Is Overpopulation or Underpopulation a Bigger Problem?

What's worse? Too many people or too few?

Support us on Patreon:

Buy my book, Avoiding the British Empire!

[GrandArchPriestOfTheAlgorithm]

The Church of the Algorithm officially certifies this video in the ones and zeroes of The Recommending Holiness.

[tillman]

Here is another wedge issue: parenting is a lot harder now. Back then my parents made sure we were fed and pushed us to go outside all day. I could come and go my parents never cared. Today, kids are micromanaged. Live is so much more competitive. Dangerous drugs are lurking. The forecast of having 4-5 kids seems like a vacation sailing trip around Cape Horn.

[iamaloafofbread]

This planet can hold 9 billion easily. The issue is distribution.

[Telopead]

As a Chinese who lived oversea for many years, I think overpopulation is definitely worse. And I don’t think you know how bad it is to live in a crowded society.

Many people complained how Chinese people don’t respect personal space/privacy. That’s because you have none in China. The size of population (and culture) makes personal space a luxury for most people.

“Why do these people jump queue? And always stand chest to back in a line?” In 2006 when I was in a CBD area of a median size city during peak hours, it took me literally 2 and half hours to get on a bus, because I don’t want to push my way onto a bus. And it was impossible to find a taxed at that hours.

“Oh why they have to build so many concrete high rises, environment blah blah blah.” Just imagine the real estate prices and how big the urban crawl would be if most Chinese live in big houses like Americans?

And remember the ridiculous traffic jam video?

Also employment. People look at those “Chinese slave labor”, never realize those slave people in the video/article probably were quite happy that they had an ok work environment. I say these as a former factory owner myself. I literally had my employees down at the assembly lines complaining in my face about how they like to work more after 10+ hrs day(I pay them by workloads, and it was off season).

The thing is, when you have a massive workforce. There is no way to employ everyone of them. There will be fierce competition for any half decent job(stable). And there will always be people who are more desperate to take less money and work longer than you. It sucks for everyone involved. And under that kind of social pressure, suddenly nepotism and unethical use of personal connection naturally prevails.

Then comes corruption. You think CCP doesn’t punish corruption hard enough? But with millions of public servants and the social environment of constant competition, even the smallest percentage of corruption becomes a massive social phenomenon.

And if you know how heated and chaos online discussion can be before CCP imposed strict censorship on every online platform, you would not love the idea of having more population. Emotional and baseless arguments will get amplified by the massive population, and bury all of objective and rational ones to a point that no one sees them, even on the smallest things like what flavor a popular snack should be.

I will stop right here. But overpopulation sucks. Nobody wants this, just ask Indians.

[EdLemieux]

I very much enjoy your unproduced videos. Opinion always great to hear.

[eduardosimoes]

I am from Portugal, a country where everyone talks about the supposed problem of the collapse of the pension system due to the aging of the population, everyone says that there are not enough workers to pay for pensioners' pensions, bla, bla, bla, etc... what they don't say is that a modern day worker produces 5x more than the pensioner produced in his working years... In short, the argument that the pension system will collapse due to the aging of the population is a neo-liberal fallacy!

[kwicksandz]

On the topic of abenomics leading to immigrants it was my understanding that he repeatedly stated that it was not an immigration policy and that any foreign workers would have to return after 5 years, did not qualify for permanent residency and where unable to bring over their families unless they changed their visa which for most in the "technical trainee program aka imported slavework force" is basically impossible.

[SHAHIDKC]

It's amazing how we humans have been able to slove the overpopulation imagine if we, got our heads together to solve all our other problems.

[scottlaux]

Technology made Maltheus predictions fail. Similar predictions about demographics making social security and pensions doomed for the same reason are being spread. In 1960 there were 5 workers for every retiree. Today it is 2.8 to 1. No collapse. Over the next 2 decades this will reach 2 to 1 then plateau. Why now is it a problem? The US is far wealthier than it was in 1960. Technology and AI and ever increasing productivity will make worker to retiree ratios non critical.

[boyahboy]

Overpopulation histercs are the worst to talk to. I remember someone literally trying to convince me that the DR Congo was overpopulated alongside Angola. Dude to the slave trade and obviously the genocidal congo governance they both have extremely low density. Wasn't ever to able to convince him though lol.

[colbyisthewalrus]

I think the US would have maintained an above replacement rate if we'd bailed out the right street in '08. That's what I see when I go on the FRED site and chart the US fertility rate with the debt/GDP ratio. Also, regarding your comment about how global population figures are just estimates. Some demographers contend that the current estimates overstate the present and vastly overstate the forward looking projections, there's a good discussion from the Centre for International Governance Innovation with the authors of the book 'Empty Planet' on that point.

[BrezelCeviche]

Looking forward to the whatifalthist critique! I found many of his biases problematic. Especially when he talks about climate change. Good luck and keep it up!

[loudvisions]

Not supporting trump but it was bleak before him. That's how we got him. Really enjoy your work!!

[skallepar]

In 50 years there is no more overpopulation, there is less kids and the big populated countrys miss girls a women dont whant to be just mothers.

[kwicksandz]

did you get a new camera? the face cam footage looks extra crispy!

[NotYowBusiness]

The last point hits the nail on the head. In nearly all countries with declining birth rates, the average couple says the reason they don't have more kids is that it's not affordable. More social programs to incentivize child-rearing should ameliorate this issue.

Looking forward to the WhatIfAltHist video. While I do find some of his takes refreshing, his videos are littered with errors that make me take much of what he says with a pinch of salt.

[khalidal-qahtani]

Do you think the current oil prices will help ksa?

[burhanbudak]

Education, welfare, good job, healthcare and modernization actually makes population go down. A person with eastern connections who has 10+ kids is just a remnant when child death was rampant. Them saying its to show prosperity is BS. By grandfather had to move out to europe just to send money to the village. Now when we look at the US, well not wanting to pay top dollar for resources to developing countries that had genuine governments who wanted to modernize hurt Human development Index. Instead the US destabilized and got cheap oil.
If these nations dont go through a industrial revolution they cant be equal to the west. I mean Turkey is a example, lost a lot of potential post WW2.

[steveniswho]

Overpopulation is misunderstood. It can't be applied to the whole earth. Developed Countries is where underpopulation will be a problem if not already in some. Overpopulation will effect sub-Saharan African nations dramatically, as they will not be able to feed or supply such an increase in population. I disagree that immigration is a good solution to fix or slow underpopulation. Sorry to say but the more "diverse" a country is, it becomes less stable. Hence the USA right now. We must be pro-natalist, there needs to be policies that help, support, and reward the couples that start families.

[alimed]

overpopulation is a big problem for governments politics and economy, less jobs less food will make a big mess ( rebellion and civil wars), underpopulation economy issues it can be controlled by robotics industry .