/lit/ - Literature

>>13351020
You're right that the First and Second World Wars were the catalysts for the death of Europe -- but I sincerely doubt "widespread onanism" has been either a major symptom or cause. Europe's birth rates were on the decline long before the 20th century had even arrived. Even under governments with pro-natalist policies like Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Russia (wars and genocides notwithstanding) this trend couldn't be successfully reversed. It's impossible to say if things might not have gone another way in some alternate timeline, but these trends predated the ills wrought by the 20th century: even before whatever blameworthy events and policies happened recently one could predict that we'd probably have an ageing population dependent on migration. And not to discount a possible dysgenic effect, but WWI and II were mostly so fatal because they were so destructive to social bonds, military strength, economic health, geopolitical power and above all a belief in European society.

>>11587017
Read this one instead, it's written by an actually intelligent and accomplished historian.