" Have children, or civilization will collapse ": Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is urging people to have more children, expressing concern about low birth rates.
“There aren’t enough people,” Elon Musk said at a Wall Street Journal event on Monday. “I can’t say it any other way, there aren’t enough people,” he said.
The billionaire said that low birth rates, which are falling even further, are “one of the greatest dangers to civilization.”
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These statements by Musk come at a time when more and more people are deciding not to have children, citing concerns about climate change, inequality in the world, etc.
Musk added that far too many “good, smart people” believe there are far too many people on Earth and that the population is growing uncontrollably.
“The opposite is happening,” said Elon Musk, urging people to better examine the data before making their decision. “If people don’t have more children, civilization will collapse. Mark my words.”
When asked if this is why he has six children, the Tesla CEO said he tries to set a good example while also demonstrating with actions what he believes and says.
Morgan Stanley analysts reported in July that “the movement to not have children due to climate change fears is growing and affecting birth rates faster than any previous trend”.
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To support their argument, they used academic research as well as Google data that show that climate change accelerates both directly and indirectly the reduction of fertility rates.
UCLA researchers showed that the number of births in the US dropped significantly during the nine months following an extreme heat event, while a study involving 18,000 couples from China showed that climate change, and specifically particulate pollution, was associated with a significant decline in births.
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Of course, if everyone stopped having children because of climate change or other factors, then humanity would eventually cease to exist. There are people who believe that this should happen, but most people don't share this view. Apparently, one of them is Elon Musk, who believes that more children should be born to save civilization.
Source: CNBC
