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Basement Fertility

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Re: Basement Fertility

#221

Post by vanviegen »

corrral wrote: post #117
vanviegen wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Even jobs that were considered trivial to automate like cashers are still performed by humans - after decades of self checkout tech. That's no longer true in my part of the world. In the supermarkets I frequent, I'm pretty sure that well over 2/3 of revenue is self-scanned. Change often takes multiple decades. That doesn't mean it's not happening.

As another poster pointed out, self-scan checkout isn't automation, it just changes who does the work from paid employees to unpaid customers. The amount of human labor required remains similar to traditional cashier-staffed checkout.

Yes, scanning still needs to be done manually, but the use of hand scanners does make the shopping process more efficient. Customers can bag the products directly while shopping, instead of having to take them all out of the cart to have them scanned and bagged at the cashier.

Re: Basement Fertility

#222

Post by mensetmanusman »

hgsgm wrote: post #131
lotsofpulp wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think there will be some interesting conversations, namely around women’s civil rights. Incentivizing a woman to have a baby is extremely expensive, and I do not think any country has come up with an offer so attractive such that it causes birth rates to go up. Which brings up 2 questions: how much does a society have to offer women, and would that society continue to be competitive on a global playing field relati…

> getting birth rates up by removing women’s agency. The USA just did this.

It definitely changed women’s agency. We are becoming more like the European Union in that sense.

Re: Basement Fertility

#223

Post by 2000UltraDeluxe »

Jolter wrote: post #219
2000UltraDeluxe wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Renting an apartment in Stockholm requires being on a waiting list for years, or paying private landlords under the table in order to be allowed to rent. I hear it's not as bad in Gothenburg and Malmö, though. Buying is still possible, but the prices are extremely inflated due to the Swedish habit of simply not paying of their mortages and just pay the interest. Last time I heard, the Stockholm housing bubble is abou…

These things are also true. It is very very hard to find a rental flat in Stockholm. Slightly easier in Gothenburg, and easier still, the smaller and less attractive the town you choose. Some claim this shortage is due to over-regulation of the housing market, others claim that it's due to other causes. Usually, this is split down ideological lines, where the left is for keeping the regulated rents, and the right are…

The Nordic countries have massive housing projects from the 50's-70's and as you mention, it's relatively easy to get a non-attractive apartment -- or even a house.

It's an urban issue, and assuming ones's ready to move somewhere else then moving out is not a problem. That's what happens in many cases.

Re: Basement Fertility

#224

Post by corrral »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #165
corrral wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As another poster pointed out, self-scan checkout isn't automation, it just changes who does the work from paid employees to unpaid customers. The amount of human labor required remains similar to traditional cashier-staffed checkout.

The rate of checkout is increased. You can take out 20 cashier lanes that need 20 cashiers, replace them with 40 self checkout terminals staffed by 5 or 6 store employees, and people will probably be getting out quicker because the bandwidth is greater. Or at least all the people buying 20 items or less will, or whatever the figures may be. In previous example, take the 20 checkout lanes, leave 10 staffed by a few em…

Yes, of course it lets stores increase the rate of checkout, because their workforce is every customer so they're only limited by the number of machines they have, instead of being employee-limited. That's still not automation. The same labor is being done, the store's just not paying for it now.

Re: Basement Fertility

#225

Post by bombcar »

ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #220
nisegami wrote: post #218

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe we just shouldn't be living that long?

Sure, even my GP said people are living way beyond their sell by date, putting huge pressure on the healthcare and social system, but what do you suggest we do? Take pensioners behind the block and pop a cap in their heads like cattle? Back in the days, we used to have a once in a century virus/pandemic/plague that would "thin the heard", but now we got really good at creating effective vaccines and prioritizing dist…

We even HAD this "once in a century pandemic" and we fought hard to prevent it culling the herd.

Re: Basement Fertility

#226

Post by bombcar »

jtsiskin wrote: post #149
lotsofpulp wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I were a woman, there is no way I would entertain the idea of having kids without my name on the title or lease of the house.

… why does gender affect it? As a man, you would be fine with it?

I suspect either parent would be a bit hesitant in a house that is "officially" owned by someone else "in the family" as it's a power imbalance.

And we see that rent-vs-own is a thing as it is, so it fits (I've heard people say they will have kids once they buy their own place, etc).

Re: Basement Fertility

#227

Post by bombcar »

namecheapTA wrote: post #184
saagarjha wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Young people complain how much more expensive homes are now The rest of your sentence doesn’t change this bit.

My parents moved to a country with zero support network and where they didn't speak the language, all so that they could soon afford to buy a home. Tons of young people today won't even move to the valley or to another state. I worked in car sales and basically every dealership mechanic over 28 owns a home. But tech people complain about how they can't buy one somehow.

Almost anyone can afford a home if they're willing to make the necessary life changes (one of which may be getting less home than they want). But those changes may involve moving to another county/state/country at the extremes.

Often it could be "afforded" by the HN-income crowd just by not buying a new car.

Re: Basement Fertility

#228

Post by nisegami »

ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #220
nisegami wrote: post #218

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe we just shouldn't be living that long?

Sure, even my GP said people are living way beyond their sell by date, putting huge pressure on the healthcare and social system, but what do you suggest we do? Take pensioners behind the block and pop a cap in their heads like cattle? Back in the days, we used to have a once in a century virus/pandemic/plague that would "thin the heard", but now we got really good at creating effective vaccines and prioritizing dist…

>Take pensioners behind the block and pop a cap in their heads like cattle?

For what it's worth, it'd get the job done.

But that aside, for starters, we should have let covid-19 run its course. Vaccines, if any, should have been given to the people under 50 first. This would have helped balance things out a lot to begin with. Similarly, I think we should be more willing to turn to palliative care earlier in the case of declining health in the elderly.

Of course, I recognize that I'm basically just describing some flavor or utilitarianism and that it will never even be in the discussion of how things should be.

Re: Basement Fertility

#229

Post by jstarfish »

pjc50 wrote: post #199
whatshisface wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can always coerce or compel family to do things like share resources or settle disputes against their own self-interest. Huh?

Someone is claiming that coercion and abuse are good aspects of the extended family system rather than bad ones which have led to people choosing to escape it when they have the economic opportunity.

Abuse is a malicious application of it and not what I was advocating.

It's more about bypassing the politics normally associated with these sorts of situational negotiations-- a failsafe against one (or more) persons holding the rest of the colony hostage.

It is a paternalistic foil to malingering and selfishness.

Re: Basement Fertility

#230

Post by yucky »

bombcar wrote: post #227
namecheapTA wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My parents moved to a country with zero support network and where they didn't speak the language, all so that they could soon afford to buy a home. Tons of young people today won't even move to the valley or to another state. I worked in car sales and basically every dealership mechanic over 28 owns a home. But tech people complain about how they can't buy one somehow.

Almost anyone can afford a home if they're willing to make the necessary life changes (one of which may be getting less home than they want). But those changes may involve moving to another county/state/country at the extremes. Often it could be "afforded" by the HN-income crowd just by not buying a new car.

>Almost anyone can afford a home if they're willing to make the necessary life changes (one of which may be getting less home than they want).

Similar to years past, except people are less willing to do that now.

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