Malthusian Collapse

re-posted from Kerr Cuhulain's blog:

Malthusian Collapse

I heard a Christian on the radio the other day going on about how it was right and proper that we all should be having lots of children. I sat there in amazement, wondering how a person like this could justify this position in the face of the current global situation. The population of the world is now approaching 9 billion people. Our food reserves are down to record lows: In 2007 the carryover stocks were down to a 61 day supply, the lowest on record. As a result food prices have skyrocketed and there are more poor people than ever. Ever increasing populations are consuming ever increasing amounts of fossil fuels, resulting in global warming. This world of ours is being pushed to a breaking point.

Decades ago agricultural scientists came up with a “Green Revolution” involving monocultures, fertilizers and industrial type farming. This increased yields alright, giving many the impression that the crisis was over. What actually happened is that we ended up driving water tables down, pushing water resources to all time lows and leaving many rivers and bodies of water polluted with chemical runoff. Monoculture crops took everything out of the soil and put nothing back in, leaving soils depleted and eventually driving crop yields down. Much of our grain, instead of going to feed people, is going to feed animals and produce bio-fuels. The grain that it takes to feed one animal for food can feed 5 people. As Thomas Robert Malthus, in his 1798 Essay on the Principle of Population, pointed out that human population increases at a geometric rate, doubling about every 25 years if unchecked. On the other hand, agricultural production increases arithmetically. Thus unchecked population will always outstrip agricultural production. And if the population just keeps on growing, taking up more and more land, where exactly do you figure we are going to be able to grow this food?

It is time for a change, people. We have to abandon the current idea that we are “rulers of the earth” and replace it with the idea that we are “stewards of the earth”. We need to switch to sustainable farming, involving interplanting with plants like legumes to put things back into the earth. We need to compost and reduce our reliance on pesticides and fertilizer. We need to engage in smarter irrigation practices and use mulching and cover crops. We need to come up with alternative, clean sources of energy. And I really think that we need to start paying attention to the concept of zero population growth. We’ve reached the point of Malthusian collapse. We need to do this now, before we push our dear Mother Earth past the point of no return.

BB Kerr
originally posted at http://kerrcuhulain.blogspot.com/


Here are my comments in reply to Kerr's post:

I agree with this on each and every count!

I also agree with Gaelan in that, when I come to decide if I'm going to have children, I am very very likely to adopt a child that already exists on this planet, instead of creating another one to increase the population.

I also believe we (globally) should actively encourage negative population growth. Perhaps making contraceptives free or extremely cheap, so the "default" in a financial crunch is not to get pregnant but instead to NOT get pregnant. Or abolishing "child tax credit" because many poor people have children JUST to get more free money from government programs. We need to stop pressuring our children and peers to "give us grandchildren" and "don't be selfish, have kids like you're supposed to". We need to make zero/negative population growth the "norm", not continuing to breed uncontrollably and mindlessly.

And no more of this "in the future" and "our kids' generation", it's NOW, TODAY, OUR generation. We can't keep living like there's no tomorrow, or that someone else who comes along tomorrow will be able to clean up our mess. We as a planet have run amuck and it's time we gave our heads a shake and realized that our actions come with hefty consequences.

For example, the reason we're getting more cancers is due to the processed foods we're consuming, as opposed to our grandparents who lived off the fresh produce, grains, and meats on their farms.

And the reason we're getting more skin cancers and extreme sunburns is because we no longer have an effective ozone layer to shield us from the sun's RADIATION. And why is that? We destroyed our ozone in the 80s and 90s. How? Pollution that was excessive and uncontrolled and mindless of any consequence. Commercialism, Industrial Revolution: finding ways to produce consumables quickly, cheaply, and on a large enough scale to accommodate our growing population.

We need the Powers That Be to aggressively pursue a change, and to educate the people. The planet needs to pull its collective head out of the sand.


I repost this in the hopes of spreading the word and encouraging discussion and awareness.

As the First Nations people believe: we are the Caretakers of our Mother the Earth. She has given us the gift of this bountiful planet that can sustain our People and provide all that we shall desire... so long as we care for it.

Earth Day

Today is Earth Day. This is how I am environmentally-conscious and eco-friendly:

1. I reduce, reuse and recycle like mad, buy in bulk with less packaging, and only make 1 small/white garbage bag of garbage each week.

2. I shop local farmers markets and buy organic whenever possible.

3. I (re)use my own cloth bags at the grocery stores and said farmers markets.

4. I use my Brita water filter in the fridge instead of bottled water.

5. I wash all my laundry in cold water, and hang dry 90% of it. The 10% I put in the dryer, I put the dryer on low temperature.

6. Now that I have a minivan (eek!) I carpool by loading up all my friends and coven-mates in it every chance I get. EDIT: Since I've lost my minivan, I now drive a very fuel-efficient Toyota Tercel... and still carpool to make the most out of it being another car on the road.

7. I use those power-smart efficient light bulbs, a photosensitive night light, and turn off all lights when not in use. My outside lights are motion-activated AND have those power-smart bulbs in them.

8. I vote Green Party.

9. I manually shovel snow and rake leaves and sweep the driveway instead of using a gas-powered snowblower and leafblower.

10. I use commuter mugs instead of disposable cups when going out for coffee.

11. I keep the thermostat low and just layer on more clothing if I'm cold.

12. I use a small toaster oven instead of the regular oven when baking smaller items.

13. I'm planting my own vegetable & herb garden this year.

What do you do?