I have yet to see a single person disagree in a substantive way with the two obvious premises creating the numerical discrepancy.
1. Population Growth (3%-4%)
2. Age differential among average couple (2.5-3.5 years)
Does anyone debate these two points?
Does anyone debate the automatic effect these two factors have on the number of available boys relative to available girls?
Both of these facts are obvious without even providing empirical statistical data. On the population growth there is accurate data. On age gap it’s hard to provide more than anecdotal evidence. However, one must be blind to not observe in our community both of these obvious factors.
What happened a hundred years age is really of no concern, unless one buys into the theory that:
A) this problem existed years ago (hard to know for sure since we don’t have good data on population growth and/or dating style)
B) the Gedolim of that were aware of the nature of the problem
C) the Gedolim of that time made a conscious decision to let things be and have hundreds and hundreds of girls remain agunos due to their understanding that potential fallout from attempting to alleviate the situation warranted such a decision. (To think so is utter lunacy. Open any teshuva sefer and notice the length to which Gedolei Yisroel went to be matir INDIVIDUAL agunos.)
In all honesty, people who believe points A,B,C are true and therefore we have a “kabala” to do nothing about the present tragedy is simply very misguided.