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This is happening in the US as well with young people, especially teens. The US is going to see the same economic stagflation as Japan due to reduced labor supp

This is happening in the US as well with young people, especially teens. The US is going to see the same economic stagflation as Japan due to reduced labor supply.

gsaga 8y ago
Don't worry. India can supply as much labor as you need
- ShabbosGoy 8y ago
  Until those jobs are automated away.
nopinsight 8y ago
Regarding two major concerns with future economies: reduced labor supply and unemployment due to automation, wouldn’t they help balance each other out, at least in advanced countries?
tachyonbeam 8y ago
I wonder if the article is right about the internet being to blame for it. It's true that it's become ridiculously easy in the past few years to get access to so much content for free. I think the fragmentation of our culture might be partially to blame too. Everyone gets their own feed of news articles, videos and music completely customized to their own tastes, so much so that we end up having less and less shared culture with the people we see everyday. One thing is for sure: virtual reality probably isn't going to help.
- cryoshon 8y ago
  i'd say culture is responsible for some of it, but there's probably a biological cause for the rest. the chemical environment people grow up in today is different from the one 10 years ago, or 30 years ago, etc. we may very be improving in some dimensions -- like removing lead -- while getting far worse in others (plastic and anti-androgens).
  - graeme 8y ago
    The comment above is getting downvotes, but it isn't implausible. The western world has seen declines in sperm counts, testosterone, and age of menarche. We don't know the cause, but environmental hormonal causes are one hypothesis. Here's one aspect: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testicular_dysgenesis_syndrome https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testicular_dysgenesis_syndro... It's easy to see how lower testosterone would lead to less sex. It is very unlikely to be the only cause, but it likely has some impact.
- toasterlovin 8y ago
  My conclusion is that humans are poorly adapted to modern life. The specific mechanism is, I think, that our extensive media diets are scrambling the circuits that kick the reproductive mechanisms into gear. IE, we see the curated versions of other people’s lives on our Facebook feed and it makes us feel like we aren’t established enough to be able to properly support a family. Or we watch too much porn and then we lack the drive to do all the stuff required to actually attract a mate.
  - tachyonbeam 8y ago
    That might play a role, but it also seems clear that modern society somewhat devalues "settling down" and having children. Portrays that as boring and lame. I'm not looking to have children, but I'm honestly finding it difficult to find people who even want a committed relationship at the moment. A lot of people are only focused on short-term fun. I would guess that this is in large part a product of our modern capitalistic society being so successful. A strong family unit is no longer necessary for survival.
    - toasterlovin 8y ago
      But I would blame the not wanting committed relationships or a family thing on media consumption as well. Settling down and starting a family is a boring, long term endeavor that doesn’t really play well in most media formats. Therefore it just doesn’t get any space. The protagonists of basically every TV show do not have families. And that’s because it wouldn’t be feasible for them to do all the stuff that makes the plot interesting if they were tied down by a family. And people are getting cues about how their personal story arc should play out from the media they consume. But you’re right that capitalism is excellent at providing the means to life a life of self involved, hedonistic excess.
- avcdsuia 8y ago
  The real thing to blame is Consumerism. It rules our sense of aesthetic, results in feelings like "men are dirty and revolting", and bind the right to have sex with wealth.
- jackcosgrove 8y ago
  I think Japan's debt situation and the unstable nature of a lot of young people's careers (gigs, temp jobs, etc.) are scaring off family formation. Which is the wrong response for the economy, but the right response for the person.

This is happening in the US as well with young people, especially teens. The US is going to see the same economic stagflation as Japan due to reduced labor supply.

gsaga 8y ago

Don't worry. India can supply as much labor as you need

ShabbosGoy 8y ago
Until those jobs are automated away.

nopinsight 8y ago

Regarding two major concerns with future economies: reduced labor supply and unemployment due to automation, wouldn’t they help balance each other out, at least in advanced countries?

tachyonbeam 8y ago

I wonder if the article is right about the internet being to blame for it. It's true that it's become ridiculously easy in the past few years to get access to so much content for free. I think the fragmentation of our culture might be partially to blame too. Everyone gets their own feed of news articles, videos and music completely customized to their own tastes, so much so that we end up having less and less shared culture with the people we see everyday. One thing is for sure: virtual reality probably isn't going to help.

cryoshon 8y ago
i'd say culture is responsible for some of it, but there's probably a biological cause for the rest. the chemical environment people grow up in today is different from the one 10 years ago, or 30 years ago, etc. we may very be improving in some dimensions -- like removing lead -- while getting far worse in others (plastic and anti-androgens).
- graeme 8y ago
  The comment above is getting downvotes, but it isn't implausible. The western world has seen declines in sperm counts, testosterone, and age of menarche. We don't know the cause, but environmental hormonal causes are one hypothesis. Here's one aspect: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testicular_dysgenesis_syndrome https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testicular_dysgenesis_syndro... It's easy to see how lower testosterone would lead to less sex. It is very unlikely to be the only cause, but it likely has some impact.
toasterlovin 8y ago
My conclusion is that humans are poorly adapted to modern life. The specific mechanism is, I think, that our extensive media diets are scrambling the circuits that kick the reproductive mechanisms into gear. IE, we see the curated versions of other people’s lives on our Facebook feed and it makes us feel like we aren’t established enough to be able to properly support a family. Or we watch too much porn and then we lack the drive to do all the stuff required to actually attract a mate.
- tachyonbeam 8y ago
  That might play a role, but it also seems clear that modern society somewhat devalues "settling down" and having children. Portrays that as boring and lame. I'm not looking to have children, but I'm honestly finding it difficult to find people who even want a committed relationship at the moment. A lot of people are only focused on short-term fun. I would guess that this is in large part a product of our modern capitalistic society being so successful. A strong family unit is no longer necessary for survival.
  - toasterlovin 8y ago
    But I would blame the not wanting committed relationships or a family thing on media consumption as well. Settling down and starting a family is a boring, long term endeavor that doesn’t really play well in most media formats. Therefore it just doesn’t get any space. The protagonists of basically every TV show do not have families. And that’s because it wouldn’t be feasible for them to do all the stuff that makes the plot interesting if they were tied down by a family. And people are getting cues about how their personal story arc should play out from the media they consume. But you’re right that capitalism is excellent at providing the means to life a life of self involved, hedonistic excess.
avcdsuia 8y ago
The real thing to blame is Consumerism. It rules our sense of aesthetic, results in feelings like "men are dirty and revolting", and bind the right to have sex with wealth.
jackcosgrove 8y ago
I think Japan's debt situation and the unstable nature of a lot of young people's careers (gigs, temp jobs, etc.) are scaring off family formation. Which is the wrong response for the economy, but the right response for the person.