4 ms·

I don't know, it seems as though one of the basic instincts we've progressed past is our instinct to spread. When given the freedom to choose, people reproduce

I don't know, it seems as though one of the basic instincts we've progressed past is our instinct to spread. When given the freedom to choose, people reproduce at less than a replacement rate. World population is still rising, but birth rates are falling nearly everywhere as different regions become more prosperous. Assuming this continues, where will we find the people to spread across the universe? Japan can't find people to spread outside of Tokyo.

yrgulation 4y ago
I am not convinced many people are free to chose, particularly in the west. When your life depends on a mortgage, ever increasing bills and being in an office at least eight hours a day you dont have much of a choice. Thats just fancy poverty. People with actual freedom seem to reproduce beyond replacement rates: https://www.statista.com/statistics/299077/billionaires-children/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/299077/billionaires-chil... https://qz.com/1125805/the-reason-the-richest-women-in-the-us-are-the-ones-having-the-most-kids/ https://qz.com/1125805/the-reason-the-richest-women-in-the-u...
- seti0Cha 4y ago
  Billionaires are not a good model for what people will do if they don't have to worry about mortgages and bills, they're a model of what people will do when they have virtually no resource constraints whatsoever. If people don't have to cook, clean, give up vacations, sacrifice their hobbies and career goals, and can pay an army of servants to do any unpleasant childcare tasks, then yeah, I suppose they'll have more kids. From what I've read a certain number of people do say that financial constraints cause them to have fewer children than they'd like, but stated preferences are not far enough above revealed preferences for that to change the result. In Hungary Orban is virtually throwing money at people to have more kids but the population is still declining. Countries with robust social safety nets are doing no better than those without. The only exception I'm aware of is Israel, primarily due to the Orthodox community.

yrgulation 4y ago

I am not convinced many people are free to chose, particularly in the west. When your life depends on a mortgage, ever increasing bills and being in an office at least eight hours a day you dont have much of a choice. Thats just fancy poverty. People with actual freedom seem to reproduce beyond replacement rates: https://www.statista.com/statistics/299077/billionaires-children/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/299077/billionaires-chil... https://qz.com/1125805/the-reason-the-richest-women-in-the-us-are-the-ones-having-the-most-kids/ https://qz.com/1125805/the-reason-the-richest-women-in-the-u...

seti0Cha 4y ago
Billionaires are not a good model for what people will do if they don't have to worry about mortgages and bills, they're a model of what people will do when they have virtually no resource constraints whatsoever. If people don't have to cook, clean, give up vacations, sacrifice their hobbies and career goals, and can pay an army of servants to do any unpleasant childcare tasks, then yeah, I suppose they'll have more kids. From what I've read a certain number of people do say that financial constraints cause them to have fewer children than they'd like, but stated preferences are not far enough above revealed preferences for that to change the result. In Hungary Orban is virtually throwing money at people to have more kids but the population is still declining. Countries with robust social safety nets are doing no better than those without. The only exception I'm aware of is Israel, primarily due to the Orthodox community.