Will you be lucky in the year of the dragon?

The year 2012 is the year of dragon or water dragon. It is said that the water dragon is the best dragon of all. It is the most powerful, magical, and promising dragon and comes only once every 60 years.

The dragon is symbolic of Chinese emperors. Any child born during the year of the dragon will have every good trait that the legendary dragon has—smart, leadership qualities, and a bright future. This is Chinese astrology that the Chinese swear by. Apparently, Chinese couples plan ahead to have a dragon baby since they can have only one child under China’s “one child” policy. The birth rate in China this year has been projected to be 13 per 1,000 people, which is at least a 5% surge from
last year.

Let’s take a look at what happened in the last year of the dragon, which occurred 12 years ago. The birth rate jumped to 16.9 per 1,000 people, while the average birth rate around that time was in the range of 15 per 1,000 people. Other reasons may explain this noticeable increase in the birth rate, but having a dragon baby is certainly the main motive.

History is most likely to repeat itself. If my mathematics is correct, conservatively, over ten million new babies will be born in China this year, which will drive up the demand for maternity products, baby products, products for preschoolers in 2–3 years, then products for high school students in about 13 years, and the list will go on.

I wonder if some parents would think it might not be such a good idea to have a dragon baby, which has nothing to do with a belief in Chinese astrology. My concern is that hospitals may be so busy that mothers will not be able to get enough attention from nurses. When the baby is ready for preschool, there may be a longer waiting list for a better school. I have not mentioned that Chinese students have to take an annual college entrance examination that is similar to the SAT. In 18 years, all dragon babies will have a harder time competing to get into the elite colleges.

While Chinese astrology has been only a myth for centuries to most people, one thing is absolutely certain—the year of the dragon is the luckiest year for those businesses that have products to sell to new parents and babies.