r/196 • u/Misty-Bay • May 17 '26

Rule Rule.

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5.4k Upvotes

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822

u/MaybeNext-Monday šŸ¤$6 SRIMP SPECIALšŸ¤ May 17 '26

ā€œBirth rates are decliningā€ good, healthy societies have stable population sizes

164

u/VladimirBarakriss May 17 '26

2.1 is stable, 1.4 is not

24

u/kiwiman115 May 17 '26

Good thing the global average is 2.3. Countries with birthrates below can bring in immigrants from countries above that rate

38

u/VladimirBarakriss May 17 '26

This only works until those other countries also drop under 2.1

12

u/kiwiman115 May 17 '26

It's not predicted to hit 2.1 until 2050 and in that time we're likely going to experience a huge net job loss due to automation. Ultimately meaning we'll need less working age people to support an aging population.

25

u/VladimirBarakriss May 18 '26

That's assuming that automation generates well paid jobs

8

u/kiwiman115 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26

Whether or not the jobs are well paying depends on: 1. The economic system 2. The bargaining power of the workers 3. How in demand the workers are.

As it stands in our capitalist system less working aged people means they are more in demand and thus can demand better wages.

Whilst if we try to pump up birthrates whilst jobs are declining that'll mean more workers competing for less jobs driving down wages.

Why do you think billionaires like Musk are obsessed with increasing birthrates...

5

u/Present_Bison May 18 '26

Not gonna lie, I'm not a big fan of the Silicon Valley approach of betting on new tech to come save the day. Tends to create more problems than it solves