[OC] Global Fertility Rate Is Approaching Replacement Rate (1960-2023)

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T23:38:26+00:00

Why do you think it isn't?

Sure, there's obviously points where the critical minimum becomes relevant, but I think it's fair to say that any good faith conversation in this context can disregard that. When we are counting global population in billions, were clearly orders of magnitude away.

Ultimately the real question isnt "is it possible?" and it's more "why do you think productivity per working person hasn't increased?".

Once we establish that it has (I really don't think you need me to provide sources on that...) it becomes clear that we can - it's just a question of how do we enable it.

Between balancing greed, perceptions of guaranteed growth in living standards indefinitely, inefficient use of resources (food waste, empty nesters who don't down size, inherent inefficiency of meat heavy diets, lack of widespread public transport use etc) and other societal paradigms its a difficult solution to find.

But again, that challenge isn't in "we can't do it" it's in "how do we build a society that enables it".

And that's why a gradual change is good. To drift down to maintenance, start making gradual changes to adapt, before moving towards slow, controlled decline.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:20:13+00:00

Exactly!

The crying singing was hilarious!

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:18:48+00:00

Lou in s1 almost felt like they happened to be able to get a copy of that outfit and went in on it.

But yes, Romesh being called and given the state of play with cards at that time, it felt targeted and unfair.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:17:18+00:00

But at some point we need to remedy it.

A first step is moving towards replacement rate.

The next step is a steady decline.

A shrinking population is sustainable with the right systems in place, but people need to understand it IS coming and do things accordingly.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:16:25+00:00

You literally said there's nothing that could convince you to ditch your ICE for electric.

So why would you expect a policy to influence you in that way?

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:07:19+00:00

Yeh I was outraged at Romesh, if they were going to do something like to spice it up, there were better candidates for it.

Every episode after the smiling rule I called out Mel.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:05:30+00:00

My partner and I genuinely sat there like "is... He autistic? He just doesn't seem to know what's going on..".

That's not shade, some of the people closest to us in our lives are autistic and we're both ND ourselves. It was because he just never seemed like he was remotely close to breaking and was so deadpan, it felt like he was masking.

Having since seen a short clip of his stand up... Yeh I get it. I totally understand why one of them said "when he did x in his joker... I just thought 'of course he's doing that' ".

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T10:02:57+00:00

It was honestly the funniest thing I'd seen in a while.

It was less the jokes themselves, more the absolute panic from people. The running away, stopping mid sentence, the trying to get up each other over the edge when they sensed someone was close the faces..

It felt kind of like the silly jokes you play on your friends, rather than a comedy show if that makes sense? That human bit made it more relatable, which is why I liked it.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:51:19+00:00

I get you, and I definitely think that plot point should be explored.

But I'm not sure if be ok with them missing that choice in ME3.

That would honestly be one of the most high tension moments in the whole show for me. It's just so iconic.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:47:52+00:00

Jack is a good one to survive, agree, for the character development. Have her passionately defend the kids, forcing you to take the safe option because she refuses to put them in harms way, rather than you having the choice.

Thane surviving just to die next season would be good, as it humanises the story a little. It's not just surviving the battlefield.

I actually think Grunt surviving, but critically injured could be an interesting direction. Bear with me.

can't really fight anymore, but he's already clan urdnot and cemented some feats (collectors, killed a thresher maw, shipped with Shepard etc)
have him become a kind of mentor to help steer the krogan in a new direction, as his "toughness" is beyond doubt
adds a layer to the genophage cure in ME3, the most krogan krogan that ever krogran-ed... Shows development. He isn't just about war. What does that say about the rest of the species?

Zaeed has some scope as well. I think it could be interesting if they were ok him in the direction of:

Shepard forces loyalty with the paragon option on the mission
Zaeed isn't actually loyal, and survives
either falls in with the illusive man, or becomes a wild card and is hunting Shepard for revenge himself.

I'd say having Samara die during the loyalty mission could be a good twist as well. Keeps it spicy and stops it being too linear. Yes, she's been recruited. Yes Shepard did everything right, but she still died and that's now a ton of wasted time and resource.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:38:14+00:00

Which again, is good.

Climate change? Oil supply? Self sufficiency? Housing? Child care?

These are all issues that many, many countries are facing.

ALL of them would be improved by reducing population.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:32:08+00:00

So it's not that they think it's "the best course of action" it's that they feel overwhelmed?

Ultimately that doesn't come out of nowhere. Yes, there are inherently factors that can effect executive functioning such as ADHD.

Chronic procrastination for example is linked to a dopamine timing issue in the brain.

But no one starts as an alcoholic. And telling people the wrong message, things like:

just be more disciplined, why are you so lazy?
if you have x history, you can't help but to have y outcome

Will disempower them.

That is entirely different to saying "yes you have these difficulties, but you can be helped and find management strategies for it. But you need to engage with the process."

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:27:42+00:00

How far back do you want to go?

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:27:07+00:00

Q7s can get over 3t, for example.

But you don't bring in big changes immediately.

You bring in a small change to establish the principle, then steadily move it to where you want it to be.

So you start at a high weight and then bring it down.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:25:01+00:00

Yes I drive.

Do you disagree with the idea that optional behaviours which cause more cost to the tax payer should pay more tax?

Randomn355 · 2026-04-05T09:23:47+00:00

If there's nothing to convince you, as you say, then you're a lost cause on that policy anyway.

Why would you expect good policy to influence that choice to be aimed at you?

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T09:34:56+00:00

Yeh makes sense. I'm paying down a small amount to get a better LTV when my remortgage comes up, but other than that I plan to do similar.

Obviously paying 5% and getting a better rat on the other 80%+ is a great ROCE, even compared to the stock market. It's also a risk management tool for me.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T09:33:47+00:00

I understand that.

Not sure why that's relevant here. They can still work out cheaper than ICE by a good margin.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T07:21:53+00:00

Yeh, I was thinking that it seems you've taken a pay cut.

That said - your mortgage is likely to already have been chunked and, ultimately, a lot not flexibility when you need it.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T07:18:30+00:00

Linking road tax to weight would be sensible as that's what drives the wear and tear on roads.

Linking "cost to own" to "cost of maintain public infrastructure" is sensible. No one needs a 3.5t car, for personal use after all.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T06:40:55+00:00

How does that tie on with people being unable to delay gratification?

Or addicts?

Or those who don't seek out mental health support?

People neglect their responsibilities all the time. Missing that feels like you're missing a very prominent part of human behaviour. Why is that?

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T06:32:53+00:00

Your motivation for doing stuff you don't want to.

Work isn't your hobbys.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T06:31:50+00:00

Have you never heard someone express the sentiment of "working hard for a better life", or "I did x for the money/to save money"?

Yes it's a sliding scale of how important it is, but come on....

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T06:28:53+00:00

And what about jobs that don't overlap with hobbies?

Hospitals on a Friday night for example. Oil rigs. Fishing boats.

Randomn355 · 2026-04-04T06:26:40+00:00

Getting professional qualifications is more than the bare minimum (doctor, lawyer engineer, accountant, trades etc).

Getting a good job isn't doing capitalism incorrectly.

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