NYC Letter: Department Of Nonevents, Part I

Day 219 of CHOPE

Remember this?

CHANGE YOU CAN CONCEIVE IN
Could Euphoric Obama Fans Be Sparking A Baby Boom?

November 14, 2008 (Newsweek) - In the hours and days since Obama's victory, many of his exhilarated supporters have been, shall we say, in the mood for love. And though it's too soon to know for sure, experts aren't ruling out the possibility of an Obama baby boom.

So. Where are all those cute-as-a-button Obama babies?

OBAMA BABY BOOM TURNS OUT TO BE A BUST
Rumors Of Election Conceptions
Don't Result In Actual Rise In Bundles Of Joy

August 6, 2009 (MSNBC) - After Barack Obama won the presidential election on Nov. 4, 2008, supporters around the country celebrated in bars, in parks — and maybe, in the bedroom. Bloggers wrote about champagne and hope, and noting that voters of child-bearing age tended to go Democratic, predicted a baby boom.

... In fact, most reports of baby booms tied to one-night events such as an election, blackout or a snowstorm usually turn out to be merely anecdotal rather than backed by real statistics, experts say.

These, of course, are a better class of experts than those cited by Newsweek.

Eileen Cabalo, associate clinical director of obstetrics for Cooper University Hospital in New Jersey, said they haven't noticed anything unusual in the birth rate. Nurses and obstetricians in Seattle and even Chicago — ground zero for Obama celebrations — say they haven't noticed a rise in the number of babies born either.

Still, even if rumors of a baby boom don't result in actual bundles of joy, people think the idea that it might be possible after a dramatic event is a nice notion, experts say.

These must be the Newsweek experts again.

CHOPE.

Hype on the pill.