If we don't limit population growth, isn't being environment just a waste of time?

I was thinking more along the lines of the Suicide Booth from Futurama.

Say, there's an idea for us to become wealthy: we'll design and market the Suicide Booth (tm) and clean up

 

We should all take the Russians' lead. They have a massively negative birthrate. Of course, we'd have to increase our violent crime and alchoholism, but that's a small price to pay.

 

I thought we already ranked higher than them? lol

 

Maybe some of my progeny will visit a starwars bar, grow gills or enjoy a constant temperature which never gets above 60 degrees?

Or, maybe they will end up "producing" little green wafers.

So, is this a zero sum game? If so, then hopefully there will be a dramatic decrease in the number of rats, cockroaches and termites.

Does this mean I get to watch more shows about 2012?

 

I worked with a Chinese woman who had her children in America before moving back (rule doesn't apply if you have your children outside China) who I was for sure would have a strong opinion against their strict 1 child rule. She totally supported government intervention. And like I said, visiting the country I don't blame her.

If in the West and developed countries we faced the same problem - I would support government intervention in birth rates. Reading and learning about population problems have made me change around my family planning and I am definitely more interested in adopting than I ever was before. Definitely a big issue that CANT be ignored

(sorry I feel my English doesn't make any grammatical sense when I try to write sentances!)

 

Adoption seems like a very positive thing to do.

 

As long as we have Medical and other government program/policies that don't make any requirements of people, then no, expensive gas will not be curative.

China had the right idea and saw the writing on the wall. There's two things that can help alleviate the population growth... first, more general acceptance of same sex relationships. If you're in a relationship with a person of the same sex and oriented that way, then it takes a willful decision and efforts to create/have a child. Second, instead of implementing the 1-child rule like China did (almost barbarically enforcing it), do it with policy. As mentioned previously, only 1 child allowed on the child tax credit. Also, make it possible for women to sell their child credit the same way that companies can sell their carbon credits. An individual like me (who will never have children) will benefit financially, and another individual who really wants two or more children and has the financial means available to support them could gain credit to do so.

 

Take it farther.

No selling of child credits.

You get credit for first child only.

Second child you still only get the one for the first.

Third child...you lose all of your credit.

Fourth and every subsequent child after that...you pay a penalty.

Let Jim-Bob and his pregnant for the 19th time wife pay for their inability to figure out how birth control works.

 

Although seemingly self-efficient I think people like the Duggar family don't help population growth:

The Washington Times Mom pregnant with eighteenth child

Yet I'm selfish for my 1 child (age 11; another post) who is seemingly happy being the only child. He wanted a brother/sister years ago but has since changed his mind.

 

You're not wrong.

We could reduce beyond what you're suggesting, to third world levels of (lack of) consumption, give up all meat, subsist at starvation levels, live in the dark and send all of our excess food and produce where needed and.....nothing would change.

Populations in other areas would boom and.....then everyone would starve.

 

The answer is contained in a 30 +/- year old book called Limits to Growth.

 

Dana Meadows was a pretty savy woman. Very influencial in todays sustainability movement.

 

You won't catch the Neo-Cons talking about any sorts of limitation on population growth. After all, that would involve adults voluntarily abstaining from SEX. Apparently abstention is only good enough for those under 18.

 

In the early 1960's there was a bit of hype by our Govt. over the population explosion. After a couple of years we never heard anything more about it. I think people should be restricted to 2 children.

 

Hit TV shows like "Jon and Kate Plus 8" on TLC make me uneasy. It's a show about a couple that had 1 or 2 children they wanted more (and I believe took fertility treatments) then proceeded to have sextuplets.

There's never any discussion about the impacts of this on a normal family or anything else. By normal I mean a family that isn't supported by Oprah and a National cable syndicate.

I can just imagine people watching from home saying Ohhhh I want more children or That's so nice of them! They are such great people to have 8 children! But maybe I'm too harsh/angry

 

Duggar family still has them beat with 17 kids and another bun in the oven. I think they are either Discovery or TLC.

This family seems so self-sufficient on the show; they built they're own home and home school with each child having chores with the house broken into sectors. Still, I wonder how much garbage they have a day or how green they try to be.

 

One problem with deminishing population, the IRS will not be able to get enough tax to pay off the debt US has (and will have).

Unfortunely, the only formula the IRS has seen to fix this problem is by having more tax payers. So I doubt the US Government will want a small population.

China is in similar problem (with 1 child, mostly being males... since female babies were not desired). They have a population of bachelor males. The Chinese Government is crying because not enough tax payers for future generations. So they have to generate policy changes to allow 2 kids (if first is female). And if both kids are girls, then guarantee free schooling for the girls... and retirement welfare when the parents are retired.... to make sure population will not collapse.... for tax purposes.

 

What's the carbon footprint of a condom?
.
_H*

 

Ribbed? Resevoir tip? Glow-In-The-Dark? Gotta be a bit more specific there, H