Part 6: Human overpopulation continues as the most unheard-of issue in America—where do we go from here?
By Frosty Wooldridge
Part 6: Where do we go from here?
For over thirty years, I attended lectures at the University of Colorado where Physics professor Dr. Albert Bartlett lectured and promoted discussion on human overpopulation. His extraordinary lecture on “Arithmetic, Population and Energy” can be seen at www.albartlett.org . He presented it over 1,600 times around the world. While the world ignored his and many other top scientists in the world, including Dr. Paul Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb, in 2010, the population noose tightens around this civilization’s neck. Other top experts join the chorus such as Richard Heinberg, Dr. William Catton, Jared Diamond, William Ryerson, Dave Paxson, Aldolpho Doring, Dr. Diana Hull and Amanda Zackem.
SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
“The challenge of making the transition to a sustainable society is enormous, in part because there are so many aspects of the problem,” said Bartlett. “If one glances through Agenda 21, The Earth Summit Strategy to Save Our Planet, one is overwhelmed by the sheer number of pages of recommendations, “We must do this,” “We must do that,” etc. The book does avoids the population problem, even though the authors have to know that population growth is the central and most fundamental human problem. Agenda 21 seems to be a diversion to keep people from recognizing the centrality of population growth to the enormous problems of the U.S. and the world. The immediate task is to get the population program back at the top of the national and global agendas.
“The year 1992 was the year of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the Earth Summit, that was held in Rio de Janerio. The year also marked the end of a long period of dangerous withdrawal of the U.S. from its active support of family planning programs throughout the world. This long period was characterized by the belief that the human mind could use technology to overcome all limits, so that carrying capacity was not an issue, and population increases should be welcomed rather than avoided. (Bartlett, 1985)
“There are signs now that things have changed for the better and that there is a recognition in the top echelons of governments that population is the problem. The Mid-Atlantic Preparatory Consultation meeting in Airlie, Virginia urged the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt to focus on a number of important topics, including a clear statement of the linkages between population, environment, economic growth and sustainable development.” (Popline, 1993)
President Fidel Ramos of the Philippines delivered the keynote address at a workshop for implementing the Rio Earth Summit’s Agenda 21 in the Phillipines. (Ramos, 1993)
“I believe that…the serious imbalance that today threatens the sustainability of both our economy and our environment has arisen primarily from our pervasive and proliferating population growth,” said Bartlett. “There are many encouraging signs from communities around the U.S. that indicate a growing awareness of the local problems of continued unrestrained growth of populations. It has been noted that creating jobs increases the number of people out of work, and that population growth in our communities never pays for itself. Taxes and utility costs must escalate in order to pay for the growth.
“For example, in the U.S., it costs the order of $15,000 per pupil to build a new school building. If each new home has, on the average, 0.4 school-age children, then each new house that is built creates the need for about $6000 of tax money for school construction. In addition, growth brings increased demands on all municipal utilities and brings increased levels of congestion, frustration, and air pollution.
“In recent years, several states have seen taxpayer revolts in the form of ballot questions that were adopted to limit the allowed tax increases. These revolts were not in decaying rust-belt states, the revolts have been in the states that claimed to be the most prosperous because they had the largest rates of population growth. Unfortunately, these limitations on taxation, that were made necessary by population growth, and that were intended to stop or slow the increase of taxes, have not stopped the population growth which was the root cause of much of the increase in taxes.
“At the local or state levels, there is an interesting parallel between the promotion of growth and the promotion of war. The waging of war is the sole enterprise of large military establishments. Even the lowest mind knows what has to be done to win a war; “One has to beat the opponent,” after which one can have a large party to celebrate the victory, and then one starts preparing for the next war. Promoting community growth is quite similar. The promotion of growth is the sole enterprise of large municipal and state establishments. It does not take much of a mind to know that growth requires that you beat some competing community in the effort get new factories to come to your community. Campaigns and battles are planned, and, when a factory comes, you can have a large party to celebrate the victory, after which, you start looking for new factories.
“In contrast, winning the peace is quite different. Even the best minds don’t know for sure what is the best way to “win the peace.” There is no large public establishment that is devoted to or has a vested interest in maintaining the peace. There is noterminal point at which a party is in order where we can celebrate the fact that, “We won the peace!” Winning the peace takes eternal vigilance.
“Protecting the community environment is quite parallel. The best minds don’t know for sure the best way to do it. There are few public establishments whose sole role is to preserve the environment. One can postpone assaults on the environment, but by and large, it takes eternal vigilance of concerned citizens, who, at best, can only reduce the rate of loss of the environment. There is no terminal time at which one can have a party to celebrate that, “We have saved the environment!”
“How do we work on the local problem? Many years ago I was discussing population growth of Boulder with a prominent member of the Colorado Legislature. At one point he said,
“Al, we could not stop Boulder’s growth if we wanted to!”
I responded,
“I agree, therefore let’s put a tax on the growth so that, as a minimum, it pays for itself, instead of having to be paid for by the existing taxpayers.”
His response was quick and emphatic.
“You can’t do that, you’d slow down our growth!”
“His answer showed the way,” said Bartlett. “On the community level in the U.S., we should work to make growth pay for itself. The Tragedy of the Commons makes it clear that there will always be large opposition to programs of making population growth pay for itself. The promoters of growth will use their considerable resources to convince the community that the community should pay the costs of growth. In our communities, making growth pay for itself could be a major factor in slowing and possibly stopping the population growth.
“On the local and national levels, we need to work to improve social justice and equity. The series of big city riots of the recent decades are symptoms of a deep-seated illness that we have ignored too long. The illness is certainly made worse by the rapid population growth that consumes public and private resources in order to give minimal accommodation to the growth. The resources that are used to support the growth are taken away from all manner of community programs that are essential for improving education, justice, and equity. Injustice and inequity breed unrest and discontent. When a condition of instability is reached, things can happen with surprising speed. We were all stunned by the swiftness of the fall of the Soviet Union.
“On the national scale, we can hope for leaders who will recognize that population growth is a major problem in the U.S. With a lot of work at the grassroots, our system of representative government will respond.
“As we enter an era of expanded global trade, we need to know that the ease of international trade serves to block out our recognition of the concept of “carrying capacity.” These other countries with which we trade with such ease seem to provide an “away” from which we can get resources and to which we can later throw things made from those resources. International trade interferes with our understanding of the concept of limits.
“On the global scale, we need to support family planning throughout the world, and we should restrict our foreign aid and send it only to those countries that make continued demonstrated progress in reducing population growth rates. Kenneth Boulding observed that, “The economic analysis I presented earlier indicates that the major priority, and one in which the United Nations can be of great utility, is a world campaign for the reduction of birth rates. This, I suggest, is more important than any program of foreign aid and investments. Indeed, if it is neglected, all programs of aid and investment will, I believe, be ultimately self-defeating and will simply increase the amount of human misery.” (Boulding, 1971, p.361)
“If we work on the problem of population growth in our communities, counties, and states, it is possible that our leaders in Washington, D.C. will get the message and follow the people. There is reason to be optimistic.
“In writing about the essay of Malthus on population, Boulding observes that the essay, “punctures the easy optimism of the utopians of any generation. But by revealing the nature of at least one dragon that must be slain before misery can be abolished, its ultimate message is one of hope, and the truth, however unpleasant, tends ‘not to create despair, but activity’ of the right kind.” (Boulding, 1971, p.142)
A THOUGHT FOR THE FUTURE
“When competing “experts” recommend diametrically opposing paths of action regarding resources, carrying capacity, sustainability, and the future, we serve the cause of sustainability by choosing the conservative path,” said Bartlett. “This is the path that would leave society in the less precarious position if the path we choose turns out to be the wrong path.”
You may contact Dr. Albert Bartlett at www.albartlett.org
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In a five minute astoundingly simple yet brilliant video, “Immigration, Poverty, and Gum Balls”, Roy Beck, director of www.numbersusa.ORG, graphically illustrates the impact of overpopulation. Take five minutes to see for yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPjzfGChGlE&feature=player_embedded
“Immigration by the numbers—off the chart” by Roy Beck
This 10 minute demonstration shows Americans the results of unending mass immigration on the quality of life and sustainability for future generations: in a word “Mind boggling!” www.NumbersUSA.org
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muw22wTePqQ
This is the best website to start: www.numbersusa.org ; watch Roy Beck’s “Immigration by the Numbers” at 14 minutes. Bi-partisan and very effective. Become a faxer of pre-written letters to your reps to make positive change.
Visit www.TheSocialContract.com for the best information on what we face as a civilization as to overpopulation, energy, immigration and much more.
Canada www.immigrationwatchcanada.org ; in Australia www.population.org.au and[email protected]; in Great Britain www.populationmatters.org ; and dozens of other sites accessed at www.frostywooldridge.com. In Florida, www.flimen.org .
Must see DVD: “Blind Spot” www.snagfilms.com/films/title/blind_spot/ , This movie illustrates America’s future without oil, water and other resources to keep this civilization functioning. It’s a brilliant educational movie! www.blindspotdoc.com
Must see: Rapid Population Decline, seven minute video by Dr. Jack Alpert-
www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTWduFB_RX0
Must see and funny: www.growthbusters.org ; www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXSTrW_dARc
Dave Gardner’s Polar Bear in Bedroom:
growthbusters.org/2010/03/save-the-polar-bear-in-your-bedroom ; Dave Gardner, President, Citizen-Powered Media ; Producing the Documentary, GROWTH BUSTERS; presents Hooked on Growth: Our Misguided Quest for Prosperity, Join the cause at www.growthbusters.org ;760 Wycliffe Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 USA; +1 719-576-5565
Check out this link with Wooldridge on bicycle and Lester Brown and panel discussion:
www.upnorthmedia.org/watchupnorthtv.asp?SDBFid=1631
Tomorrow’s Americaproject on www.youtube.com/contemporarylearning.
Producer: GEORGE A. COLBURNwww.tomorrowsamerica.com
DC: 202-258-4887
Email: [email protected]
Link to www.tomorrowsamerica.com for more discussions on America’s predicament.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
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Frosty Wooldridge has bicycled across six continents – from the Arctic to the South Pole – as well as six times across the USA, coast to coast and border to border. In 2005, he bicycled from the Arctic Circle, Norway to Athens, Greece. He presents “The Coming Population Crisis in America: and what you can do about it” to civic clubs, church groups, high schools and colleges. He works to bring about sensible world population balance at www.frostywooldridge.com He is the author of: America on the Brink: The Next Added 100 Million Americans. Copies available: 1 888 280 7715
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