[lotsofpulp]

A comparison cannot be made between times when women did not have access to contraception / financial independence to times when women do have access to those things.

And from my mid 30s cohort and younger acquaintences, I think that while they do not explicitly say their decision is about someone else’s line going up, the implication is there that if they cannot afford their kids a certain minimum quality of life, then they are willing to go without kids.

More specifically, if they are going to have to deal with living in a cramped apartment (in their preferred location) and the volatility of rents or a giant mortgage, then they are willing to forego having kids.