I once had a discussion with a friend about the issue of overpopulation. She said that she didn't believe that overpopulation exists because, as of now, there is more than enough food for everyone. Unfortunately, much of it is wasted and/or not directed towards those who need it most. Therefore, focusing on population is a distraction since the real issue is improper use of resources. I mostly agree with her but have one main contention. While I don't think overpopulation is the (main) cause of hunger currently, I DO believe that since the Earth is a closed system with only a limited (although abundant) number of resources we will eventually reach that limit. Due to technology, it's hard to know whether that limit is 10 billion or 50 billion people.
My response to her was that if people are going hungry now when there is more than enough for everyone, can you imagine what the world will be like and how people will behave when there isn't enough for everyone??? With that knowledge, isn't it irresponsible to encourage people to breed? Especially people who are already suffering the most from the improper use of resources?
Of course, this is all completely theoretical. History has shown that people will breed in even the most decrepit material and spiritual conditions so expecting people to slow down just because some truly bad times may be on the horizon is complete wishful thinking.
And it's just not the food/resources issue that needs mentioning. As there are more and more people, the value of an individual life decreases. '10,000 killed in a war? Don't worry, there were 250,000 new people born today!' etc. (The last figure is accurate.)
ReplyDeleteThere will be less and less space, less solitude and so on. I live in a city of 8 million, which I find unbearable, yet that is relatively small beans compared to some of the world's mega-cities.
Also, as more and more material is needed to feed, clothe and house the onrushing masses, more and more labour will be needed, which means longer working lives and all of the attendant misery.
The greater the population of human beings, and the closer proximity in which they must live, does have one unavoidable consequence: pestilence. Overpopulation might not mean immediate famine, but it certainly is going to evolve some interesting diseases.
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