USB charger

Declining fertility rates

I’m not sure why you think hobbies can’t be challenging. Aside from various types of competitive activities, many hobbies very much involve pushing boundaries.

Sure. People need socialization and relationships with other people. Similar to hobbies, that can be as expensive or as inexpensive as one wants. Socialization often even combines with hobbies and recreational activities.

What else do people need? I’d say that purpose. That’s why many people choose to volunteer.

Having a media-center PC is highly underrated.

The sky is the limit on hobby spending, but we’ve also never had more access to inexpensive hobbies and entertainment options.

Easy. Currently I am probably saving close to 35% of my income

They did specify 65% of what you currently spend, not what you currently earn. I save a high percentage of my income too, mostly because I’m largely anti-consumption. Cutting my current spending down by 35% would be a bit leaner than I’d like to live.

I am older than 30, but am literally facing this decision right now. I have chosen the latter: work for more years for better lifestyle and financial security. My job isn’t too bad, so I don’t have a huge push to walk away.

I’m planning to scale back my career in a few years, but most likely part-time or seasonal work rather than full-on retirement.

Oh, yeah I know that sites can be blocked easily enough. My comment was more about whether specific apps are needed. For example, I rarely put apps for specific websites on my phone and instead just use the browser. Cuts way down on ads and other bullshit.

Not familiar with the other examples, but Lemmy doesn’t need an app. Can get to it via browser. Maybe the others need one?

If you are questioning whether or not to become a parent, then you should not become a parent. This is something that you should be 100% on-board with, not something you are unsure.

Fwiw, I’m childfree and have absolutely zero regrets. If anything, life and world events since I fully committed to my decision (i.e. surgery) have reinforced my choice.

Textbook enshittification

Previous poster isn’t talking about those people; but about people who do have a choice and why they should decline.

Yeah, my comment is clearly aimed at people who do have choice. That should be implied when someone makes any sort of idea: the ability to actually do something. I’d say that a birthstrike is comparatively easier than a labor strike, where a good percentage of the population is 1 or 2 missed paychecks from financial ruin and homelessness.

Don’t use someone else’s inability to justify your own lack of action. “Whatabout the people who can’t?” isn’t a strong argument if you do have the ability.

So what is your plan? Try to outbreed the selfish assholes? Because otherwise, being the conscientious minority among an assholish majority is not a great place to be.

Birthstrike - stop reproducing

True Neutral - big ultrawide monitor, software to into smaller virtual screens. It’s like having multiple monitors.

I think it’s too late. But theoretically speaking, it would require totalitarian measures because people will not willingly choose degrowth and a significant decrease to their standard of living. People will not choose “less.”

You would also have to get all nations across the globe to magically work together. The reason is that those who limit themselves based on sustainability will be outcompeted by those who don’t impose such limitations. To use an example that is relevant to the present: as much hand-wringing as there is about AI and its various hazards (environmental and otherwise), simply “not doing” AI isn’t really an option so long as other parts of the world are going for it. Opting out of an arms race can put you at a severe disadvantage.

Human nature is really working against us.

Ever see the movie “Elysium”. It will be like that. They’ll have machines that can do the medical treatments and still deny it to the masses.

I’ve got a few decades on the other commenter. We are making gains in some areas: medicine, entertainment, and convenience. It is definitely true that our lives are much better in certain ways.

But then there’s shit that is also going very wrong. Runaway inflation (particularly on housing, healthcare, education, and childcare), loss of community / loneliness epidemic, increasing wealth inequality, increasing political polarization / extremism, climate change, and societal stratification caused by technology. The last 2 in particular are “big ticket” hazards that I don’t see reversing course and will only continue to get worse.

I’d argue that technology also, because it is consolidating wealth and power in the hands of fewer and fewer. This creates a positive feedback loop to further entrench their power. They have widened the divide and pulled up the ladder.