# most favored nation? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 26, 2000, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849 "2000-08-26T18:14:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/1 "2000-08-26T18:14:16Z")
From Beijing: Family planning officials in central China forced an abortion on a woman who violated the birth control policies by getting pregnanat with her fourth child. Since the 70’s, China has limited urban couples to one child, while rural families may have two if the first is a girl. Does the government have this right? Are we truly overpopulated? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/2 "2000-08-26T18:53:23Z")
China definitely is. Whether that justifies their policy and/or the US’s granting them MFN status is a great big matter of debate. ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/3 "2000-08-26T19:00:21Z")
And thats why I posted it here… ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/4 "2000-08-26T21:06:12Z")
> [@](#): > > Does the government have this right? I don’t think it should. Regardless of what you think about abortion, having one forced on you is mind-bogglingly horrible. > [@](#): > > Are we truly overpopulated? Yes, but I don’t think this is the answer. Education and reorganization of how the elderly receive support seems to be a better way of encouraging smaller family size. ---
**Author:** ![Jello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@Jello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jello)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/5 "2000-08-26T22:02:13Z")
I heard somewhere that they were stopping the one child law. Don’t have a source to follow up on; my geography teacher mentioned it. I’ll ask on Monday if I haven’t found one by then. ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2000, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/6 "2000-08-26T22:15:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by vanilla \* > \*\*From Beijing: > Family planning officials in central China forced an abortion on a woman who violated the birth control policies . . . > Does the government have this right? > Are we truly overpopulated? \*\* Well, the second question has no bearing on the first. It would be enough to get me back into anti-government politics if my government proposed forced abortions as a policy, whatever the reason. (Hmmmm, wonder what the active shelf life of an FBI file is.) Tris ---
**Author:** ![Surgoshan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Surgoshan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surgoshan)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/7 "2000-08-27T17:12:56Z")
Active shelf life? Well, the expiration date on your file is, coincidentally, the same as yours… I would say that, no, the government does not have this right, and yes we’re probably getting overpopulated. My solution? Colonize the moon! Seriously, we need a new frontier. And since the moon is barren, the environmentalists should WANT us to go there, and we could make it seem alternately like a socialist or libertarian paradise-to-be to get the support of the mainstream political parties. Boy oh boy, it should be EASY to colonize the moon by now! ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-favored-nation/30849/8 "2000-08-27T17:28:11Z")
There’s not already a libertarian paradise on the moon? Oh, shit. Well it was nice knowing you guys. As for my take on the OP, anyone who has actually read a few of my GD posts should be able to guess my viewpoint.