4 ms·
Why do you think Europe will collapse because their native reproductive rate is going down? What do you think about Japan?
by losteric 9y ago
Why do you think Europe will collapse because their native reproductive rate is going down? What do you think about Japan?
- rayiner 9y agoYou need a stable population to keep the economy stable, because a lot of your expenses are not per capita (infrastructure spending, debt repayment, etc.). To keep Europe's population stable, you need massive annual immigration (more than you have now). I don't think it's possible to maintain a high-trust, cohesive society with that level of immigration.
- JDiculous 9y agoThe suggestion that these countries are doomed due to population decline is complete nonsense, as Japan has shown. Automation is enabling less people to have to work to maintain the same standard of living. As you said worst case scenario immigrants could fill in the gap (certainly no shortage of people trying to immigrate to western Europe). Social cohesion could go down, but that doesn't mean the only option is American style "every man for themselves" hypercapitalism.