Japan is Committing Harakiri (But So Is Everybody Else)

I’m sure you’ve heard the news by now, but, in case not, let me give it to you straight: Japan is dying.

Specifically, Japan’s ongoing demographic collapse is not only continuing but accelerating. It’s so bad that even the articles documenting this collapse tend to make things sound better than they really are.

Take the recent ZeroHedge article, “Demographic Doom: Japan’s Birth Rate Falls To The Lowest In 125 Years,” for example. That headline might lead you to believe that the birth rate is equal to where it was 125 years ago, but that’s not the case. When you read further, you discover that the 720,998 babies born in the country last year represent the smallest number of newborns since Japan began keeping birth statistics in 1899.

If this trend continues, Japan has already reached the point of no return. The country’s population is expected to be half its current size by the end of the century, and the Japanese race itself is forecast to go extinct when the last Japanese child is born 695 years from now. But, given that the baby bust is happening quicker than anyone predicted, even that 695-years-away estimate may be optimistic.

And here’s the even worse news. It isn’t just Japan. Birth rates are declining in country after country around the globe.

So, here’s the million-dollar question: why is this happening?

And here’s the trillion-dollar question: what can we do about it?

Let’s find out.