Where have all the children gone?

Straits Times, 23 September 2006

GENOA-
dormant
mediaeval
imploding
Schools have closed for lack of students. Children no ,onger play in the streets now, nor are there many family-friendly restaurants. Government efforts to reverse the trend do not work. Cash payments for births for example have failed while immigration also has its problems of its own. Childlessness has become socially acceptable. What a sad state the country has become, without the laughter and joy of children.