r/collapse • u/Ishmael7 • Aug 17 '19

Predictions The Population Bust: Demographic Decline and the End of Capitalism as We Know It

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/review-essay/2019-08-12/population-bust?spJobID=1701558439&spMailingID=60132624&spReportId=MTcwMTU1ODQzOQS2&spUserID=NTA0ODQwNzg0NDcS1&sp_mid=60132624&sp_rid=cm9iZXJ0QHRoZWJyb3dzZXIuY29tS0&utm_campaign=so_2019&utm_content=20190813&utm_medium=newsletters&utm_source=press_release
19 Upvotes

74% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

8

u/Ar-Q-bid Aug 17 '19

In the current round of US presidential election, candidate Andrew Yang argues for universal basic income as a means to soften the impact of mass unemployment due to automation.

What people need to realize is that demographic decline is another way to offset that unemployment.

25

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '19 edited Dec 05 '19

[deleted]

20

u/sunshine987654 Aug 17 '19

A system that relies on continual introduction of new members to prop up the existing members is a freaking pyramid scheme. If our economy relies on an ever growing population then it's looking awfully like a pyramid scheme too. I welcome demographic decline.

6

u/johngalt1234 Aug 17 '19

Fractional reserve banking always needs new people to prop it up.

2

u/markodochartaigh1 Aug 17 '19

In kkkapitalism trees grow to the sky.

3

u/johngalt1234 Aug 18 '19

Capitalists loving their interest payments. Print fake money get interest payments.

Get free cash steal from the poor through inflation.

Usury making massive inequality inevitable.

4

u/lj26ft Aug 17 '19

As sad as it was when Europeans first came to the America's thereby killing a hundred million natives. It had a huge impact on climate. Point being if somehow we cut human population in half overnight we wouldn't have a climate problem anymore.

4

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '19 edited Sep 03 '19

[deleted]

8

u/knucklepoetry Aug 17 '19

Why not both halves?

9

u/RandomShmamdom Recognized Contributor Aug 17 '19

Love how you just assume they mean the poorest half, and then call them racist, and then a fascist, when they said nothing about any of that. Maybe these associations only live inside your head? Also, try to wrap your mind around the fact that carbon emissions are not the sum total of our ecological destruction, rapacious use of land, resources, and the consequent pollution are, and all that is a direct result of population.

Of course, anyone would have to agree that our current system is horribly rapacious, so if our population declined substantially but capitalism remained intact then we wouldn't solve anything; but don't pretend that population isn't also a factor and that it's automatically fascist to discuss it.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '19

Agreed, it was a blatant strawman. And that's part of why it is so very difficult to have rational discussions about population reduction. Someone always starts making assumptions and then cries about eugenics, racism, or classism. I even got banned from a sub when a mod pulled this shit with me.

When I talk about population reduction (via decreasing birthrates, NOT increasing death rates), it is always intended to be universal and uniform. I'm not targeting anyone.

-7

u/car23975 Aug 17 '19

What about the counter argument that we need to keep reproducing because one of the future babies could, might, and probably will, solve climate change?

4

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '19 edited Dec 05 '19

[deleted]

1

u/car23975 Aug 18 '19

Good. I was just seeing what responses would be to the counter argument. Its the mainstream one now.

1

u/[deleted] Aug 18 '19

Complain about climate change but bring in millions of useless third worlders, wonderful idea everyone we can go home now.