Several years ago I came up with a little variation on the Welfare Mother problem which I thought was a lot more palatable. Offer a 'birthday present' program, under which *any* female over the age of 11 who has not yet had a child or become pregnant, on her birthday, gets a cash award. The award should be high enough to encourage participation; $250 seems about right. A woman who can deliberatly turn down a $250 lump sum every year for the rest of her life is almost certainly able to afford to raise a child. This scheme: * Is entirely voluntary; no one has to use contraceptives, stay off welfare, or anything else. * Targets young women who would be likely to become 'welfare mothers'. The parents of such young women would be highly motivated to have their dependent daughters participate. I haven't worked out the costs, but suspect that the net savings would be quite substantial. Peter Trei trei@Process.com Disclaimer: The above is my personal opinion. I dont suggest that any other person or oganization shares it.