Elon Musk
@elonmusk
A low birth rate due to extended periods of prosperity and low perceived external danger is the primary reason that Rome and most other powerful civilizations collapsed.
Rome had a very high birth rate when under extreme pressure from Carthage and a low birth rate a few
Camus@newstart_2024· Jul 25, 2026Rome fell because the Romans stopped making Romans.
Elon Musk pointed to the same pattern that appears whenever a civilization gets comfortable: birth rates drop.
Julius Caesar noticed it around 50 BC and explored incentives for a third child. Augustus went further with the
11:35 PM · July 25, 2026 · 783.2K views
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