The Y-Factor with Christian McLean

From Russia With Love

I know I'm jumping the gun here, but by the time the next Y-Factor column is printed this will all be over. The seeds will have been sown and none of you will be able to participate - even if it is just in spirit. Forget "The Power of Ten." The Russian region of Ulyanovsk is hosting its third annual Conception Day on September 12 in which its citizens get a chance to knock up their spouse for a shot at prizes, to boost to the slumping birthrate, and, of course, to bring a loving child into this world.

Russia, despite its geographic size, only has a population of 141 million (the U.S. has about 303 million and is rising, while Russia is expected to have dropped to 128 million by 2025). As one of the most pressing issues in Russia today, in his 2006 State of the Nation address, Vladimir Putin explained, "When planning to have a child, a woman is faced with the choice whether to have a child but lose her job or not to have a child. This is a very difficult choice. The encouragement of childbirth should include a whole range of measures of administrative, financial and social support for young families." Ulyanovsk's governor Sergei Morozov had put one program that does this into action the year before. In an attempt to bolster the ranks, this declining superpower pulled out all the stops, introducing one of the most capitalistic enterprises ever - Conception Day.

The region of Ulynanovsk is roughly 550 miles east of Moscow and has a population of 1.44 million people, but unlike most areas of Russia where the population is declining, birthrates here are on the rise. The reason is because people are given an incentive to have children. On September 12, citizens of this region are given the day off of work to go home and have sex. I know you thought that this would be something only Europeans could dream up, but the land that brought us Vladimir Lenin isn't as cold as it seems.

Getting the day off of work is great, but add having sex with your spouse all day under the banner of Patriotism and it seems like a win-win. But officials in the region have added even bigger incentives. Every family that has a child on June 12 receives a prize (besides a beautiful bouncing baby). Some get TVs, others washing machines, but one family wins the grand prize. Last year, Irina and Andrei Kartuzov won an SUV. Fittingly named the UAZ-Patriot, the locally manufactured vehicle is worth about $15,000 and perfect for carting a new family. But wait, there's more. If you already have one kid and give birth on June 12 to another, you can win up to $10,000, which can be put toward home improvements or the children's schooling.

As you may have thought, the program is working. A day off work, tons of sex and a chance to elevate your lifestyle has increased the birthrate by 4.5% from last year, including 78 babies born exactly on June 12. Out of the 78 families who had children, officials chose the Kartuzovs after a two-week deliberation period. The reason they won the grand prize was based on the skills they demonstrated in raising their other two children. But something about them winning doesn't sit well with everyone. The child had to be born as a Caesarian section, which the family scheduled for June 12. While the mother and child's best interests were surely the reasoning, one cannot help but wonder if there was another motive, but there hasn't been a new ruling which disqualifies such procedures.

Surely a washing machine isn't exactly motive enough to have a child. The cost of raising an infant to adulthood out-costs the price of a Maytag ten times over, but families looking to have children anyway, families who need a little nudge, or just love a little competition, a day off work, or a day designated for sex that doesn't require chocolate hearts and long stem roses, Conception Day seems like its one hell of a good time. So all those out there with square jobs, take a personal day on September 12, because like the Irish and St. Patrick's Day, on Conception Day everyone's got a little Russian in them - or at least that's the goal.

Back to Contents