WMP prices rise; Wall Street slips; Canada manufacturing falls; China fx outflow slows; Italy government collapses; EU says no to Irish border relief; Aussie confidence slips; UST 10yr yield at 1.56%; oil unchanged and gold up; NZ$1 = 64.2 USc; TWI = 69.5

Not much difference between that and all the women soccer players wanting the same pay as the men.

Why do you think there is any responsibility for powerdownkiwi to solve it? We are allowed to make an observation without knowing a solution.

Great post.

Yes, we've done as you describe, and seem predetermined to do so. The difference is that flourishings and failures of civilisation have hithertofore been local. This is the first - and only - time we have run it globally; There probably won't be enough easily-gotten energy left for a re-boot (we didn't climb very much until Fossil Fuels, and won't again without them). I split it up into things we can do, and things we can't. We can't do anything about global overpopulation - that has been unsustainable since around 1930, if not earlier. And we can do little about global conflict - although out current PM is doing a good lead-by-example I'm not sure that will/can hold back the tides of desperation.

But we can sort out our own population, turn out food-production into full-circle nutrient, and get our transport infrastructure both resilient and off FF. Our cities are entirely entropic, resource-guzzling waste-emitting edifices, total unmaintainable in the long term, and many of their occupants will end up in food production. It would make sense to effect that move before it became time-forced. And we could have a discussion about future-appropriate skills. Also, to keep a society cohesive, we have the reign-in wealth-disparity (which is really disparity in resource/energy access). Then there's energy efficiencies, re-connection of generations (how much useful knowledge is dying untapped in rest-homes?) re-valuation of social inputs........

I just can't see the point in continuing the uncontinuable, given that to do so make things worse by any real count.

Start with the deplorable members of society (child molesters, murderers, drink drivers, politicians) and then see where that gets us.

I took the blue pill

Capitalism compared to what? - the Soviet Aral sea or the Huangpu River?"The number of whales spotted in the waters off New York City has increased by 540 percent in the last eight years, according to researchers.
In 2010, experts from non-profit Gotham Whale identified just five whales in local waters across the whole year. However, in 2018, the number of sightings jumped to a staggering 272, the vast majority being humpbacks, Patch reported.
The non-profit says that the recent spike in whale sightings is the result of several successful environmental policies—including the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act—as well as a decrease in pollution in the Hudson River."

Actually, Sir David Attenborough attributes mankind's predicament to overpopulation; all other ills (global warning,etc) can be subsumed under this.
I seriously think that Aldous Huxley's novel, "Brave New World", written in the 1930's, is worth revisiting: in this novel there is an upper age limit for everyone of 65 years. Upon reaching the age of 65 years you take a pill and expire leaving more for younger generations. My MP, David Seymour, would be ideally placed to further this remedy.
Then there is a famous essay by the 17th century writer, Jonathan swift, the author of "Gulliver's Travels, who suggests we should redevelop our appetite for human flesh by farming the children of large families that can't be cared for by their parent (sic); this would certainly take the pressure off the despoliation of our land caused by the current necessity of the overuse of pastoral farming. Human farming would take up a far smaller area: for instance 100 children could be reared in say a mere 1 acre of housing whereas it would take at the very least 100 acres to rear the equivalent quantity of beef or lamb. I think we are at the point where we need to look radical remedies.

I think the answer is do nothing. Like any species with out natural predators, humans will expand until they consume all resources which will ultimately lead to a population collapse.

The planet will carry on just fine, it will heal itself within a few million years, if not less.

The only question ideally is how brutal will it be on the way down? Will it be any worse than the citizens of Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan have suffered in recent years (I haven't even mentioned Africa!). Will it be any worse than the torment that is currently inflicted on millions of people daily already?

Is my suggestion any different really than a population cull as you suggest - certainly I think it's a fairer way, those who survive deserve too - just like our long ago ancestors.

The current policy is to make the process as unpleasant as possible to dissuade immigration. It is not working and will get worse. As a purely ethical issue which of these options do readers prefer: [1] allow those immigrants with sufficient money to pay the usually evil rapist people-smugglers to get in unseaworthy boats to cross the mediterranean with about 5% dying by drowning en route or [2] use Easyjet to fly whoever wants to come but kill a randomly selected 4% by painless lethal injection. For a utilitarian the second is the choice because fewer killed, eliminates rapes, eliminates profits going to criminals, immigrants get to keep more money but is still a deterent.
OK that will not be accepted so the solution is to remove the cause for people wanting to move: poverty, lack of prospects, too many people not enough resources. That is not too difficult if you provide honest institutions, education for women, old age pension. How to get governments to do those three things - the only solution is a return to imperialism.

Last evening to shareholders

It is the RBNZ's mandate to ensure inflation at 2%. If inflation is below this target then it must do "what it takes" to get there. This may include negative OCR so that banks require less to be repaid than is borrowed (see Denmark's example https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12…). There are also other options such as QE to ensure the inflation target is met.

The Bible has guaranteed us a debt jubilee every 50 years (Leviticus 25:8-13) and the Government ensures this by maintaining 2% inflation "whatever it takes". Don't mess with God!

Start a business in an area that is unpopular and especially unpopular with other youngsters so avoid music, fabric design, fine arts and aim for something involving either toilets, killing animals or interacting with elderly decrepit people. Avoid any work area that is dominated by immigrants on low wages because they attract dishonest businesses like bees to honey and assuming you are honest you will not be able to compete.
While agreeing that work / life balance should not be in your mind if you find yourself continually working 6-7 long days per week you have made a mistake, firstly because you will be too near to the problem to see the big picture and secondly when something goes wrong (eg your irreplaceable 2nd in command falls ill) you will have no spare time to fix the problems.