Principled Man Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 According to the U.N. Population Fund, there will be 7 billion people living on the Earth by the end of the month. Seven BILLION people...... Discuss.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Union 5-3992 Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NobodysHeroine Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 This is one of the primary reasons why I have no intention of ever having children. There's more than enough people in this world. We don't any more. We're not rabbits -- we don't need to breed like rabbits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babycat Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 7 billion?! Holy crap! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danielmclark Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancient Ways Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 12:18 PM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. It's not just first-worlders creating the problems. Warlords and strongmen keep their people down all over the place and intercept relief supplies meant for the impoverished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yaoi_myantidrug Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (NobodysHeroine @ Oct 16 2011, 06:50 AM) This is one of the primary reasons why I have no intention of ever having children. There's more than enough people in this world. We don't any more. We're not rabbits -- we don't need to breed like rabbits. same Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken hawk Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 Over croeded for sure. Are they all Americans? not that it matters really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USB Connector Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danielmclark Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (Ancient Ways @ Oct 16 2011, 10:54 AM) QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 12:18 PM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. It's not just first-worlders creating the problems. Warlords and strongmen keep their people down all over the place and intercept relief supplies meant for the impoverished. Oh, totally. It's not merely first-worlders that are the problem when it comes to waste, but we do lead the pack. According to that Wikipedia page that I linked to, and it quotes a study, in North America the average person wastes 240 pounds of food a year at the consumer level. In Sub-Saharan Africa, it's 11 pounds a year. In Latin America, 55 pound per year. Back in the first-world nations of Europe, it's 200 pounds per year. I'm not saying we're bad people, I'm saying that if the parts of the world that wasted a lot were to waste less, it could be easier to feed more people. There's starvation right here at home, yet when a restaurant closes for the night, they are required by law in most places to trash the leftovers. I guess my theory's bottom line is that if we were more efficient in our consumption (food, energy, water) we'd have enough resources for billions more people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 09:18 AM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babycat Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 QUOTE (Kenneth @ Oct 16 2011, 07:45 PM) QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 09:18 AM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. ^This. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That One Guy Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Yeah the earth could probably support many more than 7 billion people... for a while. Don't know if thats sustainable for a long period of time. There's also quality of life concerns to factor in. The nicer people want to live, the less is left for everyone else. In my lifetime that number will probably hit nine or ten billion... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 02:40 PM) QUOTE (Ancient Ways @ Oct 16 2011, 10:54 AM) QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 12:18 PM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. It's not just first-worlders creating the problems. Warlords and strongmen keep their people down all over the place and intercept relief supplies meant for the impoverished. Oh, totally. It's not merely first-worlders that are the problem when it comes to waste, but we do lead the pack. According to that Wikipedia page that I linked to, and it quotes a study, in North America the average person wastes 240 pounds of food a year at the consumer level. In Sub-Saharan Africa, it's 11 pounds a year. In Latin America, 55 pound per year. Back in the first-world nations of Europe, it's 200 pounds per year. I'm not saying we're bad people, I'm saying that if the parts of the world that wasted a lot were to waste less, it could be easier to feed more people. There's starvation right here at home, yet when a restaurant closes for the night, they are required by law in most places to trash the leftovers. I guess my theory's bottom line is that if we were more efficient in our consumption (food, energy, water) we'd have enough resources for billions more people. And if the 240 lbs/person on North America, and the 200 lbs/person of Europe were all instead shipped off to these other places, the only thing that would happen is that their averages for wasting food would rise, too. I think restaurants are required to trash their food, rather than hand it out to the homeless, as a measure of protection for themselves. Think about it - a restaurant hands out prepared food that it doesn't sell. A homeless person takes it, eats it, and gets food poisoning from it, then decides to sue the restaurant. If the restaurant trashes the food, the homeless person can retrieve it from the dumpster and eat it. If they get food poisoning from it, the restaurant can say, "Well, we did throw it away. We are not responsible for food we deem as trash." We are wasteful because we simply produce so much. Waste will be the highest in the countries that produce the most. In the countries that produce the least, their lack of production probably has mostly to do with their form of government, which in turn will probably disrupt food sent in as aid. We're damned if we do (and we do) and we're damned if we don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (USB Connector @ Oct 16 2011, 02:30 PM) That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Hate people much? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowItIs Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (Babycat @ Oct 16 2011, 11:57 AM) QUOTE (Kenneth @ Oct 16 2011, 07:45 PM) QUOTE (danielmclark @ Oct 16 2011, 09:18 AM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Oct 16 2011, 07:44 AM) Meh, once we run out of resources for all of them, the population will begin to drop again and balance out. We've got more than enough resources for all these and more, if only people were willing to move out of the established cities and into areas that haven't been settled. And if we first-worlders would stop wasting as much as we do, there would be more than enough food, power and water to support a few billion more people. But what we, as a species, want to do usually has very little in common with what we should be doing. ^This. http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd103/laserspray/internet%20stuff/smilies/plusone2.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (NobodysHeroine @ Oct 16 2011, 09:50 AM) This is one of the primary reasons why I have no intention of ever having children. There's more than enough people in this world. We don't any more. We're not rabbits -- we don't need to breed like rabbits. That's your choice, but it's a cop out. Just because you reproduce, doesn't mean you are over-producing. Having one child, or two or three, is not breeding like a rabbit. Over forty percent of the world's population is in two countries, China and India. The combined population of all of North America is a small percentage, comparatively. There's plenty of space, and plenty of food. If you don't want to have any kids, then don't have any kids. But don't blame over population and hunger in the shitholes of the world, where people could get enough food if it weren't for their shitty governments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (yaoi_myantidrug @ Oct 16 2011, 01:26 PM) QUOTE (NobodysHeroine @ Oct 16 2011, 06:50 AM) This is one of the primary reasons why I have no intention of ever having children. There's more than enough people in this world. We don't any more. We're not rabbits -- we don't need to breed like rabbits. same I thought there was another reason you weren't going to breed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KenJennings Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 16 2011, 10:39 PM) QUOTE (USB Connector @ Oct 16 2011, 02:30 PM) That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Hate people much? It's really frightening how many people have been convinced that people are bad. Humanity should focus on problem solving, not self-loathing. People aren't the problem, they're the solution. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
priest_of_syrinx Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (KenJennings @ Oct 16 2011, 11:05 PM) QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 16 2011, 10:39 PM) QUOTE (USB Connector @ Oct 16 2011, 02:30 PM) That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Hate people much? It's really frightening how many people have been convinced that people are bad. Humanity should focus on problem solving, not self-loathing. People aren't the problem, they're the solution. Yes. The self-loathing you mention is a dangerous path to take, and we all know where it has taken us in the past... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 QUOTE (priest_of_syrinx @ Oct 17 2011, 01:10 AM) QUOTE (KenJennings @ Oct 16 2011, 11:05 PM) QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 16 2011, 10:39 PM) QUOTE (USB Connector @ Oct 16 2011, 02:30 PM) That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Hate people much? It's really frightening how many people have been convinced that people are bad. Humanity should focus on problem solving, not self-loathing. People aren't the problem, they're the solution. Yes. The self-loathing you mention is a dangerous path to take, and we all know where it has taken us in the past... That's one of the best points I've seen made in a while. 7 billion people is too many? How about a little forced thinning of the herd? Or forced sterilization to curb future population growth? Why can't we say, "Wow, we are so successful as a species, there are 7 billion of us!" Instead, we teach ourselves to love our family and friends, but loathe humanity as a whole. Looking at humanity as a bacterial plague that is destroying the Earth made for an interesting non-human villain in The Matrix. But being a human, and looking at your own species in that way is absurd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
priest_of_syrinx Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 (edited) QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 17 2011, 12:47 AM) Looking at humanity as a bacterial plague that is destroying the Earth made for an interesting non-human villain in The Matrix. But being a human, and looking at your own species in that way is absurd. The reason people come to develop that view is because they are unable to distinguish between destroying the earth and making it uninhabitable for ourselves. There is no way humans could do the former, but they can do the latter. It's silly, really. Edited October 17, 2011 by priest_of_syrinx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
workingcinderellaman Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 (edited) QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 17 2011, 01:47 AM)QUOTE (priest_of_syrinx @ Oct 17 2011, 01:10 AM) QUOTE (KenJennings @ Oct 16 2011, 11:05 PM) QUOTE (-Ender- @ Oct 16 2011, 10:39 PM) QUOTE (USB Connector @ Oct 16 2011, 02:30 PM) That's a whole lot of bacteria killing the Earth with pollution and wasting of resources. Hate people much? It's really frightening how many people have been convinced that people are bad. Humanity should focus on problem solving, not self-loathing. People aren't the problem, they're the solution. Yes. The self-loathing you mention is a dangerous path to take, and we all know where it has taken us in the past... That's one of the best points I've seen made in a while. 7 billion people is too many? How about a little forced thinning of the herd? Or forced sterilization to curb future population growth? Why can't we say, "Wow, we are so successful as a species, there are 7 billion of us!" Instead, we teach ourselves to love our family and friends, but loathe humanity as a whole. Looking at humanity as a bacterial plague that is destroying the Earth made for an interesting non-human villain in The Matrix. But being a human, and looking at your own species in that way is absurd. "I'd like to share a revelation that I've had during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species and I realized that you're not actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply and multiply until every natural resource is consumed and the only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You're a plague and we are the cure." http://content9.flixster.com/question/54/96/84/5496847_std.jpg Edited October 17, 2011 by workingcinderellaman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
An Enemy Without Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 QUOTE (NobodysHeroine @ Oct 16 2011, 08:50 AM) This is one of the primary reasons why I have no intention of ever having children. There's more than enough people in this world. We don't any more. We're not rabbits -- we don't need to breed like rabbits. What's wrong with having one or two kids? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 (edited) Malthusians...the only group of people with a worse track record of predictions than Millerites (Harold Camping > Paul Ehrlich). Edited October 18, 2011 by laughedatbytime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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