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“Birthstrikers” are people refusing to have children due to their pessimistic assessment of our environmental-cultural-economic future.
While I can respect their convictions, I have to wonder if we are truly in a uniquely dangerous time in our history. There have always been plenty of reasons for concern if you choose to focus on them.
ToomuchStuff
3-12-19, 5:03pm
“Birthstrikers” are people refusing to have children due to their pessimistic assessment of our environmental-cultural-economic future.
While I can respect their convictions, I have to wonder if we are truly in a uniquely dangerous time in our history.
The statistics would depend on what you consider Unique. Nuclear war, MAN MADE pandemic's etc. more uniquely dangerous in the last 100 or so years, then any time before. Natural pandemics, meteor strikes, etc. not so much.
They are trying to save the environment, by decreasing the surplus population.
They are trying to save the environment, by decreasing the surplus population.
"Surplus population" - what a fascinating phrase.
What is the correct population level?
ToomuchStuff
3-12-19, 6:36pm
"Surplus population" - what a fascinating phrase.
What is the correct population level?
Wouldn't that depend on which extremist group you ask?
That phrase always makes me think of A Christmas Carol. Aren't there any work houses...
World population is shrinking due to several factors, not the least of which is women's increasing ability to control reproduction and their own bodies. In this country, we're not at replacement level and we rely on immigration to make up the difference. I'm increasingly convinced that population isn't the problem it's reputed to be.
In a country where many of us are losing ground economically and health care is an expensive mess, it would make sense not to breed, it seems to me.
ToomuchStuff
3-12-19, 7:21pm
World population is shrinking due to several factors,
Care to back that up? Everything I have seen, says it is growing.
If we morph to a world that, with the rise of AI, doesn't need workers so guaranteed basic income is provided, having children won't be needed. Robots can do it all.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population_growth
If you look at developed countries (US, Japan for example), population growth appears static or declining. I agree this could be because of fertility control and later marriage. However, this represents only a very small part of the world's population. Countries like Nigeria are facing huge population growth: https://www.cfr.org/blog/nigeria-faces-crippling-population-boom China has relaxed the one child restriction and India is still booming.
I just read:
“Empty Planet: the shock of global population decline”
It’s full of data supporting the decline of human population worldwide over the next century, with questionable ability for the human race to survive as a species over the next few hundred years.
Very surprising to me - but the numbers are there.
Personally, as someone who had to listen to Paul Erlich’s alarmist piffle back in the day, I’m beginning to think the only benefit of long range population projections is to make astrology look respectable.
I would also think that people so afraid of the future, either for themselves, their theoretical progeny or their vision of what the environment should be, probably shouldn’t be parents in any case. They can leave it to heedless fools like me to launch the next generation into the challenge of muddling through whatever may be waiting for them.
I think it’s interesting that some people don’t want to invest in children at all while others are willing to sink hundreds of thousands into scams aimed at getting their whelps into the “right” schools.
I agree - It’s all so ridiculous.
“Birthstrikers” are people refusing to have children due to their pessimistic assessment of our environmental-cultural-economic future.
While I can respect their convictions, I have to wonder if we are truly in a uniquely dangerous time in our history. There have always been plenty of reasons for concern if you choose to focus on them.
As you know, I see plenty wrong with our culture and the direction the environment is going in, but I'm not fatalistic about it. The idea of not wanting to subject a human to this "terrible mess" is really projecting a one-sided reality. That one human might be the person to figure all this out That one human may come with a built-in joie de vivre who doesn't see life the way their parents do--aren't children supposed to disagree with their parents anyway?
There was a period of time when I felt a little guilt for doubling the replacement rate of my husband and I, but I no longer do. My kids have defended people who can't afford lawyers, helped kids get to the next step in their education, worked for a pittance for urban food banks, and enriched others with music. And made me laugh a lot.
They, too, are worried about the environment and other ills, but I trust that they will participate in correcting some of them.
Care to back that up? Everything I have seen, says it is growing.
Yeah, I got out in front of myself a bit. What I should have said is that the trend is toward falling birthrates, and eventuallythe population will start to decline--possibly in our lifetime. This optimistic view is subject to much dispute.
"The United Nations Population Division projects world population to reach 11.2 billion by the end of the 21st century, but Sanjeev Sanyal has argued that global fertility will fall below the replacement rate in the 2020s and that world population will peak below 9 billion by 2050, followed by a long decline." Wikipedia
http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/01/11/overcrowding-nah-the-worlds-population-may-actually-be-declining/
“Birthstrikers” are people refusing to have children due to their pessimistic assessment of our environmental-cultural-economic future.
While I can respect their convictions, I have to wonder if we are truly in a uniquely dangerous time in our history. There have always been plenty of reasons for concern if you choose to focus on them.
Funny that you say that you have learned a new word today. In the brief time I have been back I have learned several new words from your posts! You have a great vocabulary - I like to learn new words - using them, well that is a different story. Always afraid I will not use them correctly!
Funny that you say that you have learned a new word today. In the brief time I have been back I have learned several new words from your posts! You have a great vocabulary - I like to learn new words - using them, well that is a different story. Always afraid I will not use them correctly!
The beauty of using new or fancy words is that people just assume you’re using them correctly.
Teacher Terry
3-13-19, 11:33am
My youngest son pointed out at age 10 that since we had 3 kids we were overpopulating the world, etc and then I pointed out that if we had stopped at 2 guess who wouldn’t be here as he was the youngest.
My youngest son pointed out at age 10 that since we had 3 kids we were overpopulating the world, etc and then I pointed out that if we had stopped at 2 guess who wouldn’t be here as he was the youngest.
Just tell him you were planning on culling the herd at some point, whoever has the worst grades goes...
Teacher Terry
3-13-19, 2:32pm
Bae, he was brilliant so no danger of him being culled:))
happystuff
3-14-19, 6:27am
In my opinion, giving birth is one thing and having children is another. I have three children - I have never given birth. Having children or not is a very personal decision. Who am I to criticize someone else's decision, or the reasons behind that decision, about their own life?
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