There Are Too Many People

The population boom continues. In 2011 the world population totaled 7 billion people.  Did you know that as recently as 1987, the world population was measured at 5 billion humans. That's a growth of 2 billion humans in  24 years. You probably didn't know that fact but know much of the opinions of the doomsday crowd about " man-made global warming" nonsense being the treat to humanity. The media loves it all , so we get it. But why no alarm about the harmful  effects of overpopulation. It is the one thing we know, a fact rather than a hypothesis.

Most of the environmental problems the global warmers complain about are the result of too many humans on the planet putting too much stress on resources. Earth is populating as fast a a fat man can load his plate at a buffet table. In 1818 the world population was a comfortable 1 billion. It rose to 2 billion about 100 years later in 1927. The next million was added in just 33 years, with the population going to 3 billion in 1960. Just 14 years later the population rose to 4 billion in 1974. During the 20th century alone, the population in the world has grown from 1.65 billion to 6 billion. Where will it all end? Will we become so crowded we will have to sleep in the kitchen sink?

The annual growth rate is currently declining and is projected to continue to decline in the coming years.  But have we passed the point of no return in overcrowding. Even a tiny growth rate is enormous in total bodies because we are already way too large.  World population has doubled (100% increase) in 40 years from 1959 (3 billion) to 1999 (6 billion). Ouch! They masses may some day be fighting to take my hamburger and fries.

What to do about this wave of new humans sinking the planet? Not much, I fear. Asia has the largest segment of people and the fastest growing one with Africa second. Governments there, the poor economy and low education levels there, religious and cultural impediments to birth control etc. all make it unlikely those populations can be controlled. Even the one China child policy has not stopped rampant population growth in China.

Nineteenth century economists used to warn that if humans did not naturally control their populations, wars, famines and disease would eliminate the excess. Fortunately, that has proven to be not true so far, given mankind's many technological innovations. The world ends its best minds concentrating on the world's biggest problem- overpopulation. But that is not happening now. Governments like trendy nonsensical "problems" like global warming and, thus, fund any researcher who wants to study and pontificate about it. The United Nations (the source of my statistics on population here) itself compiles great statistics about overpopulation but never seems to address the obvious problem of unchecked population growth.

Uh..... the unpleasant truth is that many in positions of power feel that asking the poorest nations to stop birthing so many babies is "racist". To broach the subject is just too politically incorrect for them. Oh well, at least they can still rant about that global warming thing.