Re:India's surprise baby bust is a warning to the world
by dpark on Saturday June 06, 2026 @06:30PM
(#48429670)
It seems like the right word. Hedonism doesn’t imply debauchery. It’s just prioritizing pleasure.
It’s a hedonistic choice to forgo children in order to enjoy the pleasures of an unencumbered lifestyle. It’s also a personal choice (though I would not say it’s straightforward for most).
Re:India's surprise baby bust is a warning to the world
by littlexsparkee on Monday June 08, 2026 @08:24PM
(#48454441)
It's always invoked as if that makes life shallow - if avoiding pain (raising kids) is hedonism, then yeah I'm a hedonist. I'm not going to self-flagellate to appease society's desire for workers. Bad assumptions about demographics aren't a good reason for people to procreate, just to prolong a scheme that can't hold.
Re:India's surprise baby bust is a warning to the world
by t0lo on Saturday June 06, 2026 @06:54PM
(#48429865)
Does "coping" in this situation mean having 75% of any western countries young population foreign born and erasing thousands of years of culture and history?
Re:India's surprise baby bust is a warning to the world
by analog31 on Sunday June 07, 2026 @12:13AM
(#48431725)
Now in addition to preserving the economic order, people are responsible for preserving culture and history? That's too much to ask for. Cultures evolve. Our children might not choose to follow our culture. Even within any given western country, people disagree on what the indigenous culture consists of. My country has been described as being in the midst of a culture war.
I don't have a specific reference, but both affluence and a decline of childbirth seem to be related to improving the education and economic agency of women. Society can cope.