Spermageddon, ‘greedy jobs’ and abject fear: why birth rates are plummeting – and why it matters

Talking about “996” culture in China (working 9am to 9pm, six days a week), Cavendish quotes one guy: “Not only do I struggle to find time for reproductive behaviour, but I also can’t find a reason to have a baby who will eventually grow into another human labourer for capitalists to exploit.” And then another: “The entire situation is incredibly depressing. I feel like a cow surrounded by breeders who are discussing whether to play Mozart or Chopin to make my meat more tender.” Whatever you feel instinctively about the drive to have children being outside the rational, homo economicus self, it’s hard to really argue with those…

 https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/sep/17/spermageddon-greedy-jobs-and-abject-fear-why-birth-rates-are-plummeting-and-why-it-matters