In an attempt to solve the problems caused by the differences in the male and female sex drives, a scientist created an device to regulate the male sex drive. The device is implanted at birth or before puberty. A control for the device is implanted in females.
The powers that be in their infinite wisdom have made the implants mandatory.
Into this supposedly idyllic (for women) situation steps good old Murphy's law.
As soon as the children first implanted start reaching sexual maturity birthrates start declining. At first it's thought to be a good thing as there are far fewer teen pregnancies, but as time passes birthrates continue to decline until a century or so later there aren't enough people to sustain modern civilization.
Right, and then there are going to be women who will find ways to abuse their control privileges.
At first it's thought to be a good thing as there are far fewer teen pregnancies, but as time passes birthrates continue to decline until a century or so later there aren't enough people to sustain modern civilization.
It wouldn't take a century. As soon as the economy begins to drop because of the reduced birth rate, everyone will demand the laws appeal.
What's more, consider men who lose their sex drive, but take various drugs and folk cures to boost it. Even if it's implanted by someone else (unlikely as long as men retain control of the legislature, and women legislatures are unlikely to put in such a 'brute force' approach to a problem), men will find some way of deactivating it in no time at all. (Men are more motivated to keep their sex drive than women are to reduce it.)
@tppm
At first it's thought to be a good thing as there are far fewer teen pregnancies, but as time passes birthrates continue to decline until a century or so later there aren't enough people to sustain modern civilization.
It wouldn't take a century. As soon as the economy begins to drop because of the reduced birth rate, everyone will demand the laws appeal.
It wouldn't even take a year. Most industrialized western nations already have birth rates that are at best marginally above replacement. The US birth rate is already below replacement. Without immigration, the US population would be shrinking.
Oh and it only takes one generation for immigrant birthrates to drop to the average for natives. It turns out that the best cure for high birth rates is economic prosperity.
It turns out that the best cure for high birth rates is economic prosperity.
Or abortion. If men had babies, abortion would be a sacrament.