Ask HN: Would this idea combat the population decline problem in many countries?

I doubt it. Would you have a baby in exchange for 100 Powerball tickets? I’m not sure anyone would take that deal.

If you really want to know why women of childbearing age are not having as many children....why not go ask some women of childbearing age why they are not having children?

>What if the government ran a weekly lottery where only people who have a baby and/or raise a child are eligible? You’d be automatically entered every week for free.

There are already baby bonuses, so not even a 'chance of money' but rather straight up cash that generally speaking in most countries cover the basic cost of having a kid. It's not exactly this $ that solves the problem.

>Do you think this idea would be effective in combating the population decline problem that many countries face?

Not even a slight chance.

The problem isnt to trick people into having a kid on some off chance of winning the lottery. We even have straight up $ to raise kids, but it's not enough.

The average ~25 year old having kids cant afford a 4 bedroom place. We are building mostly 1-2 bedroom apartments that are too small for families.

Additionally, the car you have to buy to handle 4 baby seats and 2 boosters is much more expensive than the $5000 beater where half the kids dont have a seatbelt and they are squished in the back.

The government was right to come in and ensure the safety of the children; this extends well beyond just seatbelts, many laws raising costs, but it has set a minimum household wage far in excess of what's possible to sustain. The people who do reach that household wage, are often professionals who dont want kids.

both parents pretty much must be gainfully employed, but then childcare costs an arm and a leg.

How about childcare, what used to be affordable, but then some childcare places beat kids. So now you have to certify and qualify to be childcare, reducing the number of practitioners increasing the cost of childcare to be unaffordable for most.

The fix is also not to have government pay for childcare or other small pittances. This will be circular and ultimately fails into the crisis we currently have.

The fix is likely also not removing those regulations. It's good that we protect the kids.

So you have to reduce the cost of living for parents just straight up. This pretty much means parents cant be income taxed. It's the only reasonable place to find significant savings that have a meaningful way of fixing the problem.

Plus, what's the difference between just having no income taxes or having ever increasing entitlements that will never be enough?