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To think pronatalists are on to something?

231 replies

Carebearsonmybed · 25/05/2024 09:28

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/article/2024/may/25/american-pronatalists-malcolm-and-simone-collins?CMP=ShareiOSAppp_Other

I don't agree with everything this couple say or do but I do think we are approaching a demographic timebomb when the global human population starts to drop in 50 years time.

Most women probably expect to have more DCs at 20 than they end up having by 45. What can we do to get the UK birth rate to replacement rate of c 2.5 so we don't have a crisis of elderly people without enough workers to pay for or provide care and subsidence?

OP posts:
Nanny0gg · 25/05/2024 14:33

HellonHeels · 25/05/2024 09:54

Agree

And then what? Another unpopulated planet amongst billions of others?

pikkumyy77 · 25/05/2024 14:16

Arlott · 25/05/2024 10:17

Immigration isn’t the answer, because time and again studies show that immigrants quickly match the native birth rate. Ie immigrants from cohntries like Nigeria to the uk quickly start to have 1 or 2 children. Then, you end up rapidly with the need to bring in even MORE people, who then have fewer children, and bring in even MORE. What then? If we are currently running at 700k immigrants a year, what would we end up with? 2 million a year? Not remotely feasible

But what is the problem with immigrants? They replace the non working population so evidently there is room.

therealcookiemonster · 25/05/2024 14:11

just finished reading the full article and someone really needs to take those poor kids off them. utterly horrific people

Crunchymum · 25/05/2024 13:59

Why do pronatalists give their kids weird fucking names?

KimberleyClark · 25/05/2024 13:57

fitzwilliamdarcy · 25/05/2024 12:59

I’m not crazy about pro-natalist policies as an infertile woman. My workplace is extremely family friendly, which essentially means that anyone without kids gets absolutely shafted.

The thread about improving wrap-around care has posters suggesting that childless people should be the ones working the split shifts running the sessions, making peanuts, as the parents are all too busy with their corporate jobs.

I don’t disagree that if politicians want more babies then they have to fix the obstacles to that, but I strongly suspect that women who can’t or won’t breed wouldn’t fare well in a society where those changes were made. Not everyone can have flexibility, it always comes at someone’s expense.

Absolutely this.

makeanddo · 25/05/2024 13:28

I scanned that article but my takeaway is that Simone is vulnerable and in an abusive relationship. She is autistic, has an eating disorder and has to have IVF to conceive. He hits his children for what seemed to be an accident.

Frightening 😟

BingoMarieHeeler · 25/05/2024 13:20

The problem is inequality and distribution of wealth (lack thereof) globally.

Hagbard · 25/05/2024 13:19

That surprises me Pollipops1. I wonder if Collins will carry all ten pregnancies herself.

They're associated with a group who flirt with Nazism and "umbrella consent" sex parties, where the women attending sign a waiver to consent.

These far-right views seem to be gaining traction, certainly amongst the techbros of silicone valley.

User1979289 · 25/05/2024 13:15

It is a stupid cult - no better than the stupid religious cults that preach this nonsense. And the core beliefs are racist.
“the aims of pronatalists overlap with those of racist conspiracists who believe in the “great replacement theory” – the conviction that people of white European heritage are being demographically taken over by non-whites who have children at a faster rate.”

Thelnebriati · 25/05/2024 13:12

Quality not quantity.

Carebearsonmybed · 25/05/2024 13:11

Larger families tend to have lower carbon footprints per person than couple/small families. Eg cars, holidays, food. Economy of scale.

Without humans the earth would look very different. All domesticated animals would die out. Dogs, cats, small pets, cows, pigs, sheep, most horses.

The UK would return to being mostly forest.

OP posts:
Ratisshortforratthew · 25/05/2024 13:10

The best policies any government could introduce to encourage more reproduction would be socialist ones. Caps on rents and house prices, limits on how much property one can own, subsidised/free childcare, higher wages as well as higher tax, shorter working hours and flexibility, and a cultural/societal shift for men to be equal, involved parents and for that to be a basic expectation. That would improve living standards for everyone.

That said, I’m not invested in the continuation of the human race and I don’t think it’s essential. I’m not saying we should all go and jump off a cliff but many other species become extinct (many by human intervention) so why shouldn’t we? Unless governments, billionaires and corporations drastically reduce their emissions and environmentally destructive practices the future planet won’t be a nice one to live on for your kids.

bookworm14 · 25/05/2024 13:06

I don’t think we should be taking any advice from these people, about pronatalism or anything else, when they openly admit to hitting their tiny children in the face. I may only have one child, but I’m pretty sure she’s going to grow up happier and better adjusted than this couple’s massive army of abused kids.

fitzwilliamdarcy · 25/05/2024 12:59

I’m not crazy about pro-natalist policies as an infertile woman. My workplace is extremely family friendly, which essentially means that anyone without kids gets absolutely shafted.

The thread about improving wrap-around care has posters suggesting that childless people should be the ones working the split shifts running the sessions, making peanuts, as the parents are all too busy with their corporate jobs.

I don’t disagree that if politicians want more babies then they have to fix the obstacles to that, but I strongly suspect that women who can’t or won’t breed wouldn’t fare well in a society where those changes were made. Not everyone can have flexibility, it always comes at someone’s expense.

Pollipops1 · 25/05/2024 12:56

@Hagbard i think the couple in the article aren’t super pro surrogacy

DunkinBensDonuts · 25/05/2024 12:53

There's plenty of life on earth. When the human race dies out the rest will still be here. The planet will be far from desolate

Mass extinction events are common, Earth has gone through several already. The rest will only survive until the next one.

therealcookiemonster · 25/05/2024 12:53

DunkinBensDonuts · 25/05/2024 09:59

Good god, no it wouldn’t. You’d rather just another desolate planet like all the others in the solar system?

why would the planet be desolate? it would just rewild. all other species would thrive. it would be amazing. it is our presence that will eventually make it desolate!

the other planets are not desolate because there are no humans (and there is no proof that NONE of them have life) its because of the environmental conditions.

inamarina · 25/05/2024 12:52

TimeForTeaAndG · 25/05/2024 09:45

We could...have a common travel area to allow neighbouring country populations to come and work...oh wait, we had that...

There's 8 billion people in the world so really we don't have a population shortage problem, we have a "everyone's too bloody worried about letting outsiders in" problem.

Which neighbouring countries have a growing population (birth rate)? As far as I’m aware they’re facing the same demographic issues as the UK.

Hagbard · 25/05/2024 12:49

I suppose everyone has the right to their views, but aligning with a movement which promotes eugenics, technocracy, transhumanism and tradwives seems extreme. Not sure if they utilise surrogates, as most in their circle do (Elon Musk is a prime example)

Big Great Replacement vibes. Replacement mentioned a lot in the OP I see 🤔

Gilead indeed

RecurringDecimal · 25/05/2024 12:47

Well the best solution would be to make it more attractive for people to have children

  • affordable housing for families
  • absent parents forced to pay up
  • affordable childcare to include:
  • subsidised wrap around care and holiday clubs
  • favourable tax treatment of all child care including au pairs and nannies as not everyone works nursery friendly hours
  • less red tape for childminders. They need to be safe and stimulating environments. They don't need to endlessly document the eyfs.
  • child benefits back for families with up to four children. Some people want none or one so others will need to have three or four

Then we could also just accept a bit of a gradual population decline might not be a bad thing. But at the moment its a very rapid drop in birth rate and due mainly, I think to unaffordable housing and childcare.

However I think that the solution many governments will hit upon won't be improving things so more women want to have children. It will be taking away access to contraception and abortion so that they have no choice. I think this process is already underway in the US and also in Russia.

IncompleteSenten · 25/05/2024 12:39

DunkinBensDonuts · 25/05/2024 09:59

Good god, no it wouldn’t. You’d rather just another desolate planet like all the others in the solar system?

Well it wouldn't be desolate like all the others in the solar system would it?

There's plenty of life on earth. When the human race dies out the rest will still be here. The planet will be far from desolate.

Pollipops1 · 25/05/2024 12:37

How does excessive breeding fit in with the climate issue? Surely the best thing to contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions is to reduce the numbers of children?

Numbers of children are reduced though. Unless you mean in parts of Africa, those dc will have a far smaller carbon footprint vs you for example.

DramaLlamaBangBang · 25/05/2024 12:32

Arlott · 25/05/2024 12:24

The generations behind them won’t be smaller if we keep importing people in quick fixes though, will it.

Yes it will be, because immigrant communities usually end up matching the host community re birthrate in a generation. Even with higher birthrates amongst migrant communities our birthrate is 1.9 or something. Also, if we hadn't underfunded all our public services so much, we would be able to run a proper border force system, where we manage immigration to match need. Fewer old people, fewer people needed to look after them ( I know that's simplistic, but I think it's better than a ponzi scheme of telling women to have more babies)

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