4 ms·
> I get the feeling this article is conflating birth rate with actual population growth. It's not. Fertility rate for the US and the developed world is below r
by qubax 8y ago
> I get the feeling this article is conflating birth rate with actual population growth.
It's not. Fertility rate for the US and the developed world is below replacement. And in the developing world, it has been dropping consistently.
> One reason why people have less children is that more of them survive.
That's a reason why women don't have 5 or 6 children, but that's not a reason why women has less than 2 on average.
- lev99 8y agoIn an agricultural society children are an asset. In an industrial or service based economy children are a sacrifice. This has always been my view on why birthrates are declining.
- Shaddox 8y agoI share your view. I believe it was during the industrial revolution where the family was redefined from an economic unit to a loving unit. Kind of strange how nowadays it feels like it has always been this way.
- jdbernard 8y agoIt reminds me of the fact that despite how permanent our life patterns feel, we're never more than two or three generations from completely changing our social norms and life patterns.
- drdeadringer 8y agoI find that to be an interesting wording of this distinction and at the moment I like the phrasing.