America’s Birth Rate “Crisis”

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[@PolyMatter]

If you're not already subscribed to Nebula, now is a great time to do so. Just in the last WEEK we've released all these exclusive Original series: - Lindsay Ellis' 1.5 hour video "Trying to Make Sense of the X-Men Cinematic Universe Timeline" - A 45-minute deep-dive into the The October 7th Attacks by RealLifeLore, as part of his ongoing Modern Conflict series - Episode 6 of JetLag's Tag Across Europe 3 travel game show - A new episode of What To Follow: USA on "Can MAGA Survive Without Trump?" Again, that's all just in the last week! And we've got a lot more in the pipeline. Sign up here to watch all these shows: go.nebula.tv/polymatter Thanks as always for your continued support! -Evan

[@nevad34]

STOP TRYNA MAKE NEBULA HAPPEN WE NOT GETTING IT TBH BRO

[@itchylol742]

-talks about people struggling to pay the bills in the video -promotes a subscription product in the comments

[@emmanuel1687]

Say no to abortion

[@StarboyXL9]

Imagine thinking that giving women rights is more important than preserving your civilization. Only a soon-to-be-non-existent society could possibly think that. Oh wait...

[@tamadeus7189]

Thank you for your objective analysis and helpful endorsement.

[@aguywithaname]

Scariest part is when he said 2007 was 17 years ago

[@Kaybossboi]

Bro we’re closer to 2040 than than we are to 2007 that’s even more scary

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

Closer to 2050 than 1990. The cruelty is unmatched.

[@matheenarif8645]

Ya, we are getting old. Deal with it.

[@espen2729]

Why would you keep perpetuating the lie????

[@hamzamahmood9565]

​@@espen2729 Chill dude. What lie

[@billyosullivan3192]

Since industrialisation the assumption when you have kids is you will give them a better life than you had. People don't believe thats possible anymore

[@Guitarocker493]

It happened with the boomers then those fucks hoarded the better life for themselves.

[@Dominus_Potatus]

Have you ever played sims city? If you built no houses, population won't increase.

[@jrjr648]

Right, they get the no job zot

[@TSAlpha2933]

there are three empty homes for every single unhoused person in the United States.

[@Praisethesunson]

America has built thousands of high end speculative real estate units that have been sitting empty for years.

[@bobsteve4812]

@@TSAlpha2933 Most of the empty homes are in places where Americans do not wish to live, and includes abandoned homes in disrepair in rural areas. The US needs more homes in places where people actually want to live.

[@hydronpowers9014]

It's true for any city builder: Population is low > build more house > population gets comfortable > create more jobs > population is satisfied > birth rate increase

[@dstinnettmusic]

People of birthing age: we literally cannot afford to support ourselves. Why would I have kids? Policymakers: why won’t people have kids?!?!

[@TheElementAce]

Spot on. Social media algorithms are designed to confirm our biases. So people of birthing age will continue to see obvious signs of poor child-rearing conditions (rising housing costs, shrinking labor market, etc). And policymakers will continue to see signs of peak birthing conditions (record profits, technological progress, etc.) Two different realities

[@zayzay92]

You hit the nail on the head 😂 between inflation and child care cost I’m gonna be a dink. Formula is literally like 50 a can rn it’s insane.

[@gundamnduke0]

the wolves cry when the sheep stop reproducing

[@SourDonut99]

I suspect everyone saying this (they can't even afford to live) aren't even married.

[@dinodonut5776]

Even the poorest people today still have far more disposable income than anyone un human history more than 100 years ago. Are we supposed to believe middle class Americans are somehow less financially well off than medieval peasants, or poor farm laborers from the 1800s? All that has changed is the availability of birth control, and the attitude towards raising kids. People don’t want to give up any of their material wealth or free time for it. And that’s not a bad thing. But the idea that everyone in the world is suddenly too poor to have kids is ludicrous.

[@KessaWitdaFro]

It's too expensive and there is no longer a village.

[@bokunogentoo4420]

I'd say on paper an American-style apartment complex could be a stand-in for the village you speak of, but in reality most people treat their life in an apartment as this gross thing to get out of. I try to say hello to all my neighbors when I see them; the ones that are older say hello back and try to chat and whatnot, but the ones that are my age usually give me this face like "why are you talking to me, person who lives next to me?" So there's your "village"

[@funmilayoaina2658]

That 'village' was built on people's free labor

[@Daily-PE]

​@@funmilayoaina2658 saying that to a black person is kinda crazy ( look at there pf picture)

[@WanderingMiqo]

​​@@Daily-PEWell to be fair, American institutional slavery ended well over 100 years ago. Just because someone's ancestors went through something horrible, doesn't mean they did too.

[@WanderingMiqo]

​@@Daily-PEAnd I say this as a 1st generation US citizen, whose family immigrated to the US because of horrible circumstances. Your ancestor's suffering and struggles aren't yours and we shouldn't pretend they are. That's the only way to overcome them.

[@MikeCrain]

lol well I guess our army will have to do a draft again, because a senator outright admitted students owing debt was its most powerful tool to recruit people.

[@thesenate1844]

How long till South Korea does a "birth draft" for women?

[@prettyboyjeremy]

​@@thesenate1844Probably not long but I see either A. Lots of women leaving or B. Telling them they can't pick this man because Gene pool problems.

[@adamy4435]

Tuition fee is ripple off when pp can’t get reasonable job

[@RamenEnjoyer404]

it's almost as if wealth inequality and homes becoming a investment makes many young people (myself included) not want to have kids, cause I don't want to bring a child into the world where I can't provide a stable life

[@Skeloperch]

I can tell by you saying "wealth inequality" is a problem that the policies you champion are the ones making the economy worse ("tax the rich").

[@RamenEnjoyer404]

@@Skeloperch I can tell by how you say (“tax the rich”) that you believe trickle down economics is a good system and works

[@dynamicascension981]

ABORTION

[@fmissark]

When I was a kid, the narrative was " Earth is over populated" now it's " we need more people"

[@thomasgrabkowski8283]

Because back then, birth rates were above replacement and population was growing exponentially, without the technology to support a population as large as today's technology level would enable us to support. Today, we run into the opposite issue of having persistent below replacement birth rates and how in the future, there wouldn't be enough young people to pay off the pensions of retirees

[@catmaxi2599]

Back then people were dumb and didn't predict correctly. That's why we can't just extrapolate data

[@KojiCT]

And cooling earth

[@dafafaaf7679]

Not stupid, but we are not able to predict that far ahead.

[@FictionHubZA]

Long-term prjections rarely ever get anything right.​@@catmaxi2599

[@ncpolley]

"Its the economy, stupid."

[@ShieldAre]

It isn't the economy per se, it is a mistmatch between the economy and cultural expectations between the economy and one's desire to have children. In a lot of poor countries, people still have a lot of children, because they don't have culturally set economic requirements for when you are ready to have children. They simply have children if they want them, without questioning whether their economic situation is good enough for that. Whereas in most rich countries, people have a cultural belief that they need to be economically comfortable before they can have children, and therefore don't have them if they feel they aren't in the perfect situation. Of course, that makes sense: We want our children to have a good life, so we want to wait until the circumstances are right. But that requires for the circumstances to be set right, which may be impossible if expectations are too high, which leads to low birth rates, which leads to demographic problems, which guarantees the circumstances are never right.

[@guppy719]

If it is then the problem is people having too much money. Poorer people and poorer countries generally have more kids.

[@CaesarMonzaro123]

@@guppy719you’d make a great CEO Lmaoo

[@Klako-ls6yt]

@@ShieldAre In addition to that, people in wealthier countries have better access to contraception than people in poorer countries. Accessible contraception is what makes it possible for people in wealthier to decide when they're ready to have children. Even if someone in a poorer country isn't ready to have kids, if they don't have contraception options, they're more likely to end up with an unplanned pregnancy.

[@lSeKToRl]

Economy is fine it is real income of the middle class. It has not increased since the 70s.

[@NannatheNanna]

Imagine the comments on this one are only gonna get more deranged as time goes on

[@EasternDreamer615]

💯 complete with fedposting

[@shakachoarroyo]

It's already just screaming "WE CAN'T AFFORD TO!" Like, did you watch the video?

[@danjager6200]

​@@shakachoarroyo not yet actually. After the clown show that was the recent Apple video, and the captain obvious that was the one after that, I decided to read the comments before watching the video.

[@PeruvianPotato]

Just excuses after excuses after excuses. I'm convinced that people genuinely think that devoting their entire lives to a corporation is the new normal now

[@loidforger6413]

Income inequality.... People know that they can't afford a child

[@MattH-l3i]

More like inflation and a country with too much debt

[@baneofbanes]

@@MattH-l3iso they can’t afford to raise children.

[@xiphoid2011]

wrong. Why do you think rich people are not having kids either? It's not all about income. People's habits have changed.

[@loidforger6413]

@@xiphoid2011 the vast majority of people are not rich, most of the so called rich are rich on paper, not on hard assets which gives them confidence of raising kids... Only the very affluent can think of kids without any negative consequences if they face hardships..

[@paveltyavin]

​@@xiphoid2011 agree. I'm 38 and for the whole of my life I didn't want kids. After my habits changed 2 years ago, I got a child.

[@laddoxksserpent7761]

Polymatter really cooked with this vid 😅

[@merevial]

2007 was the end of the real economy.

[@randomnobody8770]

Real (net of inflation) median income is up ~10% since 2007.

[@merevial]

@@randomnobody8770 Let me see rent and housing costs.

[@teaadvice4996]

Keep believing government statistics. U also believe unemployment is 2% right?​@randomnobody8770

[@JosTheMan1]

Yeah. As much as public debt has risen, the business and individual debts seem to gorn even more. Even if its so called sustainable debt, how long can it go, and how much of our economic growth is that, is a scare thought. The next crash will be immense

[@donaldheath4415]

2007 was a correction…not the end of the real economy. Mortgages were handed out like candy to those who couldn’t afford them. I agree that the correction was too extreme and construction of new housing has never recovered. But pre 2007, the economy was not real. A true bubble built on subprime mortgages. Your sentiment still stands though, and we need to incentivize new housing construction via tax incentives and regulation/zoning rollback.

[@baronvonjo1929]

Would like to have kids, but I just dont see how I could give them a better life than I have now. I can't afford a house. I can barely maintain my mediocre life. There is no time, space, or money for kids. So many hurdles but no solutions. Well except money. I could have a kid and wing it. But I want a better life for a kid than that. But again, I have no way of ever giving my kids the life I would want for them. I couldn't afford the clothes, toys, or future bigger purchases like a car or such. So at this rate there wont be kids on the horizon. It all really comes down to money for me personally. I feel like Ill be pretty lonely when I am a old fart and have no family. But just cant afford it and its doubtful I ever will. I dont even know a good area to have a kid. As mentioned in the video I have to basically be a helicopter parent. The kid cant walk anywhere. Because its all suburbs and a aprtment in a city sounds awful. I definitely have a fear of messing it all up too. Everything keeps getting worse. My life and various countries just keep getting worse worse and worse. I know 500 years ago people didnt even know if the kid would survive childhood. Or if sickness or famine would come. They had a lot less too. But I am thinking that far ahead. And so far its pretty bleak. Also things like appliances, cars, and houses cost more than ever but the quality, durability, and reliability is lower than ever. The new homes they build out of cheap wood and no yard space and a dystopian look isnt at all a option for me or any kids to live in. I dont want that house to be falling apart after 5 years. And cars are such a hassle nowadays. Tiny engines with turbos and giant bodies and so much tech. There are all sorts of things to point at like decline in mental health, cultural degradation, corporations milking everything, the towns or cities we live in, time, individualism etc etc

[@7black151]

This genuinely is the reality multiple people not just you face Just praying it all works out for you

[@Ravi9A]

mere pessimism.

[@gbubbiu]

Do you think the barefoot child in Africa rather be dead than have toys and extracurricular sports?

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

@@gbubbiu While I am not anti-natalist, the children you’re referring to really did not have a choice regardless. Child mortality rates are also unfortunately higher, regardless.

[@langhamp8912]

I think it's really easy to have a kid. You just date and don't tell them your real name.

[@cbyrne08]

For me the key word was autonomy. I didn't become an autonomous adult until I was 30 years old. By the time I graduated college, and paid off the student loans I finally had the financial resources to feel like an autonomous adult. Then the choice was ok now that I've earned my autonomy and found a partner do I want to give up my autonomy again to be a parent? For me it was an easy no.

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

Understandable

[@thebestcentaur]

Completely understandable

[@RK-cj4oc]

How does becoming a parent deny you your autonomy? I agreed with the first part of your comment but the 2nd one is kinda BS in my opinion.

[@henrytep8884]

Peter Pan syndrome. There’s nothing that excludes your autonomy when you are having a family. In fact the best part of being human is the relationships and connections you build with one another and the depth of those relationships matter.

[@TheRockerX]

​@@RK-cj4ocit's even more BS to pretend having kids doesn't negatively impact your autonomy.

[@TriagoZero]

I might have misunderstood, but the gallup survery/study was about based on the question "What do you think is the ideal number of children for a family to have?" right? That question is not the same as "How many children would you like to have?". If I were asked the first question, I would definitely answer 2, since I have a younger brother and y opinion is that growing up a single child is generally worse than having a sibling, whereas were I asked the second question, I'd say zero, since I have no desire to go through the process of raising a child, much less to have a child and offload the process of raising it, as a purely personal choice. Giving the source a cursory glance, it seems to me that they are pooling question A and arriving at conclusions as if they asked question B. Not that I disagree with the conclusions made in the survey article or the video, I think these are all correct, but I thought I might point that out and maybe get corrected in the process. Also, and this is a minor niptick in the grand scheme of things, but, @PolyMatter, please, improve your source document. As it is, it's a link soup. Something as simple as "brief title : link" would be more than enough to upgrade the doc from "barely the minimum effort to avoid plagiarism claims" to "a proper resource people can use". Just my opinion.

[@4spooky8u]

It was a pretty simple question

[@Nobody-pv9jt]

​@@4spooky8u why reply when you have nothing to add?

[@runningfromabear8354]

​@@4spooky8u simple question but unclear. I think the ideal family has 3 kids. Due to multiples and losinga childto cancer, we had 5. What's the ideal family siae? What size family would you like to have? Two very different questions.

[@eyeli160]

You do know that if you had just waited 3 minutes he would have pulled out the "How many children would you intend to have?" chart right? Or were you that desperate for a gotcha moment?

[@aidanwelch4763]

@@eyeli160 You misunderstood why he brought that up. The intended was not "how many kids would you want in a perfect world" it was "how many kids do you reasonably expect to have". @TriagoZero is right to point out that "ideal family size" nor "intended family size" == "ideal family size for you".

[@gorgthesalty]

No subsidized daycare. No maternity / paternity leave. No sick leave. No living wage. No guaranteed vacation of at least 4 weeks for families to refresh. Schools funded based on local community wealth. Universities extremely expensive. Predatory lending for above higher education costs, burdening would be parents at their time to save for families. Employment based health insurance. Highly expensive healthcare system, with high out of pocket costs. USA is anything but family friendly. You get what you seek as a country, and US implicitly seeks married career couples who are healthy and childless. For them, most of the policy benefits are setup. Everyone else is disincentivized.

[@fzigunov]

Damn. So true... 😢

[@Paulkjoss]

A life cantered around Materialism and status… The US is a machine promoting, projecting, enabling and supporting it.

[@rushrush1209]

Well said. USA does everything possible to discourage people from having kids.

[@aidanwelch4763]

Countries with those policies don't have much significantly different birthrates generally.

[@maxpower9708]

- No subsidized daycare Governments subsidize stuff using taxes. If there's no subsidized daycare -- why are the US taxes so high? - No sick leave At least in some countries, sick leaves are payed by the government, that gets that money from taxes. If there are no sick leaver -- why are the US taxes so high? - Universities extremely expensive In countries with "free" education, it is actually paid by taxes. If the education in the US is not free -- why are the US taxes so high? - Employment based health insurance In countries with "free" health care, it is actually paid by taxes. If the health care in the US is not free -- why are the US taxes so high? Seems to me, the US government takes way too much money and does shit with it, or does something extremely inefficiently. If the taxes would've been lower, as they should be it looks like, for the government doesn't do shit, maybe people would have enough money to pay for stuff like daycare? Someone needs to remember that they live in a democracy. I'm not a US citizen, so I can't do that.

[@howhigh0521]

I can afford it. Just need to lose my drinking problem and find a girl who wants me which turned out harder than a though working in construction surrounded by guys all day

[@That-Guy_]

If you have some time, a part-time job at a restaurant is a good idea and since it's not your main income, you can switch to another one if you don't see good dating options. Restaurant work is where I found my wife.

[@howhigh0521]

@@That-Guy_ hmmm that’s not a bad idea. I work monday-Friday 6am-2pm. Do you really think someone would hire me just for a Friday/Saturday shift?? Maybe I could serve or even bartend. When I used to work in the kitchen I definitely didn’t meat anyone but maybe I try to get to the front of the place where the people are

[@That-Guy_]

@@howhigh0521 Weekends are the busiest time so it shouldn't be hard to find a restaurant that needs weekend help. Yes, working a front-of-house position is best because you add customers to your target list. Some fast food / quick service restaurants could be good. I met my wife working drive-thru.

[@That-Guy_]

@@howhigh0521 Weekends are busy and many places need staff. Working in a customer facing position will increase your opportunities to meet people. Don't overlook some fast food in quick service jobs as they can be a good place to meet. I met my wife working drive-thru.

[@TengokuIkari]

Working in the front will also let you include customers in your search. If it's too busy it will detract from your goal as you will not have time to talk. Also don't overlook fast food restaurants, that's where I met my wife.

[@unitedskiesunderthemoon]

Education and Housing is too expensive. Minimum Wages are not sufficient to meet minimum requirements to have even just a single kid. If your minimum wage cannot support a family, it is completely unacceptable. Paid Time off is still not a complete thing in the United States. People are left with less and less free time. Our government and corporations no matter how much they sell you the idea of change, they aren't going to provide the necessary reforms to repair this.

[@319Schum]

Why are Europe and Japan behind the US in birth rates? Government intervention seems to lower birth rates. Looking at the US states there seems to be a negative correlation between government intervention and birth rates.

[@augusthoglund6053]

I know pretty well a couple that left the U.S. for the express purpose of having kids. Every day they spend in Austria, they are more baffled as to why anyone qualifying for a visa would voluntarily stay in the U.S.

[@ghost21501]

We are in a psychological depression in the West. No amount of financial stability will solve this issue.

[@augusthoglund6053]

While I agree financial stability won't raise birthrates back to historical levels on it's own, I still don't see any solution lasting and sustaining itself without financial stability.

[@prod.arcsyne2990]

well maybe if people could afford mental care, we wouldn't be in a psychological depression?

[@bikesrcool_1958]

Prod, mental care isn’t a large part of this. Our decadence and prosperity has caused this, and lack of religious participation. Religious people make more children, and many of our educational institutions and hospitals and charities are started by Religious people. We now have vastly separate ideas from back then, and that equals less children and mass depression

[@astrinymris9953]

@@prod.arcsyne2990 I think our horrible diet and lifestyle contributes to our depression, as does our unrelenting psychological stress. Having Third Spaces would help.

[@prod.arcsyne2990]

@@bikesrcool_1958 well that argument doesnt hold up because america is a mostly religious country already, and many of them are choosing not to have kids either if they cant support them. what if hear me out... we fixed the economy, establish workers right, fix healthcare especially womens health care, and fund and support mothers unconditionally. that way you can have ur weird baby fetish, and the rest of us can actually be able to support a family.

[@merrymachiavelli2041]

The bit at 15:15 could have done with a bit more mention of the _biology_ of having kids. If you're a woman, and you spend ages 20-32 getting educated, starting a career, dating and getting married, then that leaves you with about 6 years in which its relatively easy to have kids. Fertility drops pretty rapidly in your late 30s, and while _some_ can turn to technologies like IVF, this isn't likely to be done on a scale large enough to have a societally-relevant demographic impact. Having 1 or 2 kids in 6 years is doable, but more than that and you have to be pretty determined about it. At a large scale, delaying child-bearing reliably predicts fewer children being born.

[@notsojharedtroll23]

Anad add the fact that if you do concieve after that fertile margin, your child has a higher chance of gaining intellectual deficiencias that hinder their chances of wellbeing.

[@IhazNoPants]

One of the largest contributors I believe

[@colebehnke7767]

@@IhazNoPantsand what do you do about it then? Like are we seriously going to ban young woman from college?

[@Arkiasis]

Also having kids later increases the risk of children having mental disabilities and deformities and also screws the kids over by having their parents require care when they're elderly when those kids are supposed to be in their prime starting their own families.

[@offthetrail5675]

Have two young kids. It's expensive yes, but the part I've struggled with most is the absolute loss of 90% of my time and energy. Hobbies, pursuits, friends, exercise etc all fall to last place on the priority hiarchy after kids. Am I selfish? yes, but you only have one chance at living a good life. I'm not sure kids are for everyone.

[@ItcHSniping]

You bring up a good and common point, but I would pause and reflect on what the meaning of life truly is. Is the meaning of life to buy as much as we can? Some academics might say so (most people seem to think it). Is it to just fish all day and eat a meal before sleeping for 8 hours? Every uncle might think so haha. In all seriousness though, does the meaning of life center around laziness or comfort? Or is it in the sacrifices of ourselves to something greater that we can feel that accomplishment? Think about this in the limited time you have and this might help you realize the true meaning of life: you might realize it isn't the materialistic (and selfish) "meaning" that we've been taught and conditioned as a consumerist society, but perhaps one that does involve sacrifice (like the ones our parents gave to us) and humanity. Another question to ask is: why are people the richest they have ever been and yet having fewer kids? Think about an average family in the 1800s: complete poverty yet they had many kids. Just something to think about: I'm not making an argument. Hope all is well!

[@hq1082]

Kids are not for everyone, some people want to live their life with the freedom to explore and see new things. It's not a selfish sentiment it's a human one.

[@victoriablack2093]

Shows how narcissistic people have become.

[@mejuliie]

​@@victoriablack2093that's bs. people haven't become more narcissistic, they have just learned that sharing their struggles doesn't make them bad people. I guarantee you that every person that goes from being childless to having children will struggle with the issues op described. second thing it shows that you clearly don't have children or friends with children that openly talk about their struggles.

[@mejuliie]

You aren't selfish. Majority of parents experience the feelings you do at one point or another. It's completely normal and valid. Doesn't mean you love your children any less. Also, a healthy amount of selfishness is needed to make sure we take care of ourselves and survive.

[@MeGawOOt99]

I don't see the point of giving money when the cost is still too high. What is the point of giving like $2000 for every newborn when the cost for rent like doubled and tripled in areas. Most incentives are literally a drop in a bucket in terms of help. If they truly want to help they can say, don't pay taxes on your 4th child.

[@makisekurisu4674]

And if you give that 2000 the rent is just gonna increase

[@augusthoglund6053]

@@makisekurisu4674 Well, not as long as more housing is built.

[@zwatwashdc]

2000 wouldn’t even come close to covering birth costs. Just to give birth in the US can cost 50,000 or more. And you never know until the deed is done. Complications? Oops, you owe 100,000$.

[@careyfreeman5056]

It's not a crisis yet for us, but it is for S. Korea, China, Germany, Russia and a lot of others. We still have a couple decades before it hits crisis.

[@kfnwuwbw9s]

It already is a crisis for us. There are not enough jobs for young people. Social media has also caused young adults to flock to the best jobs and colleges, so we are already at a time where life is dangerously competitive like how it is in China and Korea. And it's only going to get worse as the top US schools get even more competitive.

[@careyfreeman5056]

@@kfnwuwbw9s dude, none of this makes any sense, nor is any of it relevant to the point I'm making.

[@FictionHubZA]

Japan has been living in this crisis since the 60s. It only began to be serious around 1990.

[@qam2024]

Japan and South Korea are fine, eventually they will bottom out and reach an equilibrium, and when that happens Japan will still be Japanese, Korea still be Korean, meanwhile the United States and Europe will be square root of nine countries.

[@kfnwuwbw9s]

@@careyfreeman5056 found the old person who has no idea how hard it is to be a young adult in today's world.

[@randomkoreanguy]

I can't afford kids or a spouse. I have what was once considered a really good job that pays well, but I can't buy a house, let alone afford the bills for a family and children. I can only really afford to keep myself afloat and comfortable. So there you go. I have decent pay, really good benefits, but if I can't afford to do it on my level of pay (above the median/average) what about everyone below me on the pay scale? I just found out there's no school buses around here anymore. Are you kidding me? So if I have a kid, I need to somehow figure out how to get them to school and home again now too?? I start work at 7 am before the school day starts and finish after 5 well after it ends. How the hell does that work? Average home prices here (Los Angeles) are now approaching a million dollars. I could keep ranting about this but suffice it to say, I can't fix this as a solo individual. So I choose to just live my own life as best I can and let society live with the consequences of what we've wrought.

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

@@randomkoreanguy I’m with you because this affects everybody, but I think your home being LA might be apart of the problem all on its own 😅

[@randomkoreanguy]

@@realdreamerschangetheworld7470 Yeah, but this is where my job is so what can a guy do lol

[@midatlantic09]

To be fair, if you truly desire a spouse and children, why not consider moving somewhere in which that could easily be possible? Even an income of $40-50k a year can go very far in many other parts of the world, or if that doesn't sound appealing, there are still many areas within the US (smaller cities/towns with populations of 100k or less) where starting and maintaining a family is very possible on around $100k a year. Of course, this will likely require that you figure out how to generate your own income instead of relying on a large company to supply that for you.

[@baneofbanes]

@@midatlantic09because as he stated, his job is in LA. Moving. Is a very expensive and stressful thing to do, and an idiotic one if you don’t have a job lined up.

[@PeruvianPotato]

Meanwhile a random Muslim: Oops, just had our 6th kid

[@bidoof4938]

My motivation to be an active parent ISNT keeping up with the Joneses, It's about staying away from the iPad

[@badabing3391]

thats a relatively trivial task if you decide to actually be in the childs lifw

[@Croz89]

@@bidoof4938 Before iPads kids had TV's, game consoles, books, or just went and played outside. Parents in the past were probably less active than they are today. If anything I wonder if being too active is a bad thing, it doesn't teach a child autonomy or how to entertain themselves. But the iPad is just too potent, it's an overstimulation machine for toddlers with the likes of Cocomelon. Just replace it with some colouring books like your parents may have done with you, and that'll be fine.

[@Jose04537]

Also, been healthy for retirement.

[@jarjarbnks340]

The jones are broke

[@222toastedtoasters3]

why dose every problem begin 2007, and its solution fuck me over personally

[@dasbubba841]

Because 2007-08 was basically the end of the post-Cold War era of optimism. The idea that everyone was steadily getting wealthier through improved technology and global trade. The US government HAD to bail out the banks. The alternative was a repeat of the Depression. However, by bailing out ONLY the banks, the common Joe got poorer while the haves accumulated massive amounts of assets. Assets that largely existed only on paper and were not reflective of the real economy.

[@b1walker]

Weird to start the fertility rate graph at 1990 - this has been a problem long before then

[@HLPSr]

Baby boom happened after WW2. Human population sky rocketed. 1990 is where it started to slow down.

[@Rice10120]

The problem is not fertility. Women are choosing not to have children. Until they start being honest and asking women why, this will continue.

[@elijahjohnson1952]

Before the 90s you can't track a trend just historical events that clearly explain what happened. But I do find it crazy how we have a lower birth rate then the great depression.

[@noahboughdy2648]

@@Rice10120And when you ask them how many children they’d like, they give an answer above above replacement rate.

[@Housewarmin]

This was a GREAT video. Most people think they know the answer, but this was very educational and informative.

[@rohanb-ef2xh]

i'd much rather stay single than be with someone who wants kids

[@jameslevesque9720]

If anyone every asked me "you're a young man with a good job, why aren't you married?" my answer was "Have you met these girls? Go try to picking up a feral mountain lion, it will be less trouble when it scratches, claws and bites your eyes out".

[@MrLarrythehacker]

We as a country have proven that we aren’t interested in building more housing. So why would we want to have kids today?

[@tc2241]

I’ve for three kids, two are preschool age(which is 1.2k per month for one kid). The child credit and dependent care FSA don’t so much as put a dent in it(plus it’s just my money pre-tax). Oh, and to take full advantage of credits, both parents must be working. Which can be more expensive because it puts you in a new tax bracket (the other exception is having a spouse be a full time student). You look at other countries and their citizens are incentivized to have children, here it’s a luxury.

[@phantomvox951]

My household income is 95K per year. In my country its good money cause is cheaper than US. We have just one child but can’t afford a second one. I cant imagine how Americans are surviving in US.

[@SoYappy]

Americans survive just fine. There are many struggling families just like anywhere in the world. A typical family here, make 2.5x of yours and send 2 kids to private school. You see, you can’t lump everyone into a bracket.

[@folkishappalachian6827]

I make the same amount in the USA, and you are correct. I have to live near a big city to do it, expensive. It is rough, but I provide for my wife and daughter the best I can.

[@rl7329]

You have a spending problem

[@MrBluman999]

Too many taxes, expensive housing, food prices.

[@purpledevilr7463]

Then why did it start in 2007?

[@bugra320]

Also add feminism and hoeflation

[@jamesgoodman9259]

Brought to you by socialism and crony capitalism. Our government is the problem. I grew up poor and I made it just fine. I made my way and now just at the cusp of the top 10%. We just need to get the government out of the way. We need to stop poisoning our children's minds with the whole 'everyone gets a trophy' meme. Socialism means well, but it leads to people to think, why should work harder to get ahead when they just take it away to give to someone else who just sits around and does just enough to get by.

[@thunderb00m]

Too much taxes on the middle class. Too few taxes on the wealthy

[@hamdy-man2237]

​@@bugra320 Actually I agree on feminism being a bit part of this, though it's just a random guess. Still, I think the moral value of feminism is worth it. People deserve equality

[@semperfi2974]

“Our kids will have better lives than ours” is not something American parents have wanted for their kids since the baby boomers.. the generations since WW2 all talk about how THEY want to live amazing lives, not their kids. Which is why the baby boomers let their kids run wild (I was one of them) during the crime waves of the 80’s. It was only when parents started to get in trouble with social workers and DHS that they turned into helicopter parents..

[@Rekoniz17]

Dear US government and private corporations, May I introduce you to ....... the consequences of your actions

[@HeadStronger-HS]

Don’t forget the Federal Reserve

[@retroforager]

just so we're clear, the "cultural" explanation is also very much economic.

[@RsSooke]

Society has been rapidly degenerating into a hyper individualistic, dystopian, unaffordable hell scape. People can’t see starting families because they’re likely burdened by debt, an exhausting work schedule, tiny housing units, etc. Most people I meet in their 20s and 30s are child free, if they live in expensive, large metro areas where the best jobs are. The growth and development of families and communities has been stunted severely in so many places. Many people hit back at this explaining how they are child free by choice. That’s fine, but how many had that choice made for them?

[@prettyboyjeremy]

Vast majority. Wasn't something like 80% of kids are unplanned. I know I was definitely unplanned

[@YeahYeahBeebisI]

Agreed Plus, imagine being mad at individuals not having kids, while defending the hyper-individualist capitalism of corporations. If you tell people "No one owes you anything", don't expect to get anything back.

[@chico9805]

Using terms like "child-free" doesn't help the situation.

[@badabing3391]

calling it hell and dystopian is a bit of a stretch, but i dont disagree with the point

[@PeruvianPotato]

​​@@badabing3391I mean it is kind of dystopian to see people WILLINGLY devote their entire lives to a corporation that probably won't even remember them after their death

[@Marios-br1hm]

Because housing is insanly expensive. So you can't raise kids with these prices let along twins!!

[@TheGreatOne-gw7xh]

That's not the reason. Access to contraception and increasing numbers of educated women is the reason.

[@sniedendepoes]

Poor people have more kids. You’re just a manchild who doesn’t wanna grow up lol

[@ryanok1757]

Bro wtf are you saying, i didn’t understand a single word, from your comment, Are you even a American? you seems you are from some south american countries

[@Sinaeb]

@@ryanok1757 bro had to edit his comment bashing someone that missed a single e

[@TylerSolvestri]

Not only that, getting a job after a diploma is a really challenging thing to do, so this crisis is even more contradicting

[@wireditvideo]

Oof. Play at x1.25

[@1lovelucas]

Yeah the pace is too slow. Maybe even x1.5 is better

[@therougechipmunk8058]

thanks I thought the same thing immediately after he started speaking

[@JennyNobody]

Lol i went for 1.5x

[@zzzyyyxxx]

I play at like 2 or 3x anyway for many video creators, some just talk way too slow

[@berniecalo01]

I'm even at 1.75x. Lol.

[@thebestcentaur]

How does he always circle back to China?!

[@FictionHubZA]

All roads lead to Beijing. 😂

[@valuedcustomer94384]

Because the chinese are always blamed by these types of people.

[@Jose04537]

​@@FictionHubZAThe silk road.

[@Arkiasis]

Polymatter making a video without mentioning China challenge. Impossible.

[@lucasglowacki4683]

2007 = iPhone

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

And most Social Media starts taking off

[@augusthoglund6053]

I'm not convinced, but it's certainly worth looking into

[@thesummaryguy3911]

I made a video about it years ago. 2007 is the problem with the technology😊​@@augusthoglund6053

[@FeronTheRaccon]

When im stuck in 10s of thousands of dollars in student loan debt unable to get the life I was promised without the ability to buy a house of course I'm not going to want to have kids. As soon as a house comes up for sale its bought by a corporation who then rents it out to me using software that lets them collude with others to charge an insane price.

[@spiritwave7]

Appreciating your points, I would like to factor in health, because reportedly mental health problems have been increasing, as well as other conditions (due inclusively to major dietary issues). Printing money, at least during this millennium, has powerfully reduced the purchasing power of the dollar, which gives us inflation. Most of that printed money goes to the rich, as 'the rich gets richer' is axiomatic. This unhealthy absorption of wealth, and the leveraging of the monetary dominance to accelerate that power consolidation, is the fundamental societal problem. I have a sensible solution, but it exceeds the scope of this comment. Society has always been missing a critical demonstrable truth about dominance itself. A small correction there extremely powerfully disincentives that brutal absorption in the fight over power.

[@King_Gamer_1st]

Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but that Gallup poll asking "How many kids is right for a family to have?" is not the same as "How many kids do you want to have?". I think most people will answer like it's a hypothetical family and not a direct question about themselves and their own family plans. Someone's not going to answer "none" just because they don't want kids - then nobody would be born lol. Also, it's safe to assume that, to most, "family" means the traditional family unit of a couple + child(ren), not only a couple and, say, a pet.

[@JB-bb1bh]

Profanity, if i had Housing and healthcare that was 33% of what i pay now, I'll have a child soo fast it would be trivialized with all that extra cash.

[@zackmeaders6199]

America: we love free markets America when markets are marketing: 😮😢😅

[@Epidombe]

We havent been a “free market” for years. The whole reason so many people are in college in the first place is because of government offering student loans. Aka government intervention

[@starman275]

@@Epidombe the whole point is that, housing in USA is free market, thats the reason is so expensive, because is just seek to get money

[@Epidombe]

@@starman275 is it? Even with government subsidized housing, government controlled interest rates, government loans, government property taxes, governed bylaws in neighborhoods, im sure theres more. But youre going to tell me thats a “free” market?

[@aidanwelch4763]

@@starman275 No its not, new housing can't be built because of excessive zoning and regulation. Much land is also illegitimately owned.

[@Jose04537]

It's more like crony capitalism.

[@kibble-net]

College enrollment is down? Is it at all possible that the $100,000 price tag has something to do with it?

[@dasbubba841]

Increasing price tag, decreasing benefits.

[@TheBKnight3]

There's alot of children in foster homes for some reason

[@mjr_schneider]

Ultimately the cause is 100% cultural, which is why different countries react differently to the same economic issues. Housing prices compared to average wages are higher in Israel than the US, yet Israel has a higher birthrate. Housing prices are lower in Italy than America, yet Italy has a lower birthrate. Ultimately the economy can only prevent people from having children if their expectations for themselves are higher than what they can afford with children.

[@baneofbanes]

Yah how dare people not want to raise children in poverty.

[@AA-bc9wz]

Exactly! If people wanted kids, they would have them. Granted, many academic literature point towards the increased women labor participation, increased internal migration (so less extended families), and increased housing costs as additional factors. But the biggest is cultural.

[@makisekurisu4674]

If it is cultural why does America still have such birthrates for a developed nation?

[@PeruvianPotato]

​@@baneofbanes I grew up in poverty and I'm currently in one of the best universities in my state. Just say you want material wealth and leave it at that

[@baneofbanes]

@@PeruvianPotato you’re the exception to the rule then man. Yah how dare I not want to be poor.

[@lifeinvader6979]

I just searched yesterday about fertility rates around the world. I was shocked when I saw that every country except some third world countries have fertility rates below 2 and it dropped by more than triple in just ~40 years

[@Aashka_The_Mystic]

It's true, it's dropping everywhere. Women don't want to end up as single mothers so they are more careful and take birth control. Plus many countries are struggling with the wealth gap like the USA and it's getting too expensive to have kids.

[@Mouritzeen]

Oh boy a video about an extremely controversial political topic. Time to go to the **comments**

[@Omer1996E.C]

Not controversial at all. Does anyone even disagree with his points?

[@Mouritzeen]

@@Omer1996E.C birth rates are directly related to white nationalism and immigration

[@notsojharedtroll23]

​@@Omer1996E.C i guess he means that it relates to inceldom. Or the fact that economically speaking, many men (which are the vast majority of body-abled americans) are not attractive in looks, money and status; makes them impossible to be on women's radar

[@dasbubba841]

@@Omer1996E.C No. Everyone agrees that things suck. How to fix the problem is a little more controversial.

[@DummyUseless-er3dn]

People are being asked to fly less, drives less, eat less meat, move to electric cars irrespective of whether they like it, reusable cups, etc. Nothing wrong with it if people have a choice. So it looks like we are indeed overpopulated. Living is not just about bare sustenance. People want to live a comfortable life (not luxurious but not bare sustenance either)

[@augusthoglund6053]

Asked, but not required against their wishes.

[@vcrsalesman2606]

One correction; the US birth rate fell below replacement for the first time in the early 1970s, briefly rising above it again in the 2000s before the current decline. This is worth noting because the aging of America is a gradual process.

[@davianoinglesias5030]

Why have kids yet you don't even have a job?? Even if you have a job most jobs are on 2 year or 3 year contracts after which you never know if you'll have another job.

[@johnnydoe6696]

Mass migration dramatically increased the supply of labor, undercutting wages, and has increased demand for and price of housing. It's very simple supply and demand. The ownership class doesn't have a strong need for workers since they have an unlimited supply of people from desperately impoverished nations, so people aren't paid what they need to survive.

[@trinodot8112]

America: "We're going to do nothing about school shootings, global warming, the cost of housing, the cost of childcare, bad public education, and child poverty and we are going to force your child to carry their birth to term if they get SA'd" Also America: "Y u no have children?"

[@Leonardo_Congeni]

European countries that have all the polices you want have lower birth rates than the US.

[@whisper3856]

It’s the economy. Young people can’t afford to live; how can they ever hope to have children? You also have issues such as climate change and political instability which make it less likely to have children, because who would want their kids to live in a world being torn apart?

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

@@whisper3856 precisely

[@bluelotusnanebi]

Yeah because the world was famously a highly stable and peaceful place for centuries before 2010s

[@whisper3856]

@@bluelotusnanebi you cannot be this stupid and still be able to comment on KZbin. Stop being disingenuous.

[@Carthodon]

This is one of those explanations people agree with because it massages their ego. Why are people having kids in extremely poor countries like Afghanistan and Niger? Is it the absence of climate change, political instability and extra disposable income? No, and any explanation for that would have to be independent yet still manage to be self serving. Great predictors for both why well of nations don't have kids and why poor nations do have kids are things like religiosity, feminism (particularly workplace participation by women), the generosity of the social welfare system. There are 0 countries which both have big welfare states and are feminist that have positive native born population growth. I think the reason is because the average person in these societies believes the point of their lives is their own happiness, and having to make sacrifices in quality of life is such a bummer for them. I could at least accept it if people admitted this was the case, as opposed to pretending that its unrelated to an unwillingness to make the same effort that modern poor people (including illegal immigrants) make to support families.

[@prettyboyjeremy]

​@bluelotusnanebi You're correct but ignorance is also bliss. Trail of tears on 1 side Blissful little house on the other

[@b_dubb]

1.5x speed makes this video watchable. 👍🏾

[@jayluck8047]

Not widely reported... Average sperm counts are down 50% since the early ‘90s.

[@philoslother4602]

I wonder if it's because of pollution and food ;)

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

Forever chemicals are forever

[@howaboutnooo00]

those plastic diapers we've been using for decades are just fantastic for heating up baby boys' testicles

[@watwudscoobydoo1770]

If that was the major factor it would show as more people trying to get treatment or IVF. But we don’t hear that. We hear no one under 45 can afford kids and are pushing it off.

[@chris-bacon205]

Probably because 74% of men watch porn

[@Croz89]

I must admit the suburb idea confuses me. Low density suburbs in the US aren't new, they've been ubiquitous since the 50's. This was also the period of a massive expansion in road infrastructure. Cars were cheap and the domestic industry was at a high point around the middle of the century. Kids still rode their bikes around the neighborhood though, and took the bus to school or walked/biked if they were close enough. So what really changed, the suburbs themselves or the culture around them?

[@TheLiamster]

I’d love to have kids one day but the biggest reason why I’m choosing not to is for finances. I earn a pretty decent salary and live comfortably but I know raising a child is costly not just in terms in money but also of time. I would want to be present in my child’s life as much as possible and it would be difficult trying a balance between working and parenting. I’d also want to have the right partner who also wants children as there’s no way I could be a single parent in my current situation.

[@augusthoglund6053]

I know a couple myself that left the U.S. for the express purpose of having kids. Every day they spend in Austria, they are more baffled as to why anyone qualifying for a visa would voluntarily stay in the U.S.

[@LZKS]

If you see people saying "they're happy without kids", they're not the reason why birth rates are falling. In society, there always existed people who were never going to have kids; and these are those people. The reason for falling birthrate is that normal people who want to have kids aren't able to. I had kids in my 20s, and absolutely suffered through it. I'm not a party kind of guy, so I didn't mind it. But the financial stress was immeasurable. On the other hand, my brother decided to hold off on kids until he was financially stable. He is 35 now, his wife 37. They now are now struggling to have kids but are hesitant on seeing fertility doctor.

[@InquisitorXarius]

The USA’s Birth Rate is similar to other developed countries however this is offset by immigration which gives the USA a higher population growth and far more stable age dynamic than other developed countries.

[@sniedendepoes]

Declining population = better wages and lower rent. Less immigration is less crime. I’m very comfy now that I’m away from immigrants

[@takethepowerback83]

Immigration brings crime, disorder and lack of social cohesion. The immigrants that can make it in their own countries don’t leave. Tyrants love foreigners because they don’t put up a fight to defend the country they’re hosted in. Also allocating tax money towards “migrant aid” lets the govt pocket billions off the top as administrative fees. It’s a scam.

[@randomnobody8770]

The US should be selective yet enthusiastic with immigration. There are tradeoffs with immigration, but overall even now the US comes out ahead by most objective data. If the US were more selective, they'd be in even better shape. Also, the ~15M illegals should be given amnesty so they can get better jobs and pay more in taxes asap. Simple solutions like 'deport all illegals' sounds great if you're a simpleton. It would be the largest mass migration in human history, a humanitarian disaster, and devastating to the US economy. The US is probably the only country in the world so well positioned to explode their prosperity though thoughtful immigration. Assimilation is important.

[@JosTheMan1]

At what % of population being actually americans can we start discussing the name change for the country. The Uited States of Somalia

[@alexanderbateman5581]

@@JosTheMan1 "Actually American" f off w/ your racist nonsense. By your logic the only "actual" americans are the ones on reservations.

[@nihilisticpancake308]

I wonder if it's also cultural. Like back then people had kids to pass on traditions memories and be a community. Nowadays culture changes so quickly what are you going to pass on? At best, they'll remix it with some Americo Global trend and it's not special anymore. Then there are so many labels people can apply to themselves and each of these labels can only be understood by each other and are basically pseudocults and you have to keep your lane. So why have kids? For the economy? That's the threat. The economy. Have kids to keep the investors happy.

[@ThatGuyPotatoes]

The rise of dating apps also has affected marriage rates! The illusion of choice means more people, especially women, are declining more and more potential suitors because the "next one might be better". Something like 80% of the likes on those apps goes to the top 10% of profiles. People arent dating like they used to.

[@retroforager]

yeah but the rise of single mothers can be taken to mean that marriage attitudes arent really having the effect on child birth.

[@rileygladue3979]

Marriage rates and birth rates *do* affect eachother but aren't as consequential to the rise or fall of either as you might think. People will still have kids and many people still do regardless of whether they are married or not, so don't go blaming this on dumb dating apps and instead look at the real reasons why people who *genuinely* want to have kids aren't having kids

[@BrilliantBlueify]

and here comes the red pill/incel comments.

[@Rice10120]

Women don't want to have kids with you. You aren't good partners. You don't participate in doing anything or help with child rearing.

[@wbay3848]

Men should not have to pay child support.

[@aidanwelch4763]

I agree housing is a major factor, but I think a not insignificant factor is that having a kid requires a partner in the first place. And, I think starting around 2007 the internet drastically changed how a long term stable partnership happens.

[@marcroberts5251]

Thanos is pleased.

[@blanchjoe1481]

While the Populations Rate has been and is decreasing, the Population Growth continues to grow. The decrease in the rate is primarily due to the costs, but due more importantly "social" forces, young adults recognize a more desirable level of earnings, freedom, and lifestyle can exist without children. What has been fueling America's growth was immigration, but recent policies have restricted this resource. Unlike China, South Korea, or Japan where immigration faces powerful cultural hurdles, America is extremely fortunate to increase or decrease the Population Rate by a simple easement of current re-active immigration policies. However there is a social and cultural rejection to this solution, so Population Rate increase will depend primarily on Political decisions.

[@KILLRAIN42]

America has a birthrate crisis. Waah. I'm 2 years past the age my father was when I was born and I see that decision as being a frankly terrible one. Why the hell would I elect to make the same horrid choice in even worse conditions? I about had a heart attack over the potential cost of paying someone to remove the racoon that forced its way into my attic at 5 this morning, why the hell would I create a child?

[@Guitarocker493]

If a college can't figure out how to handle their finances with a drop in enrollment given how much student loans are, they deserve to close.

[@stormix5755]

America is in a very comfortable position to weather the birth rate crisis, that is if things don’t get worse. If living costs keep rising then Americans can’t have kids. Japan and South Korea are in much more difficult positions. They have very little immigration and much worse birth rates

[@0HOON0]

Immigration from unrelated countries destroys nations. For Japan, staying Japanese should be a far more important goal than maintaining GDP. America is no longer a nation. It will soon be just a hollowed out empire filled with detritus from all corners of the earth.

[@citrused8571]

It's probably a good thing they don't have immigration though

[@containedhurricane]

Yes, the US has solved the birth rate problem with DV Lottery. East Asian countries aren't as attractive because of the language barrier

[@christianweibrecht6555]

Also plenty of Koreans and Chinese people are currently or want to immigrate to the US, their loss is our gain I find it funny how Japan tried to convince Hispanics of Japanese to send to move back, imagine how that xenophobic country would react to their mixed race Catholic kin

[@thomasgrabkowski8283]

@@containedhurricane East Asian countries make it almost impossible to immigrate there. They make it extremely hard to get their version of green card, and make it close to impossible to become a naturalized citizen without any familial connections to their country, meaning vast majority of the few foreigners living there have no viable option beyond being temporary worker or expat

[@eduardoforneck3335]

The lowest hanging fruit (and one which doesn't cost anything) is simply repealing NIMBY regulations preventing houses to be built.

[@rebeltheharem7028]

Birth rate is correlated to disposable income, work conditions, and education. If education goes up, but disposable income and work conditions go down, then birth rate goes down. Education inevitable makes more conscionable people who won't have children if they dont think they can fiscally afford one.

[@noahboughdy2648]

Misleading to start the fertility rate graph in 1990. The birth rate started dropping in the late 50s and leveled off by the early 70s. In 1974 the birth rate was 1.74, same as in 2018.

[@mikederucki]

My grandparents raised four kids in a brand new single family home on .15 acre. My grandma stayed home with them and my grandpa was a semi truck driver. That’s the difference between then and now.

[@matsvandiest5685]

This was one of the most thought provoking and interesting video's I've ever watched

[@drhapi5308]

Well, I have four children… I’m trying to boost us back

[@matheenarif8645]

Not gonna be enough to bring up the birth rate

[@lucasglowacki4683]

So do I and hoping for more😬. Being a father gives me more fulfillment than anything!

[@Ravi9A]

based man.

[@tklarp4735]

I'm not having any, so I wish you all the best. You're making up for me

[@JennyNobody]

We dont need a boost we need a paradigm shift. The growth paradigm is cracked and will doom us all to a hot burning barren end. That being said, glad you have a happy family - we do need some people having them to survive.

[@nothanks7892]

The voice in this video sounds like it has unresolved gas pain.

[@TankCop]

If you want more kids to be born go back to 2016 levels of costs for everything.

[@abcd1to]

Had to watch at 1.25 speed, jeez dude.

[@elijahjohnson1952]

We have a lower birth rate then the low point of the great depression. It is more then the economy guys.

[@thunderb00m]

I would argue its best to reduce the overall children people want as well. We should focus on quality of life not quantity. Every child deserves caring parents with all the love and attention they can spare. Having fewer people but with much happier lives is better than people having kids and then not caring about them. So many of the criminals you hear of on the news started with a rough childhood. We have already polluted so much, every ecosystem has microplastics now. Its best we reduce, then figure out how to solve these issues and then have kids who would inherit a world that worth living in and not a constant struggle.

[@Paulkjoss]

This is what you get when materialism and status is what you value most in life.

[@Lando-kx6so]

20:30 not quite correct. Tons of countries especially in Europe have been getting lots & lots of immigration. Australia, UK, Canada, & New Zealand as well so the US isn't unique when it comes to the immigration thing. In fact many countries have a higer percentage of their population made up of immigrants

[@FictionHubZA]

It's not a good long-term solution. Getting skilled immigrants will be much harder in the future as population growth slows in their home countries as well.

[@edgeldine3499]

I got like a hundred nieces and nephews so me having kids or not is kinda moot by comparison lol

[@Puck90a]

I think one of the big cultural aspects not mentioned is how dating has changed. Kids can't happen without sex, sex can't happen without relationships, and relationships can't happen without dating. I think this was glossed over by saying modern women are choosing to pursue careers instead of staying home to raise kids, but it isn't only that. Online dating, shopping for mates, swiping left, onlyfans, pornography, instagram - all of that has changed people's expectations and standards for what is considered a desirable and suitable mating partner. I think most women just aren't attracted to most men anymore. Most men don't measure up to women's high standards of earning, physical appearance, social status, and charisma. Meanwhile, men are mostly watching porn, extinguishing their drive to pursue natural mates, and stepping aside to make way for women to build careers. Women's social status and expectations are ballooning, men's social status and desirability are plummeting. Most people aren't getting laid much anymore, and if they are, it's outside of marriage while using birth control. The process of dating and courtship is just not functioning anymore, and I think that has to be contributing to declining birthrates.

[@fzigunov]

I have a feeling the men's issues were glossed over because men are irrelevant for the birth rate metric. It's women that have children, and as long as there's enough men (even if it is only the 20% more desirable ones or whatever) that are engaging, there'll be children. Obviously, many of these mothers will be single, families will be broken, but the births will happen. So if a large group of men withdraw through the aforementioned reasons (porn, etc), it matters very little. On the other hand, women deciding to withdraw by focusing on their careers will directly reduce the birth rate.

[@djinn666]

@@fzigunov Men's issues matter a lot because most women want a husband who can support her through childbirth and child-rearing. If men are out of the game, i.e. only make enough to support themselves, a lot of women will be forced to not have children.

[@RFXZ67966]

These graphs were all very misleading with heavily manipulated Y axes

[@Reecharge]

I blame baby boomers

[@markahern9642]

Why do you blame baby boomers?

[@fake-ty8fg]

@@markahern9642a lot of younger people hate them for starting the sexual revolution in the 60s and for allegedly hoarding wealth

[@keithsj10]

Kevin Samuels would easily be able to explain all this to you. Productive men in their thirties don't want thirty year old women with degrees and a career as a wife. They want the young women with tight bods, no baggage and who "serve" them first, eager to bear their children. "Fit, feminine and friendly", the three F's. Young women who put their man first end up married with children for life to a "high value man". Those women who put their career first can "buy a dog or die alone". Men don't care about your income, career or social status. Modern political correctness and cancel culture won't allow the plain truth like this and since his passing, no one else is talking about reality. RIP.

[@jbar_85]

There is 0 issues with our population. In my area, tons of kids and babies. Our planet is dying with our current population as it is. Why must we add billions more to the problem, which goes past the replacement rate?

[@njo3395]

😂 our planet isn’t dying, it will be fine with us or without us,ppl like you push this global warming nonsense that freaks out younger ppl, grow a spine and a pair of balls, and actually read the literature on the history of the temperature of the earth, this planet has literally survived huge asteroids and mega volcanos erupting, and chugged along, we really are insignificant, we could eliminate 99.9% of life on this planet and in a couple million years it would recover, get over your/humanity’s importance, earth will be fine until the sun explodes

[@dasbubba841]

Our planet will die anyway when the Sun swallows it. Also, just because your area happens to have a few more kids than average doesn't mean everyone else is fine.

[@derek4412]

The birth rate will continue to decrease until we are a majority rural society again. There will eventually be a “bottoming out”, but it will probably be only once there is a 90-95 percent decline in births. Places like Italy have already declined by half since 1970.

[@PakBallandSami]

why is there a birth rate crisis just have more kids lol

[@jzcahs]

guys he is jokeing

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

Guys he is a piece of joke

[@sangokudbz79]

no u

[@YeshuaAgapao]

Government pays disability and retirement. No need for kids. Kids are expensive to birth, expensive to raise, and are a lability hazard. You don't want to get married in this country. Or even live together unmarried Just asking for financial ruin if things go wrong.

[@akashmohan999]

The real reason is because nobody dates anymore and nobody even gets married anymore. They just sit in their rooms and don’t socialize

[@johnsamuel1999]

Th US is still better of in terms of birth rates compared to many developed European and asian countries. Not to mention America is a nation of immigrants and its a magnet for many skilled and low skilled migrants around the world. This makes using immigration to allivate birth rate decline much easier compared to many other countries

[@OscarDirlwood]

The US has no real identity to it. If they want to be overrun by third worlders, then so be it

[@YeahYeahBeebisI]

That's a really good point, and I haven't heard that before in this birth-rate panic discourse. My own great-grandparents arrived in the US during the Industrial Revolution, at a time when there were there were not enough workers for the economy. Rather than complain on "X", companies sent out requests to Europe for workers. Policymakers also helped by making immigration easier. Ironically the same politicians crying about "childless cat ladies" are also crying about immigrants... funny how that is...

[@oppionatedindividual8256]

Not racially better off.

[@makisekurisu4674]

​@@oppionatedindividual8256it is, US isn't as institutionally racist as Europe for example. Americans for example don't want to pay insane amount of money to the government to get rid of immigrants.

[@YeahYeahBeebisI]

@@oppionatedindividual8256 what do you mean by this.

[@SSJ3Palmer]

As a matter of fact, you're missing the only real reason why colleges are closing and that's due to how ungodly EXPENSIVE it is to go to college!! Reduce the price to go to school and problem solved 👌

[@TumblinWeeds]

People saying “we literally can’t afford kids” are ignoring that the highest birth rate countries with over 5 children families are poverty stricken, average salaries less than $1000/year. It takes very little to actually raise a child to survive. The expensive part is the societal expectations of what it takes to raise a child as a perfect hobby project, with all the expensive add ons. While this approach makes healthier kids, it’s hardly “necessary” beyond what we’ve come to expect of ourselves.

[@augusthoglund6053]

Raising a child "only to survive" might get in in legal trouble in the U.S.though; housing in poverty-stricken countries would definitely be demolished for zoning and code violations in the U.S.