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LAS14

(15,204 posts) Thu May 29, 2025, 05:52 PM Thursday

What will happen if(when?) the birthrate drops dramatically? [View all]

I just read a truly scary interview by Ross Douthat of Alice Evans about the dramatic drop in the birthrate all over the world except in sub-saharan Africa (where there are not so many I-phones). It was truly scary. Is anyone else talking about this? It didn't sound speculative. It sounded factual.

This is probably firewalled, but maybe someone can do that thing with an Archive site?

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/opinion/dating-marriage-children-fertility.html?unlocked_article_code=1.K08.Q7UB.K_vMoHQLH8a8&smid=em-share

113 replies

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What will happen if(when?) the birthrate drops dramatically? [View all] LAS14 Thursday OP

Isn't that why Trump and co. want to pay women to have babies? ananda Thursday #1

Yes, but if you read the interview, you see that it's a real problem. nt LAS14 Thursday #5

I do see that. ananda Thursday #15

No, it isn't. Why are you falling for right-wing bullshit? valleyrogue Thursday #24

Douthat is NYT's token republican right winger. defacto7 Friday #79

I can't get into the article. Why is it a problem? yardwork Yesterday #93

Pay white women to have babies. White women. mucholderthandirt Friday #74

Well, I'd appreciate it if they'd pay me for giving birth to twins Crunchy Frog Friday #78

That's an interesting take. ananda 20 hrs ago #105

Only white women. They want to keep whites as the majority. kerry-is-my-prez 20 hrs ago #100

Exactly! ananda 20 hrs ago #104

The Earth might breathe a sigh of relief? flvegan Thursday #2

Right. The earth is way too overpopulated now. raccoon Thursday #6

The earth might, but if you read the interview, you'll get the idea that humanity might not. nt LAS14 Thursday #7

i'm cool with that...if the other species get to survive. ret5hd Friday #26

We're really going to go full Handmaids Tale on DU behind forced-birther Douthat's column? Prairie Gates Thursday #3

People can't afford to have children pcdb Thursday #17

Why is that scary? LearnedHand Thursday #4

Too little population to support civilization. Read the article. nt LAS14 Thursday #8

So, when did human civilization first begin, Crunchy Frog Friday #29

Long time ago and when there wasn't a policy system of younger people supporting older people uponit7771 Friday #31

The issue is our economy is built around growth EdmondDantes_ Friday #33

Yes, it's time to begin seriously thinking about new economic models. Crunchy Frog Friday #36

This is incompatible with liberalism. Self Esteem Friday #41

Again, that's not a sustainable model EdmondDantes_ Friday #55

Nope. Self Esteem Friday #56

The Earth is not "just fine". NickB79 Friday #71

Sure it is. Self Esteem Friday #73

I'll probably get thrown out of here for this, but, Conjuay Yesterday #89

If you want to support the social safety yet - yes that's the only answer. Self Esteem 21 hrs ago #99

So making ever greater quantities of junk Crunchy Frog Friday #75

You're making an argument that isn't being made. Self Esteem 20 hrs ago #101

You accuse me of throwing out meaningless strawmen, then throw in meaningless stories about US cities. Crunchy Frog 2 hrs ago #107

No, it is not. RandomNumbers Yesterday #88

Overpopulation is not the issue. Self Esteem 20 hrs ago #103

Capitalism also demands endless growth Retrograde Friday #53

Civilization can maintain. The Plague proved that. haele Friday #70

More like too much population that can't be supported on the limited resources this planet has. mwmisses4289 Friday #58

The "survival of the planet"? The Earth is not "alive" but has living things on it that can die. elocs Yesterday #83

Normally when people say "survival of the planet" RandomNumbers Yesterday #96

I'll take the truth & honesty over rhetorical shorthand any day. elocs Yesterday #97

You're calling someone "dishonest" RandomNumbers 21 hrs ago #98

I was asking why you said the falling birthrate was scary, not what the article said LearnedHand Thursday #10

Not enough young working folks to support an aging population.... Happy Hoosier Friday #46

Yes to your last sentence RandomNumbers Yesterday #86

Ross Douthat?? A right wing hack. madinmaryland Thursday #9

I don't know RJ-MacReady Thursday #11

Could you explain a little more? nt LAS14 Thursday #12

Not really RJ-MacReady Friday #39

Douthat is not a scientist, anthropologist, statistician, or sociologist. There is no reason to take what he says WhiskeyGrinder Thursday #13

He was interviewing a person who had studied this issue extensively. nt LAS14 Thursday #14

Ha, that's on me, for drinking on a Thursday night. What do you find scary about it all? WhiskeyGrinder Thursday #16

Here's a fairly recent study from The Lancet TheProle Thursday #18

doesnt the workforce make things for ppl? wont fewer ppl need fewer products? mopinko Thursday #21

need vs want Retrograde Friday #57

since 60% of americans mopinko Friday #59

LOL. AI is going to make all of us obsolete anyway. The last thing we need is more people to Scrivener7 Friday #37

Handmaids. milestogo Thursday #19

The article says the birth rate hasn't declined as much with muslims questionseverything Thursday #20

Disney parks and eating out will be a helluva lot more enjoyable. BannonsLiver Thursday #22

LOL!!!!! valleyrogue Thursday #23

Alice Evans appears to be a lunatic (not to mention an idiot as well) Wiz Imp Friday #25

No, there are some who agree with her. Don't ask me who, because I'm not going to go seek Scrivener7 Friday #38

Governments around the world are trying to find ways to replace their populations. nt LAS14 Friday #48

That sounds extremely dangerous. MorbidButterflyTat Friday #67

Well, we're not. We're imprisoning and deporting immigrants. yardwork Yesterday #94

If you keep going backwards jumping 1000 years, the world was always surviving with fewer people and if the RoeVWade Friday #27

I think Elon talks about it quite a bit Crunchy Frog Friday #28

Not sure when we reached 1 billion, but we reached 4 billion around 1980, and in just the following Cloudhopper Friday #30

The world population reached one billion in the early years of the 1800s. Crunchy Frog Friday #35

obviously there was no innovation and no economic growth DBoon Friday #54

Automation will fill in where humans can't uponit7771 Friday #32

Meh. When I was born the population of the USA was about 180 million. Today it's twice that. Scrivener7 Friday #34

The thing of it is, more women are not going for men at all. valleyrogue Friday #61

Yes. Because for the first time in history, they don't have to. That's a good thing. Scrivener7 Friday #62

I think pro-natalism is the wrong path. Oneironaut Friday #40

Kudos for taking the question seriously and proposing a path forward. nt LAS14 Friday #49

Going with, appreciate MORE who is here and not act like just churning out workers? Brainfodder Friday #42

I only scanned the article, but... LudwigPastorius Friday #43

I see that a lot of people assume that bringing attention to a problem is the same thing... LAS14 Friday #44

what problem though? RJ-MacReady Friday #45

Did you read the article? nt LAS14 Friday #47

Yes I did RJ-MacReady Friday #52

This is DU where there is no requirement to actually read an article to respond to it elocs Yesterday #84

Endless population growth is a problem ITAL Friday #50

Thanks for this. For acknowledging a problem and not leaping onto the... LAS14 Friday #64

Elbow room lame54 Friday #51

A much saner view of the topic which correctly points out that it is nothing remotely to fear. Wiz Imp Friday #60

Interesting points. Thanks. nt LAS14 Friday #65

+1 leftstreet Friday #66

Make the old people take care of the babies, Crunchy Frog Friday #80

Human population decline is a very good thing for the biosphere Mysterian Yesterday #90

So women are supposed to get pregnant chowmama Friday #63

The interview did not propose a solution. It simply described... LAS14 1 hr ago #113

Manufacturing fear MorbidButterflyTat Friday #68

Climate change is expected to kill 10's, maybe 100's of millions Kaleva Friday #69

Food insecurity (starvation) and declining health due to Mango Menace policies will do far worse damage dickthegrouch Friday #72

Could be, could be. nt LAS14 1 hr ago #112

We allow in more immigrants, that's what we do. viva la Friday #76

Supposedly it already has. Littlered Friday #77

Evolution has no direction. Maybe the survivors will shrink to Hobbit size and learn how to live and let live. Ping Tung Friday #81

We should be so lucky Raine Yesterday #82

Same as it ever was ... the rich get richer, the poor suffer RandomNumbers Yesterday #85

Thanks for the thoughtful and insightful response!! nt LAS14 1 hr ago #111

There Are Many Threats to Humanity. A Low Birth Rate Isn't One of Them. RandomNumbers Yesterday #87

Thanks for a response that addresses the question, not the personalties. nt LAS14 1 hr ago #110

Such nonsense. 8 billion people in the world. travelingthrulife Yesterday #91

Islam eventually takes over the world madville Yesterday #92

Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. yardwork Yesterday #95

I liked the article, but I don't think it has solutions. gulliver 20 hrs ago #102

It absolutely doesn't have solutions. That's why I found it scary. LAS14 1 hr ago #109

More right-wing bullshit. Aristus 20 hrs ago #106

Aha! An answer that addresses the question, not the people articulating it. Thanks. LAS14 1 hr ago #108