Fertility Rates Drop to Lowest Level Measured in the US, Says the CDC

[Theodarzna]

That's never been how population growth has worked. Rich societies always experience stagnation because, even though people have access to greater resources than in poor countries, they consume an even greater share of the pie proportionally. Third World mothers don't see children as a burden because they expend little to raise them and they provide help around the house or on the farm, whereas First World mothers sink substantial sums of money feeding and educating their kids just so they might be able to compete on the job market.

For eons peoples have managed to propagate themselves just fine, only in times of great distress and upheaval have we seen such a stagnation. Or in times preceding great upheaval. First world women also do not see children as something we by and large do not want. Poll after poll shows desired fertility is 2 per, vag. I want two, my sister now has two, and most women want two, yet few of us achieve it?

You completely ignored the point? What is it about these countries that causes sterility? Why is it spreading? Does this not pose a greater danger as globalization integrates to any and all places on the globe until at last on the citizens of North Sentinel Island will be without iPhones?

[Macaquerie]

For eons peoples have managed to propagate themselves just fine, only in times of great distress and upheaval have we seen such a stagnation. Or in times preceding great upheaval. First world women also do not see children as something we by and large do not want. Poll after poll shows desired fertility is 2 per, vag. I want two, my sister now has two, and most women want two, yet few of us achieve it?

You completely ignored the point? What is it about these countries that causes sterility? Why is it spreading? Does this not pose a greater danger as globalization integrates to any and all places on the globe until at last on the citizens of North Sentinel Island will be without iPhones?

First World women claim to want two kids each, and relatively few will keep having them after that point, while Third World women just go on to have as many kids as they possibly can. You can see how the averages might be different.

[Theodarzna]

First World women claim to want two kids each, and relatively few will keep having them after that point, while Third World women just go on to have as many kids as they possibly can. You can see how the averages might be different.

Woman in the "first world," don't reach two, that is the problem.

Women in even not first world countries increasingly do not achieve 2, as much of the world becomes less fertile.

[Lastgateguard]

This isn't a bad thing. The planet is overcrowded as it is.

I agree. We could do without a few billion more people.

[Macaquerie]

Woman in the "first world," don't reach two, that is the problem.

Women in even not first world countries increasingly do not achieve 2, as much of the world becomes less fertile.

Christ, do you not see how this works? Women say they want two kids, some don't manage to have two for some reason or another, some have two and then stop, and very few keep having more kids past two. Hence, society as a whole is unlikely to produce two kids on average.

[Deleted]

I don't see this as a problem, at all.

Of all the things that i could paint out as gloom and doom, i do not think getting slightly less babies in the face of absolute overpopulation, is an issue.

[Evil Midnight Bomber]

As far as "future problems" are concerned...I rank this well below Climate Change.

[Deleted]

I think American's especially are not prepared to accept that reality.

The problem of "Youth dependence," is that not only do the young tend to innovate more (Intensely more) they also are more willing to make the huge risks that often reap huge rewards.

They buy more/spend more and one of the major forms of economic activity is providing for children.

An effectively sterile society (Besides going extinct in a generation) would have lower demand for, well everything.

You assume in absolutes. You have no evidence for that it would reach a definite 0.

There is also no reason to believe, that everyone would go infertile. There will always be people, who inheritly want to have kids and get to have kids. That's how it's always been, and will continue to be.

People are just more free to choose their lives and live without Children.

It might come as a surprise to you, but Children are kind of a pain in the ass. You can be as Mother instinct as you wish about the barfing, screaming, self-damage inflicting fleshbags ; But fact remains, there is a trend for people wishing to live their own lives, without babies.

There will still be people who have Babies, tho, we are just not gonna have as many people about.

[Deleted]

This is a pretty huge issue but it has no feasible solution, as Japan has shown

[Deleted]

This is a pretty huge issue but it has no feasible solution, as Japan has shown

Japan shows us what a socially challenged culture can result in.
People can't seem to have "normal" interactions there at all, and here in the Western world it also seems to go that way.

We better find a way to create/clone babies this century I guess, or we are done for

[Incarnia]

That is a common response, but actually it is a bad thing because it has a crippling effect on economies and the ability of governments to function.

Less young people means less taxes to take care of the elderly, less consumer spending/less demand and so less jobs, less over all productivity, ect.

Our planet isn't overcrowded because of too much breeding but indeed because far too many elderly cling to life. Humans have simply stopped dying like flies.

Who says our current economic system is the one that's going to be used in the future? Besides if we can't create new jobs, and as technology via robotics takes over more and more of our production - combine this with an increasing population at the same time, that too will have serious consequences on the economy.


The society I envision when thinking about the future is a highly sophisticated and technology advanced one. I honestly don't see how we're going to get there, unless we change our economical system. Robots and technology are supposed to work in human kinds favor, a richer society where everyone gains from it - not only a few. Give people time to educate themselves without having to worry about how (or if) they're going to afford it. Reduced work hours for everyone, so that the jobs out there are plenty enough for everyone - no involuntary unemployed! - We need to learn how to spend our resources (inc money) differently. We need to change our view on money and how a richer lifestyle should be accomplished. Shall we all work together to create a better future? Or shall we work against each other, resulting in that some are rich and some are poor? The last alternative isn't sustainable.

We reached overshoot day not that long ago. What we're currently doing isn't working, obviously, and it is killing us in the long term. Something must change, and reduced fertility is one step in the right direction. Imo. Eventually it will force the system to adapt to the new reality. Or we will come crashing down with it.

[Ryme]

Current climate in gender politics coupled with apps like Tinder make it actually a pretty, for want of a better word, hostile environment for long term relationships to spontaneously spawn like they used to.

It's a little depressing but I'm not sure what the road out is, if we even want to take it.

[Deleted]

You assume in absolutes. You have no evidence for that it would reach a definite 0.

There is also no reason to believe, that everyone would go infertile. There will always be people, who inheritly want to have kids and get to have kids. That's how it's always been, and will continue to be.

People are just more free to choose their lives and live without Children.

It might come as a surprise to you, but Children are kind of a pain in the ass. You can be as Mother instinct as you wish about the barfing, screaming, self-damage inflicting fleshbags ; But fact remains, there is a trend for people wishing to live their own lives, without babies.

There will still be people who have Babies, tho, we are just not gonna have as many people about.

You're talking at individual level, Theo is talking about society. Not reaching a replacement rate means more old people and a major stressful impact on the economy of any society.

- - - Updated - - -

This is a pretty huge issue but it has no feasible solution, as Japan has shown

We "could" ideally deal with an increasingly older population with future technologies like automation and stuff like that. We're kind of talking sci-fi though so let's see what happens.
I mean, we can DEFINITELY deal with this demographic crisis, but it means changing society completely.

[Deleted]

just invite some million muslims. they sure have children, and maybe some of them are going to get a job

[Halyon]

It's really not, but OK.

But older people can actually bee productive much later in life

We can grow more food than we can eat, and vast oceans full of water.

Whaaaaaaa.....

The ocean isn't drinkable water, and it's being polluted to hell, killing off important animal life and reefs. The oceans heating up melts the polar icecaps, which will cause global flooding.

It's going to be a tough ride, but the overflow of elderly simply need to die off so a smaller, younger population can adjust. We don't need more people for now...

And that overproduction of food, say, just an example, cows, is releasing so much methane gas into the atmosphere it's crazy. We have an ozone layer. That ozone layer is getting fucked up.

[Thoughtful Trolli]

For eons peoples have managed to propagate themselves just fine, only in times of great distress and upheaval have we seen such a stagnation. Or in times preceding great upheaval. First world women also do not see children as something we by and large do not want. Poll after poll shows desired fertility is 2 per, vag. I want two, my sister now has two, and most women want two, yet few of us achieve it?

You completely ignored the point? What is it about these countries that causes sterility? Why is it spreading? Does this not pose a greater danger as globalization integrates to any and all places on the globe until at last on the citizens of North Sentinel Island will be without iPhones?

I'm going to suggest that we're guiding by our laws more than we can imagine.

They made a law that says each family is only allowed to have one child in China, and it was so. Now they're trying to let families have two and the advertisements suggest the second is a daughter. But if you're smart, you'll just have another son, in many cultures. Because of the laws.

It would seem the fundamental problem rapidly, rapidly, rapidly being struck upon by humanity today is Law. If you had more support from the government, would you really only want two children? Even better, how many couples, two fully grown adults, would jump at the chance to have eight children knowing the laws and tax code would support them completely, at least until those children are 18?

Then the gender of your child becomes important in many countries and cultures, what with a literal patriarchy, and in this case I don't want that phrase to trigger automatic denial. The surname typically goes to the male, and even though there's many other factors at stake, to imagine that's not a big deal is to also ignore the fact that the majority of countries have far, far more steeped laws revolving around genders in each couple.

People seem to suggest that the cause for the declining fertility rates is related either to a biological mechanism, which wouldn't matter with today's fertility technologies, or a choice in behaviors by the people, which they often shrug off as fueled by some desire to preserve life quality, but could easily be fueled by the compulsions of the society/culture the planning parents are living in. In short, the reason most people don't have children is because it WILL make them poor and over-taxed in more ways that just financially... and they aren't wrong in that belief!

[Release]

We need to move into an age where the economy is stagnant with much more economic equality and not ever increasing into resources that do not and cannot exist. Technology will cover a great deal of these dependency issue as old people can do more with more robotic assistance.

I do not care what economists say the planet as it is is already under more pressure than it can take. Decreasing global population gets my vote. Hell if it hits 3-4 billion in 200 years I would consider that ideal.

[Forogil]

Whaaaaaaa.....

The ocean isn't drinkable water, and it's being polluted to hell,

Producing drinkable water from the ocean is in order of 1$ per cubic meter, slightly expensive compared to using a well - but not too expensive. That's why people are actually using it in places like the middle-east - and now California.

The pollution isn't that bad either for most of the oceans (and we would avoid that when desalinating it) - the most problematic parts are usually the coastal regions.

And that overproduction of food, say, just an example, cows, is releasing so much methane gas into the atmosphere it's crazy. We have an ozone layer. That ozone layer is getting fucked up.

The ozone layer is getting healed after we stopped using CFC. The cows leaking methane gas is still an issue.

[Deleted]

And where, pray tell, would we have gotten the money to feed, house, and educate all of these kids?

That's the thing with the anti-abortion people - they want women to bring children into the world, but they don't care shit about what will become of these children.

People who are against abortion should be forced to adopt these children by law. Then we will probably get a different attitude from them.

[Vargulf the Happy Husky]

This is the feminizing of America, its cool to be a pussy whipped bitch.

All that hair product and "letting your emotions out" has turned the common American man into a European jizzmopper.

oh and that makes their testosterone drop, and they turn into pegging dolls for their wives. A man's ass cant be impregnated by a big black strap on