I have spent a good deal of time over the last couple of years ranting to my family, and the few friends who will listen to me rant, about the issue of population growth and the unsustainable rate at which it continues. This one may get me in trouble with a few folks, and I do beg your indulgence, if it comes off a bit harsh. It is not my intention to second guess the decisions that families have made in the past with regards to their personal choice on family size. It is my intention to suggest that folks who are currently starting families or considering starting families should do just that... consider. Take the time to really think about the impact that bringing another life into the world will have on your future, the future of the child, the future of your community and the future of the planet. And now stop and consider what impact that same decision has when multiplied by all the women of childbearing age and their partners. You can find information on world population trends and projections here: http://www.jsk.gov.in/world_population.asp
I'm frustrated when I see our media showcasing large families with shows like Jon and Kate Plus 8 and The Duggars. We've even got reality TV about teenage moms. There is way too much attention being paid to the drama of the American family and way too little attention being paid to the impact of the resource hungry American family upon the planet. And it's not just American families either. It's the whole world. The developing world is booming when it comes to population. They are also developing a taste for all those material possessions we in the developed world have become so fond of. Who can blame them? And what can be done?
We need to get active and get involved. We need to support organizations that bring the word about the need for population control and the tools to affect it to the world. And we need to realize that we can do more in this country as well. More of us can make the decision to have small families, or not to have families. More of us can make the decision to curtail the rampant consumption of precious resources that we have taken for granted for most of our lives, but which we are now beginning to realize simply can't continue indefinitely. And more of us can start making these decisions NOW. We can't leave it for our children or our children's children. The impact of the decisions made by today's mothers (or women who choose not to be mothers) will be felt for generations to come.
One last little rant. We need to stop listening to slanted government studies that predict gloom and doom for our economies if growth rates drop while the percentage of the population that is deemed 'old' continues to increase. We are going to pay for the population boom one way or the other. We'll either pay it in higher costs of elder care and perhaps higher taxes to pay for that care, or we'll pay it in attempts to repair damaged ecosystems. Attempts which may or may not succeed. In the end the ultimate price may be paid in a planet which can no longer support human life as we know it.
Please give this some thought, check out the resources and do some further research on the subject on your own. And then, please, please get involved in solving the problem in any way that you can.
Resources:
https://www.unfpa.org/worldwide/family-planning-arab-countries-2.pdf
ttp://www.jsk.gov.in/world_population.asp
http://www.billmckibben.com/maybe-one.html
http://www.billmckibben.com/index.html
http://www.radicalsimplicity.org/
Until next time, Live Light
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