By: Cody Miller - Chief of Staff
[NCFCR] - Many Republicans talk about “America First”, and want America to remain on the top of the charts, but does anyone even know where to begin? Do you know where to begin? At the time of writing, there are 221 Democrats in the House of Representatives, so I can assure you that there are at least 221 representatives that don’t. The problem is, though, that I’m not sure our Republican representatives do either.
This is why this will be the first of a series of articles explaining how to Keep America First, and I believe that an often overlooked aspect of countries around this world is the rapid decline in population. This is probably one of the things that frightens me the most. Almost every first world country has a declining birth rate, and it could mean the collapse of entire civilizations.
To ensure that our civilization isn’t just another footnote of history, we need to beat this crisis before it hits us head-on. According to the world bank, the United States’ fertility rate fell to 1.6; scoring .5 below the replacement rate of 2.1. This is an extremely alarming number, but before we go completely opening up our borders to fix the issue, let’s take a look at a few other nations. Japan’s birth rate is currently reported as 1.3, and China’s sits at 0.9. This means that the United States still has an opportunity to fix this problem before it gets too late. The only question is, how? Well, the easiest and most obvious solution to ensure that our population continues to grow is to increase immigration. The recent Russian invasion of Ukraine could provide an ample opportunity to accept a large number of Ukrainian immigrants. This, however, is only a temporary solution, and does not solve the problem at hand. Not to mention, you run the risks of importing terrorists, spies, or end up with a large and poor immigrant community. This is why I propose a different solution: evangelism.
Ever since the rise of the internet, people have realized that they aren’t confined to where they were born, nor do they have to raise a family there. This is in part why the most inhospitable states in America have a declining fertility rate like: Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado and California. A significant portion of all of these states are desert, yet there’s one more desert state that is left out from this: Utah. For years, Utah has remained amongst the highest states in fertility rates. In 2020, it clocked in at a 1.92 fertility rate according to the CDC. The state that ranks the closest amongst the aforementioned states is New Mexico at a 1.61 fertility rate. This is an extremely curious statistic that actually relates to the evangelism of the Mormons in Utah.
The Mormon faith is, arguably, one of the most evangelist of the Abrahamic faiths in America within the modern age if not the most. A side effect of an evangelist Abrahamic faith is more children. History has shown us that the most evangelist Christian societies provide high birth rates. If this is all true, though, then why is the birth rate of Utah still negative? Well, it’s because, contrary to popular belief, Utah isn’t as Mormon as many think. It still ranks as the most Mormon state in the union, but Mormons only make up 55% of the state’s population according to the Pew Research Center. To show that Mormons really do rank high in fertility rates, here is another statistic provided by the Pew Research Center - Mormons have an average of 3.4 children in their lifetime. So, despite only making up 55% of the state’s population, Mormons manage to inflate the state’s population enough to where it has topped the fertility charts for decades.
Now, with all of the amazing talk about Mormons, am I suggesting that you convert to Mormonism? No. Mormons are simply known for their evangelism, and that evangelism is key to keeping America first. We shouldn’t just be evangelists in our faith, but in our country too. You should have children when you are ready, and when you can support them. Once you can though, you should have many children. You can space out when you have them, have them towards the end of your middle-age years, or do something else to make things easier on yourself and others, but it’s important that you have them. If not for yourself, then for King and country.
This article is not an official opinion of the NCFCR, nor does it represent the NCFCR's official stance