Economic “growth” seems to be doing less and less for most people. Its financial benefits mainly accrue at the very top of society; most people just get squeezed. Less housing, depressed wages, ever more crowded and less available services, the list of consequences of constant growth goes on.
The issue has a toxic element of anti-immigrant racism, but many are turning against the idea because they think the net negatives outweigh the positives. Switzerland’s upcoming referendum is this in a microcosm. The right-wing anti-immigrant Swiss People’s Party got 100,000 signatures to trigger their referendum, but support for the measure is also coming from outside their base. Polling has the result at near 50:50. If it passes, it will force a Western government to do something no one has ever had to do before - run a country where you cannot have endless economic growth.
Almost no modern country wants MORE people, it is the median age that is problematic. And increasing overall population is the most primitive way to increase a working age population.
Shame more countries don’t have referenda. It would be a really useful tool for addressing political bombs that no party wants to touch like cannabis or abolishing the triple lock
once we have a reliable way of “hey what should we do about this?” and people instantly giving direct feedback, the intermediaries - congress, senat, whateverthefuck - aren’t needed no more
Yep.
Here’s an interesting crowd sourced book that discusses doing just that, digitally. The task you ate describing (currently an MP’s job) is called ‘broad listening’
10 million is still in deep overshoot. But at least they’re trying.
Seems like nobody there has heard of the 1 child policy. Go on Switzerland, do it. I want to see the country limit birthrates, immigration, and foreign investment. Will they become the first European country to force parents to give their children away? Or will it go the other way and they’ll try to fins a way to become younger?
I want them to do it. It’ll be amazing.
P.S please share the link to the original article. That archive uses Google and for some reason I end up in an endless captcha loop.
