Europe's Demographic Nightmare
By Albert Mohler

"You can't have a country where everybody lives in a nursing home." That statement by Carl Haub of the Population Reference Bureau, points to Europe's looming demographic disaster.

Birthrates in much of Europe have fallen to level so low that the populations of several nations are beginning to grow smaller and older--fast. The New York Times Magazine took this on in its June 29, 2008 cover story.

Some are beginning to ask, "Where are all the European babies?" Playgrounds and elementary schools are beginning to look empty and unused in some communities.

Birthrates are a function of many factors, but there is no question now that Europeans have increasingly embraced a worldview that sees having children as something of a hobby--not a national priority.

That void will be filled by immigrants and will reshape Europe.