I always love to hear from you. And I do remind you that you can subscribe to all my shows at Pragertopia. Which is located at DennisPrager.com or at PragerRadio.com for $7 a month, or call 800-225-8584. 800-225-8584.

Back in a moment. This episode of Timeless Wisdom will continue right after this.

Artificial intelligence is already changing the way we work, communicate, and live. The question isn't whether AI will shape our future. The question is how. That's what makes Carbon Zero such a fascinating read. Author Craig W. Stanfill isn't just a novelist, he's an AI pioneer who's taken today's rapidly advancing technology and imagined where it could lead if we're not careful. I have my copy and I gotta tell you, I can't put it down. Carbon Zero combines suspense, believable technology, and thought-provoking questions about freedom, responsibility, and the unintended consequences of letting machines make decisions that affect all of us. It's a great thriller with lots of action, but it's also a story that stays with you long after you've finished the last page. Carbon Zero, available for pre-order now, and for a limited time, the Kindle edition is just $2.99 for my audience. Go to Amazon and search for Carbon Zero by Craig W. Stanfill. That's Carbon Zero. Go get it at the discounted rate during the pre-order time now. Carbon Zero by Craig W. Stanfill.

Now back to more of Dennis Prager's timeless wisdom.

Die, you are a lucky man. Preachers and poets and scholars don't know it. Temples and statues and steeple won't show it. If you've got the secret, just try not to blow it.

Stay a lucky man.

A lucky man. If you found meaning or the truth in this whole world, you are a lucky man.

A lucky man.

Boy, that is true. A lot of truth there. Hi everybody, Dennis Prager, Ultimate Issues Hour. The future of humanity: Islam, American Judeo-Christian, or secular left. The 3 competitors. Right now, Islam, at least expansionist Islam, and secular left are united. They fail that they have a common enemy in American Judeo-Christian values. And let's go to Encino, California, and Hanan. Hello, Hanan. Dennis Prager.

Hi, Dennis. It's my first time calling. I was just thinking about ultimately this is an issue of what is the most moral society, and—

Oh, Hanan, Hanan, that is so sweet that you believe that. But it's so sweet that you believe that.

No, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on. First of all, I want to say I'm an observant Jew, but I'm just looking at places like Denmark and Norway that are ultimately— they're incredibly secular, but from what I read, that they are the most happiest.

Well, so what? So what? What does that have to do with whether you succeed? That's why I said you're so sweet. It's the naïveté of young people that you have. Goodness doesn't prevail.

Okay.

That's all. I mean, the fact that they're happy in Denmark is irrelevant to what the future— they're happy in Thailand. So what?

Right, but ultimately, isn't also the question of moral—

No. No, no, no, it isn't. I mean, you say you're an observant Jew. You know then how often evil has been victorious.

Right.

Okay, so why should it be different in the future? If the good—

I'm not talking about the future, I'm just talking about right now.

Right now, if the good don't fight, then— and by the way, ironically, you happen to have picked a society which did defend its cartoonists for freedom of speech and went pretty much alone and got clobbered, and now those cartoonists are in hiding. So, so, so much for the happy Danes, who did a better job, by the way. I, I, God bless them. God bless them. And you know how much premium in any event I put on happiness. But happiness doesn't, doesn't prevail without strength. Since you're a Jew, just remember, Adonai oz le'amoyitayn. God will give strength to his people. God will bless his people with peace. No strength. No peace. Essential doctrine of common sense as well as Judaism. Mark, Ron, Tim, Tim, 2 Tims, Daniel, I wish I could have taken your calls. I hope this has been provocatively, importantly thought-provoking, to be redundant. This is Dennis Prager. Thanks for listening.

Tomorrow on Timeless Wisdom with Dennis Prager.

Let me tell you an anecdote. An anecdote is a personal story as opposed to a statistic, but it's an anecdote that has an element of statistic to it. I first came out west in my later 20s to direct a retreat institute where couples and singles would come and study. And I got to know very, very many couples. This was before I was ever married. And I remember my dear friend who worked with me at this institute, and that is Joseph Telushkin, one of the most prolific Jewish writers in America today now. And he made an observation to me, and he— I found his observations to be keen. He, he is less inclined to generalized observations than I am. So when he makes them, I take them very seriously. And he said to me, and of course we were both very traditional in our values and planned on getting married, both of us, which in fact we did later on. He said, did you notice that it seems that the happiest couples tend to be those And we're talking— we were talking couples in their middle age and later, not in their 20s and 30s, but couples in their 40s, 50s, 60s. He said, did you notice that they are disproportionately couples who don't have children? And the moment he said this to me, I said, oh, I think you're right. I have images in my mind to this day of the couples that Didn't have kids. Now, there were very happily married people who had kids too, of course. Please understand, that's not what his comment was. His comment was that it stuck out to him how many— how disproportionately it seemed that the happiest couples— and there weren't many, there weren't that many. Most couples have kids, and I think you should have kids. I'm merely pointing out, though, that in terms of the happiness of a couple, look, if I'm wrong that the happiness of a couple seems to decrease often with kids, that is one of the reasons so many Europeans and others, moderns, don't have kids. Because they are not foolish. It's a terrible decision for, in the long run, I believe, for society. But it is not a foolish decision on a selfish— and I don't mean that as just a negative statement— on just their own basis. It's not a foolish decision. There are other reasons to have kids, but marital bliss is not one of them.

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