NO ONE is having kids

[@DUKE_DUKE]

Can't afford a house, no house, no kids.

[@Teddy-vs5rw]

are you homeless, sir?

[@DUKE_DUKE]

@@Teddy-vs5rw no

[@slightfimulator4888]

I have a 3 week old daughter, we rent a unit. Who needs a house?

[@DUKE_DUKE]

@slightfimulator4888 I live in Australia. There is a real rental shortage here.

[@slightfimulator4888]

I live in Australia too, Sydney.

[@Kleftis]

My favourite is the mixed narrative of: > Australians need to have more kids > We need to have less kids for climate change and carbon footprints and overpopulation > we need to import migrants to make up for lack of population and workers > we have a housing crisis due to overpopulation which causes that’s life to be to unaffordable to have kids

[@joshchambers5163]

Yep government an media contradict themselves daily. Australia needs a reclining pppulation got a growing one. We are over crowded. No more immigrants or refugees.

[@derwoodhamburger]

Climate change is so fake

[@plexor8350]

All these are media propaganda and the excuse of the Australian government NOT to fix systematic failures of broken systems and policies.

[@matthewrooke819]

Remember the simpsons. Homer didn't go to college. But he could still afford a home and raise a family of 5 on a single income. That was considered normal during the 80s.

[@larion2336]

It was even more normal earlier, in the 20s-70s. 70s was when the gold standard was dropped in the USA and ever since then wages disconnected from productivity gains. Pretty much all the benefits of technology have been hoovered up by the ultra rich class, leading to the worlds greatest wealth gap ever seen. But really this is the expected result of the economy, because our whole usury financial system is a literal by-definition ponzi scheme. It was only ever going to result in massive theft of the masses, that's why it was created.

[@Jimjam482]

Simpsons started 1989 iu wa only the 90’s look how far we’ve sunk 😢

[@shane1948]

Whatifalthist fan?

[@thebeastlad8678]

"Men are shooting blanks, unlike Alec Baldwin" goes hard.

[@Garrettmoron]

Satisfy me

[@alaidbro]

Dated joke

[@manofspiel]

34 years old, married, wife just had our 4th child. No house? Well, it's not mine, but I have somewhere to live? If I had shot more blanks I'd have more free time. Instead all I've got is a wage increase that's hard countered by a 200% increase in the price of food from 24 months ago. That and a hefty dose of ptsd, depression and a culture that both resents that I have these things, while telling me they're just part of life. No one wants kids because they know they can't have a healthy, enjoyable lifestyle if they do. Which is fair, because it's already fucking hard to get a healthy enjoyable lifestyle to begin with.

[@HeldIntegral]

Lol. No replies. Everyone real quiet now 😂 this is the reality of parenting

[@dcmastermindfirst9418]

True Our politicians sold us out. Now we are paying for it

[@gregw7684]

Living that life right now. 2 kids under 4. Wife and I are mid 30s and it is just white knuckling it till we're dead I suppose. Career doesn't matter. The money I earn from all my years building a career is soaked up into all of the increased costs. We're just left stranded with no time, no money and a hell of a lot of responsibility. What a brilliant trade from the life we used to have...

[@greenmarin3]

I hear you bud. 38 father of two. Single parent. Full custody. I have NO LIFE. But what am I gonna do? My kids need me.

[@snowcrazed1]

@@gregw7684 Finally parents speaking out. Same boat, same feeling. So sick of these "but kids are my world" types harping on about how selfish it is not to have kids, and how wonderful it is to have them. Frankly, my mums heading to a nursing home cos I can't stand her, and who knows what my relationship with my kids will be. I certainly won't force them to stay living near me and serve me like my mum tried. So I fully expect them to head out into the world and do cool things. Meanwhile I'm burning my life time away, my career, funds, future, all because my wife was absolutely hell bent on having kids (I preferred not to). Doing everything I can for the kids but at the end of the day, yes, I would've been totally happy without kids.

[@professional.commentator]

Cost of living is too high to afford kids.

[@Erivanci]

Really? How come lower income families have multiple children??? And they were lower income BEFORE the children.

[@professional.commentator]

@@Erivanci That's because of welfare programs and also maybe religion plays a role. Since it's usually religious families that are having kids these days.

[@GenZedsMother]

@@ErivanciExactly. Breeding in poverty keeps Judges, lawyers, politicians and police in jobs. It gives them a continuous supply of distributors to ply their illicit wares.

[@mynamesnotchom366]

It costs 1million + to buy a house where I grew up, rent is 400+ per week for shit rentals with mould and maintenance needs. It costs $100 for 2 bags of basic groceries. Child care is so expensive it's basically not worth one parent even working

[@jamesi9909]

Thats a rubbish excuse. The poorest countries have the highest fertility. Economics is a factor but its more to do with changing values to more individualism. Urbanisation also plays a big role. Agrarian societies rely on family to prosper.

[@5ive32]

The reason no one wants kids is because no one has had a chance to enjoy their adult life. And when they can afford to have them they're either too old or just don't want to change their lifestyle because well, they're only just now getting to enjoy their adulthood

[@aguyfromnothere]

I dont know what enjoy adulthood means without kids. Being parents is as human as breathing. Its one of the essential human experiences. Children are such a better better experience than anything else I have done.

[@HeldIntegral]

Pretty hard to take a 3 year old for a roadtrip.

[@Gumpmachine1]

Umm previous generations had it a lot harder than we do and had very large families.

[@Hellbourne1994]

@@Gumpmachine1 That would depend on what you mean by harder? Quality of life and services, yes its easier now. Though back then you could support a family and have a house on a single wage as a shoe cobbler, today you need 2 wages, its absolute fundamental difference. Today working class have less time. Financially todays new generations are actually worse off than their parents as they need to work longer to achieve the same goals.

[@Gumpmachine1]

@@Hellbourne1994 people have always had not much time. Victorian era families worked hard laborious jobs just to survive and yet had large families Rather than trying to tie it to a economic problem which has always been a an issue throughout human history so therefore can’t be the cause We need to view this from an evolutionary biology standpoint.

[@tugman1234]

Having kids but we're having them in our 30's and honestly having more than 2 sounds financially impossible.

[@aguyfromnothere]

Fertility starts to decline at 26 for women. Biology is the decider. Also kids are an economy of scale. 1 child raises the cost but each subsequent child adds minimal cost.

[@Ifyouarehurtnointentwasapplied]

It's always amazing how big Christian and Muslim familys can manage it financially and donate to church but the corporate women don't even think it is possible

[@HeldIntegral]

Tf do you mean subsequent children adds minimal cost? Every single one has to go through school, that's double uniforms, double compulsory laptops, double food, double clothes.. Tell me you you're a childless only child without telling me😂😅

[@Gumpmachine1]

Economics is a weak excuse, the real reason is much more dark

[@eliarevalo]

In the same boat I'm 40, and working on getting baby making, but my wife and I are already established...which took a long fucking time.

[@ruggjay]

I always thought I'd have kids, until in my late 20s when I realised that every time I'd think about the future I wasn't thinking of a family with children.

[@bigjaz8768]

Make no mistake Australia is already one giant nursing home. It's an extremely dire situation already. It's been happening for years.

[@Waywind420]

Political class have betrayed the Australian people for decades and deliberately crashed the country. My guess is that rival world powers couldn't take on the west head-on, so instead have been exploiting the weaknesses of a two-party system (political pandering) in order to dismantle the west from within. If so they've been masterful with it.

[@AzzaZazza-y9h]

It is so easy for people to see if they have been brought up in Australia

[@Ninsidhe]

It’s happening all over the world because in part women are TIRED of being treated like baby making appliances with little value; the DV laws and protections in Australia are an absolute farce, who is going to want to risk harm in a relationship where if it DOES go south the local police are just going to have a laugh with the abusive man while they all stand around and call the battered woman crazy? (Ballina and Byron Bay police, this is you).

[@yarravalleystorms9053]

The nursing homes probably abuse old people they don't care people who work for the government abuse people

[@larion2336]

Yep, on the coast in NSW the number one job availability is aged care / disability work.

[@joshuadeleeuw]

in order to have kids you need someone that wants to have kids with you

[@zzz66688]

Or you could just be Ironborn and omit that rule lol Some boomers probably think that anyways, that's why arranged marriages and even forced marriages still exist in some places.

[@AlliandoX]

So real … everyone’s in on that hookup situationship fwb poly crap these days…

[@edwardtimmins3146]

There is numerous factors at play, wages not keeping up with inflation, the dating market being a complete shit show and housing. The three key ingredients on having a stable family i.e parents with a stable well paying job, parents that like each other and a roof over their heads.

[@Gumpmachine1]

And yet impoverished countries have no issue and the poorest people in Australia have the most children. You’re kind of right but not for the reasons you think

[@T_Cup]

@@Gumpmachine1 They have no issue? Producing babies isn't child-rearing, there are plenty of issues with impoverished people having kids

[@Gumpmachine1]

@@T_Cup yes but we’re talking about birth rates, not how they’re looking after them. Reality is the poorest countries despite their problems are growing their populations while Australia one of the wealthiest countries with very high wages can’t get its women to breed. In fact women with absolutely no financial issues breed the least. There’s another factor at play that people are not realising or don’t want to acknowledge

[@tristanbackup2536]

​@@Gumpmachine1 Mouse utopia. They think they have it soo good they're the end & the pinical of their genetic line til it's too late.

[@zzz66688]

@@Gumpmachine1 And that would be social progressivism. But it's actually a bit of a paradox, we either go back to social conservativism like how it was in the 1800s and not go extinct. Or we stay socially progressive with the possibility of going extinct. The reality is people don't want either of them.

[@michael2481-j4t]

Can´t afford a place for myself, seems reckless to have a child

[@locustsandhoney486]

This is how a country goes into demise and gets taken over. Weak minded people.

[@Gumpmachine1]

Most children throughout history were the product of reckless behaviour. You’ve touched on the issue

[@Rose_Castle]

​@locustsandhoney486 did you imply that wanting a stable life for your kids is... weak minded?

[@Gumpmachine1]

@@Rose_Castle no he’s implying that we can’t afford to wait for “perfect” conditions for child rearing and such an attitude is “weak minded”. We’re literally losing the evolutionary battle with poorer civilisations because we refuse to breed

[@14DANESSJ]

​@@Gumpmachine1So op should start having kids while still living with his parents in a crowded house? Not counting pets.

[@wolfie54321]

Relationships are awful, cost of living is too high, for anyone living in a city kids are an expense people can't afford, so many young adults have just moved back in with their parents which isn't great for getting out there and starting relationships that would lead to having kids.

[@Deathzonepranks]

I cant even get a girlfriend I am 25 years old and have never been in a relationship. I have never thought about having kids due to being single but with how hard dating is becoming I do not see myself being in a relationship and will probably not end up having kids at all due to being single but for me that is the main reason I will not be having kids because I am single 😂

[@alexdewayne9392]

I gotchu. I'll have a kid for you. Problem solved.

[@AliveNotDeadmund]

Join a mixed sporting club and give it 12 months. See what happens. 😉

[@stoneylonesome4062]

@@AliveNotDeadmund you just gave the Ultimate Boomer Advice. Mixed Sporting clubs tend to be sausage-fests, whenever a girl shows up (especially one that’s cute & single), it completely ruins the vibe and all the guys start peacocking to impress her and start tearing eachother down. You might as well just advise him to go to a nightclub.

[@moeymcbacon8604]

​@@AliveNotDeadmund so basically he will become gay

[@Nath-sn1mv]

​@@alexdewayne9392😅

[@LupinTheLynx]

That jab at Israel was masterfully done. No external smile, but I know you were grinning internally with that deadpan delivery lol.

[@WeebStreamsChEN]

so because of cost of living having kids is expensive and to counter that they briing in heaps of imigration causing housing market to increase as well? ok.

[@JoJo-rg4kt]

I'm 4 months pregnant, 36 years old and surprised myself that I am happy to have this child. However, the father has already bailed. I will be fine without him however it would have been nice to have that support of a good partner. I do think this is hard to find in a man. This situation wasn't deliberate. I can see why women choose both sides. I see now we women are most often ultimately alone in this journey. Some women with partners even say this.

[@christopherpekel6096]

Maybe you should have used your brain and not let a useless man cum inside you Seriously, are you here asking for sympathy or to be insulted? You deserve the latter

[@jessicakeast9766]

Hence the term the 'married single mum'

[@mamamia5668]

Select better “partners” next time.

[@Rose_Castle]

​@@mamamia5668so you think she should be able to read the future? Please.

[@laurence2192]

@@Rose_Castlethere’s always signs.

[@RaveOnYourBack]

Cause it's expensive to feed another person let alone yourself.

[@Erivanci]

Nah. Low income families have children.

[@RaveOnYourBack]

@@Erivanci they do, just because they can, doesn't always mean they should. Unfortunately Cost of Living is a massive factor in the decision to have a family, however, children will happen even if you never meant for them, and children unfortunately are expensive. If people are willing to put themselves in debt to be happy with a family, then power to them, but I will not put myself or my family in debt.

[@Delosian]

@@Erivanci Which they don't have to pay for and feed because we the taxpayer are doing that for them with unemployment benefits and food in schools. Huge social welfare programs over the last 60 years has only seen things get worse, not better.

[@AkiRa22084]

@@RaveOnYourBack Children need very little food. Stop deluding yourself.

[@bias2784]

​@@AkiRa22084They need a lot of time. If youre constantly taking care of a kid, you cant work and make money to buy food. It's not about the amount of calories they require, it's the time they take.

[@chris-solmon4017]

All by design.

[@almyor]

I think that the economy just stopped growing like it did in the 20st century. Men just need to go back to traditional simple living instead of being city rats.

[@pebblepod30]

I don't think it's by design, rather than because voters vote for appearances, and Donor Class owned media (Fairfax & Murdoch) always sell the lie that what is good for them is good for Australia. And that is what gets you elected. For example, GDP means nothing in measuring how well an average person or family is going financially, but it gives political bragging rights. Same with housing prices rising- its terrible for the future, but increases GDP, and thus gives political bragging rights over something that is actually bad or neutral. So imo, it comes down to money in politics, which means polticans are rewarded for doing what satisfies Donor Class, and that is also what gives a facade of economic progress. Makes sense? So the cause is ultimately money in politics and media, pushing its own greed and power dressed up as public interest.

[@Ragedcreeper]

Honestly I think more people would have kids if they weren't slipping into poverty. I dont know a single person who doesn't live with housemates or their parents. Someone with a bleak future doesn't want to have kids. Simple.

[@AB54099]

Some folks, including myself, are self aware enough to realise they need therapy or self help before taking in the responsibility. You can't exactly just "have a go" at raising a child.

[@AliveNotDeadmund]

People have since the dawn of time! Do both at the same time. And we shall figure it out like our forefathers before us. 😁

[@Hewkll]

If you wait until you are "ready", you will never be ready enough. People have been "having a go" at children for millennia and it usually works out fine. You can't learn to be a parent by reading books or whatever, you need to experience it

[@Mad4400]

@@AliveNotDeadmund And what doesn't get figured out will be inherited by our offspring to ensure the cycle continues.

[@aguyfromnothere]

No one is ever ready. Unless you are a drug addict or having depression needing hospitalization having the kids and stop focusing on yourself helps most people become more adjusted and more able to have the world.

[@A_massive_wog]

They didn't have therapy in Ancient Rome!

[@kzbb9977]

6 weeks paid time off to care for a newborn then you’re back to work dropping off a 7 week old infant to a stranger hoping you can afford that $100 a day to have someone else care for them just so you can still break even month on month..it’s so bleak. How do people afford raising a family in Sydney ?

[@gregw7684]

Having kids has been great at an emotional level. It's unlocked a feeling of unconditional love in my brain that wasn't even close to existing before. It is also awful in literally every other aspect. I have zero free time to nurture anything close to self care. I spend zero hours a year with my friends. I have zero time to put into the relationship I had with my wife pre kids. So we just let it take the hits for a decade or so and hope something salvageable emerges at the end. The cost of living means most of our income is spent on merely surviving. Life is work, a bit more work and sleep (if you're lucky). That's it. That's the culmination of 12 years in school. 4 years at university. 10 years building a career and growing a relationship with someone you fell in love with. Work (be it the actual career or just parenting. It's all work.) and interrupted sleep, so you're never quite rested enough to face more work. Why are birth rates dropping? I think I have an idea or two...

[@snowcrazed1]

This 100% nailed it. I thought I'm the only one seeing it all this way. I'm so sick of feeling like I'm asking for a favour any time I do anything I enjoy. Go for a bike ride for a few hours? Sure, make sure your partner is OK with hanging out with 2 kids under 4... Any hobby I used to have, any freedom, all of it is now a negotiation, a favour. If we get sick (we often do due to daycare disease factory), it takes everyone down. Takes weeks to get over. Lack of sleep is killing us too, first kid slept relatively well, second not so... I feel myself rapidly aging due to lack of sleep, over worked, and a small fraction of the exercise I used to get pre kid.

[@gregw7684]

Yep. Negotiate a favour just to do something you enjoy. Not how I thought life would be at 35. My wife and I are both at the end of our tether, so having to solo parent so the other can go enjoy something is always a stretch for whoever is left with the kids. That's not to say we don't enjoy spending time with our kids. It's just that we ONLY spend time with our kids. When you ONLY do one thing, it doesn't matter what it is, it's going to start being unenjoyable. I bought an e-skate so I could commute to work on it and maybe enjoy the 15 minute ride to and from work. My wife is furious that I'll have to leave 5 minutes earlier than normal, and I'll get home 5 minutes later. That's the mental toll that 10 minutes extra solo parenting exerts on our relationship. Literally reframing my commute to work as the enjoyable part of my day will demand 10 more minutes of extra parenting from my wife, and that's a problem. It's an unbelievable reality to be faced with.

[@snowcrazed1]

@@gregw7684 sounds similar here too. I've had to take days off work while older kid is in daycare to actually get to go for a bike ride or something. And yep main issue is all you can do is spend time with the kids. We've killed the village, everyone is building their own fort, well this is what you get. Since kid 2 I'm back to working from home like 9 days a fortnight which I absolutely hate. Often during the day mind the kid while she does some work then I catch up working from kid bed time to like 10 or 11pm. I don't look forward to weekends anymore, and now not to work days either. Maybe it'll change in 3 years (7 counting from kid 1) but loss of freedom and life outlook for this long means by then I'll probably be too different, wrecked and institutionalized to make much of it. Probably working more to pay for more shit too.

[@gregw7684]

@snowcrazed1 that is the one glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. That it will, eventually, be easier. I only hope the toll in the meantime is not too great. It's as you say, we killed the village. I am bitter about that on multiple fronts. That my marriage has to be tested to such a degree. That, to an extent, I am losing the ability to enjoy my children at the age they are by instead wishing for easier days. That my physical and mental health erodes with every passing day. The loss of "the village" is costing a lot. It's certainly not a cost I had anticipated.

[@stone686970]

Gee that’s sad mate. Hard work is the fruits of life. I hope you can figure out how to find peace and happiness in the journey it provides rather than misery.

[@sociusgrim]

Not keen on bringing life into the world when the future looks extremely bleak.

[@bchooper5603]

The past was far worse (1900s and earlier) and people still did. The bleakness is a false message/image that wealthy media and wealthy people are sending out. Less people = more for them.

[@selektor2567]

The current world is, and will continue to be, the best time in human history to have a child.

[@dogzdigital]

@@selektor2567 That was true until about a decade or so ago, now it is going backwards.

[@selektor2567]

@@dogzdigital in what sense?

[@dogzdigital]

@@selektor2567 Housing affordability, wages, cost of living across the board, freedom of the press, workers rights are all heading in the wrong direction.

[@elizabethkenobi1365]

Single from USA, 44, not having kids, never had kids. I don't object to having kids but never clicked with anyone enough to want some with them. Interesting reading the comments too--a lot of valid and sad commentaries on our society here.

[@lukerutter4471]

If we need kids to sustain the tax base then why dont we start taxing the gas companies more and tax the wealthy bloomers whose generation needs the younger ppl to look after them. Lower income tax and change policy to reduce house prices. Boomers want their cake and to eat it

[@longexpectedjourney]

Fuck yes I want Kids! I feel like I owe it to my Mother and Father (both dead before I was 25yo). The modern dating scene has fucked me though. My White Grandfather was a child and wife beater who was still good enough to pop out 3 kids. My Father was a drug addict, wife and child-beater biker who was good enough to pop out 3 kids. Me? I am an Engineering Surveyor earning $110k currently, 5"7 - 55kg with less than 8% body fat, own 1 rental property and currently working hard to own my own house and investments is not good enough to pop out 3 kids. I, who is more than happy to provide for a stay at home wife who home-schools and looks after our children, absolutely not good enough. I do, in-fact, genuinely find that whack. #endrant

[@vegastrypes]

Missus can't have kids, unfortunately. We also look at the state of the world and think maybe that's a good thing. What would we be bringing a child into?

[@eliarevalo]

It's not that bad. I grew up in the Philippines. Places like Australia are a paradise by comparison. The world is fucked, but not completely fucked.

[@Eshayzbra96]

People still reproduced when the black plague wiped out half of Europe. The Japanese Empire could had destroyed this country but our grandparents still had kids. The world has never been in a state of stability yet this is considered the most peaceful time on earth since World War 2. RAISE CHILDREN. Still other ways to have kids if you use your head.

[@derwoodhamburger]

True. We need Donald Trump to win in 2024 if we want to see any kind of improvement

[@justintricker7602]

I don't want kids for a number of reasons. I come from a long line of people with mental health issues made worse by decisions of the previous generation which is a cycle I wish to break, the world is an absolute shitshow, it's too expensive and I just don't want kids because I largely like my life the way it is being able to do what I want with it outside of work. Plus the thought of being responsible for another life and raising it 24/7 with my mental health issues sounds exhausting.

[@dv8677]

Fine, I'll do it myself

[@two-chicks]

Family law lacks so much impartiality, having kids is pretty much a jail or mental health sentence

[@maddyg3208]

On the contrary, having kids is the best thlng ever. Happy Fathers Day!

[@gregorywilkinson5731]

It's not a mystery. Being alive is too expensive here.

[@JasonNZ42]

It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that the birth rate is dropping. Hardly anyone I know even enjoys school and/or work. Most of us have had to work five days to enjoy two and that was standard over 20 years ago. The world is corrupt to the point where I wouldn't want to raise even one child on it.

[@ripperdjak6224]

It takes my entire pay check to pay my mortgage

[@houda2coral924]

That's just wrong

[@tonesw1604]

Sounds like you are overinvested

[@A_massive_wog]

You picked material objects over a family

[@dcmastermindfirst9418]

So how the fuck do you buy food?

[@heartyninja4405]

Why would you get yourself into that mortgage?

[@hououinkyouma5372]

Too much work. Hard enough to achieve a good lifestyle for myself, so I definitely don't want to add a family on top of it.

[@sarahstanton6483]

I’d rather not be sent into complete poverty for having a child. I’m barely scraping by now.

[@Draugh39]

After some relationships many years ago, I concluded that I'm much happier and content with life than I ever was in a relationship with a woman (and since I'm straight that is the only relationship I was interested in). No way I would ever father a kid. There are millions of kids in foster care in need of adoption, should I ever change my mind about having kids.

[@MaxiLeTaxi44]

I want two kids, hoping one boy and one girl. I’m 22, 23 in two months and I cannot possibly see a future for me in the next 10 years where I could have them. The way humanity is going is just too overwhelming then 2020 hit and it’s been a faster downhill slope than Disney stock shares. I just barely got to move out and I live in NZ which is saying something. Things used to be relatively easy and now we’re up over 80% in prices with wages still unchanged to balance, we’re just fucked. I hope I can come back in years to come to read this and be utterly wrong. I hope. I just hope.

[@happywombat]

From my social circle and others ive heard, the main issue with us at the moment is primarily housing and income, its just too expensive for kids at the moment.

[@grrman]

Huh, it's almost like society shifting away from promoting women to be nurturers and mothers and men being providers and fathers, as well as not promoting healthy lifestyles for native populations coupled with a lack of a proud native cultural upbringing is bad in the long term. Who'd have thunk?

[@freedomgaming9987]

If only some people would have warned us about this last century, aye

[@grrman]

@@freedomgaming9987 If only

[@Seeker7257]

People are incessantly complaining about the quality of life, wages, political issues and whatnot. And these complaints are justified because they are true. Working for almost a decade of minimum wage (if applicable) just to own a house is one of the many reasons. They can barely make it through the month. What is the main cause of this?

[@grrman]

@@Seeker7257 Where do you wanna start? Massive surplus creation of available labour from the 70's/80's onwards due to women suddenly all joining the workforce while simultaneously off-shipping a lot of labour (especially manufacturing) overseas. Moving away from the gold standard in pretty much all countries didn't help either. Fractional reserve banking has enabled reserve banks to have their money printers go "brrr", i.e. excessively printing currency without ACTUALLY producing goods of value, causing huge amounts of inflation over the years. Then creation of various wasteful degree fields coupled with the notion that everyone MUST go to university/college, which, when coupled with government involvement, created a massive influx in cost of further education. Then in the 90's/00's you've got the cultural shift towards glorification of celebrities, questionable lifestyle choices including massive increases in promiscuity creating A LOT of single moms, and their subsidisation by the state. And in the 2010's we've gone to the horrible influencer stage where some people have the inclination that being a 'content creator' is the greatest thing ever and actual pursuit of valuable skills is being put secondary or even tertiary by some youngsters. Also in the 2000's and 2010's we've had the mass immigration issue of mostly low or unskilled people coming into the developed world and further expanding the labour supply, especially in lower skill jobs which used to be the starting point for young people to actually get started in their careers. Further, a lot of these immigrants ended up forming ghettos throughout their country of choice and failed to properly integrate, further straining social cohesion between natives while also living of the welfare state, further taxing the local populous. Now the above loosely apply to pretty much the entire Western world, so yeah, there you have it in a nutshell. The reasons are significantly more nuanced than the brief summary I've given, but it certainly is a starting point to understand what happened.

[@peterjamesluck]

I wonder what group of people pushed this propaganda on the world. The answer is in the video

[@lumeronswift]

Community used to exist to support child-raising. When that was killed during the push for individualism, it was replaced with the promise of wealth on a single income. As that started to fade, it was replaced with governments handing out money to people having kids. As that money started to dry out, it was replaced with governments giving tax benefits to people with kids. That, too, has mostly dried up... leaving people without stable communities and with a tenuous grasp on money as jobs get cut and prices rise. The countries with high birth rates still have communities/non-individualistic culture.

[@JobiWan144]

I love how you managed to talk about this issue while still throwing in jokes at the (mostly benign) expense of basically everyone. My wife is currently pregnant with our fourth child, but that number includes two miscarriages. We'll probably adopt two more kids after this one to round out the family size that we've planned.

[@watch-Dominion-2018]

What race and country are you both?

[@Spacemonkeymojo]

@@watch-Dominion-2018 Indian obviously.

[@jgods]

Have a 4 month old son, and my wife and I have decided not to have another, meaning our family is “under the replacement rate”. For us it’s due to the lack of family support. While I’m sure this isn’t the case for all new millennial parents, it does seem to be a generational thing. Taking care of a newborn used to be a family affair, not so much anymore.

[@jessicakeast9766]

The village is gone

[@snowcrazed1]

Lucky you could both agree. My wife fought me for 3 years before I finally had to give in and have kid #2. Because oh what a shit life for kid #1 to be an only child, blah blah blah. Now our relationship is toast, even worse on any free time front, but who cares, they'll be together. These little tackers better not end up fighting/hating each other.

[@jgods]

@@snowcrazed1 I have a friend in a similar situation. Already has two but wife wants a third, mainly because the first two were sons and she wants a daughter. They’re already having a hard time supporting the first two kids, but she doesn’t seem to care. Good luck dude, I hope things work out for you.

[@robnewman5329]

Honestly mate I would love to have kids. But the reason I’m not is 2 fold. One I’m single, doing a lot of work on myself to hopefully meet someone amazing honest kind and sweet but yeah. Reason 2 and this is the main one in that even if I had a partner this would be the reason. I’m a Neuro diverse man who lived in fucking poverty most of my life, but I struggled and sacrificed and worked hard and now I’m lucky to say I have a university education in a career I absolutely love and am good at and I can honestly say I enjoy going to work which makes me extremely lucky. However, even though I made it. Making it isn’t what it use to be. I still can’t afford a home, I in no way could afford to facilitate a secure family environment that I would want to bring children into which would enable me to be the best father I could be. Due to these massive economic obstacles I know I wouldn’t cope and thus I would just repeat the cycle of trauma that I had worked and am working still so hard to break. So why would I bring a child into this world knowing they would have just as bad a or even worse up brining then I had? Now if say I could afford to securely support a family well then that would be different but for me and most Australians I just don’t see how it’s economically possible for context I earn more then the national average and still can’t afford it.

[@freedomgaming9987]

I want kids. But... Zoomer women are every Red Flag not just one or two.

[@P.Whitestrake]

Women nowadays have more red flags than a communist parade.

[@thebranch4756]

Ah you mean most women in general. Some millennials are fine. But not all & the good gen x-ers & boomers i know are either already married or are elder woman & thus unavailable.

[@noodledaddy3234]

I’m a girl and I think the same way with both genders

[@symphoniaix1895]

if you think all zoomer women are like that you are looking in the wrong places..

[@freedomgaming9987]

@@symphoniaix1895 cope.

[@person-ie1fe]

Dated 40 women in the past 2 years. Every single one didn't want kids..... I am rich and can afford them.... But can't find someone who wants them. Frankly i was shocked, considering there were so many women who didn't want kids. I thought it would be like 30% or 60%, not literally all of them. I met these women at work, cafes, libraries even Church. Of all political backgrounds and religious/non-religious. Key reason, they want a career and think kids will 'oppress' them, or take that away.

[@smashlee6181]

that is dystopian

[@Gumpmachine1]

Exactly women simply don’t want children given the option.

[@snowcrazed1]

Well they say that, like my wife did, but then when you're hooked and they're settled in, their biological clock kicks in and they won't stop until they have a kid, no matter how shit your relationship ends up.

[@joshklaver47]

Those women sound smart. Maybe accept that this world doesn't need any clones of you, and settle down with one of them.

[@Rationalist101]

@@person-ie1fe Wow

[@rubyduby2656]

The global population has doubled since 1975. There is no reason for anybody to worry about global population decline. We already have 8.2 Billion people eating pringles and destroying animal habitats.

[@mdalikazi]

I haven't seen a single parent who seems to enjoy the whole process. Their sleep is fucked, they have 10x more things to do, there's all kinds of issues like mom gets infection from anaesthesia, kids get sick, need a bigger place, need a bigger car. And then after all that the kids go to school and snort cocaine at age 7. It's fucked.

[@Teddy-vs5rw]

Do you want to be surrounded by your grandkids on your deathbed, or be alone? I know which one I'd pick.

[@manstie]

@@Teddy-vs5rw if you make your death bed more interesting then you won't need kids around.

[@jordanashcroft738]

Wtf is hitting the turbo snail at 7 ?!

[@joannadazz6903]

All my friends are mums and I've never heard of anyone getting an infection from anaesthesia - must be rare. The first few years of parenting is extremely difficult, but then if you've disciplined them and taught them to put their stuff away, it gets easier around 4 years old. Life is still super busy all the time, but they are so sweet and bring so much innocence, happiness and joy to our lives. You don't need a bigger place or bigger car, you can make do.

[@sunsetanimator4187]

@@Teddy-vs5rwThis is never a guarantee. After all, having kids is making and raising a stranger.

[@Seeker7257]

I think it is justified given the obvious increase in inflation and inability of corporations to sustain a comfortable lifestyle for employees. People do not want to birth more wage slaving human beings.

[@Murto84]

Cuz everyone's broke, no-one can afford a house and its impossible to get a stable rental.

[@AliveNotDeadmund]

Dude this was 3 minutes of Mona Lisa levels of fire. Well fucking done mate for tackling one of the biggest elephants in the room so well. Us millennials need to get our fuck on.

[@AlliandoX]

I always thought I would get married and have kids in a house but then the situationship /hookup/poly whatever trash dating market, dead job market, poor economy and unaffordable housing killed that imagined future

[@vladtheimpalerofyourmom-ag5112]

Kids aren’t needed dude, just import your businesses workers, just throw out a few adds to say you tried, ignore applications then being in the workers from elsewhere.

[@forwardtsender8573]

That plan counts on the place you're importing your workers from to keep having kids.

[@MatthewNoPants1atoll]

Me and my partner are doing it tough right now because our second child ended up being twins, so now we have three little goblins tearing the house apart right now. I have never been more happy. I have never been more stressed out. Tho misso and I got a babysitter for the weekend and discovered the nightlife has nose dived in Adelaide recently. Not missing much. I'll take this over getting eaten by a cat until the neighbours complain about the smell.

[@P.Whitestrake]

Partner? Do you own a law firm, or are you a crime syndicate?

[@TheCoralie87]

​@@P.Whitestrake Perhaps their not married.

[@jesse8737]

Life is a horrible experience. Why would I want to do that to another human being?

[@BertisAU]

Sorry to hear that. I hope things get better for you.

[@symphoniaix1895]

it really isnt. you choose to see it as a curse or blessing

[@Mad4400]

My partner had to have surgery on her reproductive parts about 12 years ago that made conceiving naturally near impossible. Medical intervention is possible, but I can't foresee us being in a financially comfortable position again in the immediate future, and beyond that the already poor odds will get worse. It has been a source of sadness for us and also disappointment for her, as family is an important part of her culture. Over the last 5 years I started to feel that perhaps it was a blessing as I became more and more concerned with the direction the world is heading and the likelihood that the future is going to be a shitty place to live for a lot of people reaching adulthood in the next 15-20 years. Or perhaps that's just a narrative I've created to not have to feel sad about our situation.

[@joshklaver47]

We need to change cultures and weed out the pronatalism that poisons so many of them. Women need to be seen as valuable even when they don't produce offspring.

[@dcmastermindfirst9418]

My brother who just turned 33 just purchased a house for 900 grand after selling his previous one. Nobody can afford that shit.

[@christopherpekel6096]

My brother is about to buy one that is 1.4 million. He's 35 I live in a bus. It cost me 6 grand 😂

[@dcmastermindfirst9418]

@@christopherpekel6096 Lol where? In Sydney?? Nobody can afford modern house prices.

[@christopherpekel6096]

@@dcmastermindfirst9418 melbs

[@wafflingmean4477]

I hadn't decided whether or not I'll have kids. Then I did the math and realised that given there is NO END IN SIGHT and there won't be one at any point in the future for Cost of Living rising, it doesn't matter how hard I work. If I work a full time job every day, cook all my own meals, never go out, never take a holiday, I WILL STILL END UP HOMELESS within 5-10 years. It's downright cruel for me to bring a child into this world. So regardless of whether I personally end up wanting kids, I'm never going to have kids. This is not a unique situation.

[@thebatman8956]

That leb joke at the start crraaaackkked me up, thanks Neel.

[@kdd9534]

“Since we’re not coming inside of each other you can come see me live” gold

[@RUPSIEISMYNAME]

I want kids, m(36) but i have 1. Trouble finding a partner despite being athletic, social and handy. Dating apps is an energy/self confidence drainer then a booster. As a 36 old guy in a g7 country with the housing crisis getting a home to raise a family is an issue as well.

[@stevenfinch4238]

Can you look at the world as it is, and tell me honestly that it's a good idea to have children?

[@Ferwail]

If you bought a house more than 3 years ago, you’ve got a shot. If you don’t own property at the moment, no chance.

[@664unit]

to be honest mate i've pretty much opted out of society beyond paying my own bills. flat out hedonism until i die, whenever that is. anime, vidya, and waifu tech. i'm 30 now and there's no signs of the party of one (me) stopping.

[@voodoomedic6598]

Based, can I offer you a premium sex doll my good sir? 😂

[@pragmaticduck1772]

Poor Tony, that was a stray the poor bloke didn't need. Awesome video mate, clever and thought provoking

[@DooverLackey]

Combination of no housing, gen z (some of them) sooking about it being to hard and watching twitch instead, and lower fertility in men

[@ValleysOfNeptune2150]

I think it comes down to stability. What do I mean by that? Well, the decisions of a society used to be based around what was best for citizens and local communities LONG TERM Everything these days is geared towards - fast results and satisfaction Having kids is something that takes the longest commitment alongside a career and a mortgage - and these days the amount of time and effort required by both parties for mortgage and career is so high compared to what it used to be that nobody has the actual capacity to do it without severe sacrifices . I think that sums it up.

[@matty_isthemotto]

Who would want to raise kids in this effed up world

[@NFSWARFARE]

Yeah I kinda spite my parents for waiting 5-10 yrs extra to conceive me now I'm fucked too far behind may kms cause I'm too weak to even try keep living

[@matty_isthemotto]

@NFSWARFARE good idea bud all the best rip

[@NFSWARFARE]

@@matty_isthemotto I'm not serious abt kms just I am really behind, down, lost, lonely, dreading

[@matty_isthemotto]

@@NFSWARFARE nah do it

[@itchyscab984]

This isn't a problem. It's the solution

[@canijustplease]

In my 40's, shift worker, i work 48 to 60 hours a week, reduced down from 72 hours in recent years. Make under $80k. Single. I don't have time or energy to date. I don't make enough income to support a family. A family would have been nice.

[@TheOlddr]

Australia can do if you have more kids = you pay less tax. When you have 5 kids, you pay no tax as personal income.

[@Somone_final_final_v2]

The dark irony is the neo liberalism and conservative free market thinking has essentially created an economic and social environment where people wont have kids. The attitude of expecting women to do the housework while they still have to work also makes children a pretty hard sell. Well done those who wasted the chance for Australia to have an immense fund (similar to Norway)from our resources that couldve funded an enormous amount of programs that would facilitate more kids (subsidised childcare, cheaper housing and more effective public transport).

[@ImrightImright-y2v]

Same in the Netherlands

[@DangerAngelous]

It's the same thing as speed limits and anti-hooning laws don't stop hoons, but petrol prices do

[@star_fossil]

Uni for most is killing the birth rate.

[@JohnSmith-vx5mt]

Cost vs Time, working an average of 16hours, 6 days a week to stay ahead of rising cost, then to find time to look after another person.

[@esrynshudder4216]

Haven't watched a video from you in a while and this really impressed me damn nice work

[@johndoe2006]

That’s Israel joke was so subtle. Impressive

[@jpcharles01]

Loved that. Insightful, entertaining, funny and more. Great content.

[@electro_sykes]

Not to mention that a lot of the young people wanna leave this fucking boring island

[@electro_sykes]

​@@joelbattiston1139 not even that, My issue is the high costs.

[@noodledaddy3234]

Some can barley afford a house it would be selfish to bring up a child like that

[@MrJohnCitizenSmith]

Millionaires cant even afford kids now

[@gymclasshero88]

I can’t afford myself let alone a mini me

[@punishanpika]

Kids don't even end up being mini-yous anyway. That is just a lie people who want you to have kids tell you.

[@gymclasshero88]

@@punishanpika yeah true, most kids end up hating their parents too so a very expensive and sad endeavour

[@bahpapajarmjackson]

You hit this one out of the park.

[@Anonymous-md2qp]

It has always been a moral issue for me. I personally deem it immoral to bring kids into the world.

[@NeoCavo]

I want kids.. I want multiple kids, 1 for me, 1 her and 1 for the country. At best we might be able to have to two.. We are in a 2 bedroom home that we could afford despite being on $250k combined income

[@mazzak]

My partner and I both work jobs that earn over 80k and it's just enough to pay mortgage/rates/bills/daily living we are happy but thrifty I personally don't want to bring a child up in a environment where the parents are living pay check to pay check, I fear that leads to resentment and eventually separation

[@kelvinjames6344]

If u work how can u afford to have kids thats why

[@AmySullivan-v3f]

There are families with children living in cars right now… that’s why. Villages no longer help raise children because of too many bad policies/parliamentarians making choices for self gain. Not for the nation.

[@EpicMRPancake]

Neel you're improving, good shit mate.

[@Banana_Split_Cream_Buns]

I would have kids but the chemicals in the water turned me gay. Either that or watching too much NRL, wrestling, boxing and UFC.

[@jonathanmichaelsmith9012]

Solid video, Neel. It's housing.

[@yazza0013]

For what purpose? I'm 30, and I've only seen society gradually decline in standards. I don't see it improving any time soon. I also think about how I'll need to work for the next 40 years, just to not own much of anything. For comparison with my parents, on one salary you could own a house in 15 years. If I somehow had a high paying job at my age, I'd pay the house off when I'm older than 60. I can't imagine putting another human through working full time hours for 40-50 years, it's just so repetitive and I find it immoral. What do I say to my kid? "Congrats, you exist and get to work for a few decades, enjoy paying a landlords mortgage". Also, climate change is a thing people conveniently forget about, who knows if there will even be an inhabitable world for humans in 30+ years. The government isn't exactly helping either, Australia is importing a lot of people during a housing shortage, only making the problem worse. Ironically, we'll need migrants to build their own houses. But the problem is like a feedback loop, houses too expensive, lack of remaining income after expenses, can't afford children. The people with lack of finances who have children will be stuck in a cycle of poverty, which is hard to escape from. So while less wealthy people have kids, there's no money for anything else.

[@iwenttobunnings7868]

I'm ugly lmao. No kids for me

[@chooki101]

You have to decide if you want children, or want to own a house. In this day and age, you can’t have both

[@owllover1237]

the bloodline ends with me

[@connorstace]

I know I might be in the minority here but having a kid has been one of the best decisions of my life. I love my son so much and my lfie is made all the richer with him in it. But regardless I am still nervous sometimes about the future. The cost of living and the fact that housing is so unaffordable. I live almost 45 minutes from my CBD - (over 30kms from Brisbane) And the rental market has gone from affordable and a comfortable compromsie to negligably different. Over the last 3.5 years my rent has almost doubled ($380 / $600). Both my wife and I went to University and have jobs in our studied fields. Still doesn't feel like enough. Make you wonder what needs to happen for things to change.

[@cooperman252]

I would love to have my own family but my anxiety is through the roof. For now...I am a cat dad.

[@spadgm]

Cat Dad sounds good!

[@norianorin8317]

I am not Australian. No children. Over 30. Want to, but no. Reasons: Not a homeless beggar, but lived almost my entire life on the poverty line, salaries in the country are small and grow noticeably behind prices and often do not increase at all. And prices for everything only grow, a bunch of health problems because of this, instability in the country, an uncertain future, a war that seems to be coming to a halt, without the slightest hint that the neighbor will not start a second round again... To sum up: money, health, the future is not at all cloudless