101–110 of 927 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Doom and gloom that is somewhat substantiated by material reality. The world is getting warmer and nothing is done about it. Far right populism is getting more and more popular, with no end in sight. No way am I bringing kids in this environment.
I have a feeling that far right populism was worse in 1930s
What will it take to have a stable society that doesn't depend on indefinite economic/population growth?
I don't even know what you mean by that. Divorce rates have skyrocketed, and likewise women trapped in DV situations unable to leave has dropped considerably.
Today is far more urban than the US I grew up in. And organized religion is far less popular.
Population hasn't been stable since at least the invention of steam engines.
Etc.
I don't want "stable"; I want "safe". I want the next generation to live in a world that is AT LEAST as safe as this one, healthwise, likelihood of war, crimewise... and really I want better on all of those. As my childhood time vastly improved on the early 20th-C when my parents were kids.
What will it take to have a stable society that doesn't depend on indefinite economic/population growth?
We certainly can't have a stable society with a rapidly shrinking population.
You need to know what the current population is, what the carrying capacity is, etc etc.
Generic statements sound and feel good, but are completely useless.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
A population that declines through birth rate attrition gets old. The average age in hunter gather communities was about 15 years old. In the next 10-20 years, the average age in a number of countries is going to approach 60. You can't just think about raw numbers, you have to think about demography.
To some extent. But hunter gatherers didn't have access to hip replacements and ibuprophen, either.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
To some extent. But hunter gatherers didn't have access to hip replacements and ibuprophen, either.
It's not really taken by a robot. You key in your order rather than asking an employee to. The same amount of human labor is being done.
I'm not talking about self-service kiosks, I'm talking about "talk directly to the machine" sort of things they're already testing out.
What will it take to have a stable society that doesn't depend on indefinite economic/population growth?
Why is "stable society" the end goal? I don't even know what you mean by that. Divorce rates have skyrocketed, and likewise women trapped in DV situations unable to leave has dropped considerably. Today is far more urban than the US I grew up in. And organized religion is far less popular. Population hasn't been stable since at least the invention of steam engines. Etc. I don't want "stable"; I want "safe". I want th…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
We certainly can't have a stable society with a rapidly shrinking population.
You can't make this statement in a vacuum. You need to know what the current population is, what the carrying capacity is, etc etc. Generic statements sound and feel good, but are completely useless.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm pointing out that even in a profitless world, a dependency ratio of 2:1 is not workable. It literally does not matter how you distribute resources.
This is an opportunity to see how to make it work. If it doesn’t, we’re all dead eventually. I find the idea of creating new life to keep a poorly functioning pyramid scheme going grotesque, ymmv. Edit: If you want to have kids in this macro, good luck, you’re on your own (based on the evidence). And it’s only going to keep getting more expensive to exist in our lifetimes (shrinking labor supply, climate change, sove…
So you're saying "don't have kids because things are getting so expensive", while the reason they're getting expensive is because people aren't having enough kids....
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Costs $2500-4000/mo for infant care where I am. On top of a $3000/mo mortgage. NE USA. When I see a family of 5 my first thought is "holy fuck they must be loaded." Either that or they have one parent who cannot be employed outside the home.
Another option: In our case we both WFH which allows us to live near my wife's parents. Which means we have the luxury of an involved, local grandparent as an option over infant/childcare. We literally put the $ we'd budgeted for childcare into a 529. Certainly don't want to speak for everyone but at least for us it's an enormous cost savings and is a "win-win" for everyone involved. Another (seemingly less often dis…
even just 2-3 days a week is huge from a mental health / down time / get things done around the house.