Why Is Population Growth Seldom Discussed?

[Warren DeMontague]

202. Yes, I lean towards the technological fix school of thought, if I can be ascribed to any "school"

And I am fundamentally an optimist.

If I'm wrong, and we're screwed, we're screwed either way.

but lately we've been moving in the opposite direction, with access to information, contraception, and abortion all coming under constant attacks (some of which have succeeded).

And I'm pro-choice, but the logic of being pro-choice cuts both ways. I don't take it upon myself to presume to tell other people not to have kids, OR to have kids. Also, despite RW wars on choice, the birth rate hasn't really reflected it, en masse. I'm not talking about the Duggars, but the general average. I suspect most people on DU who are not stealth RW trolls would agree that protecting Roe v. Wade on the SCOTUS is a top-tier argument for voting (D) every 4 years.

The rest of your paragraph, though, is a bit silly- and more of this sort of "the fact that you don't acknowledge there's a problem IS the problem, itself" reasoning. I see this more and more, and I'm starting to ascribe it to a form of rhetorical laziness. No, either there's an objective problem or there isn't, but how I feel about it isn't changing jack shit. We don't live in Wile E. Coyote land where the key to not falling off the cliff is not looking down to realize it's not under us. Anyone can 'social pressure' anyone about anything, and no one is stopping them- but honestly, I doubt too many people are either having or not having a child based on what some anonymous yarblocko on the internet says. "Well, I wasn't going to, but now I am, because.... social pressure". Really? Are people that friggin malleable?

You may say yes, but I don't think so.

The only concrete policy action you mention; the tax code- you yourself admit is quite likely untenable.

Is your vision of the ideal future one in which we raise living standards throughout the Third World, so that population stabilizes at roughly the current seven billion or so, all of whom are consuming at current U.S. average levels?

No, because my vision of the ideal future includes one in which some of the sustainability problems we've already started to solve, will be solved to an even greater degree. I would aim higher, for the rest of the world, and hope that yes, as standards of living are raised better means to sustainably do so are incorporated.

Should we go forward on a course that depends on such an unforeseen fix popping up, as the way to prevent an otherwise inevitable catastrophe? I say No.

And again, aside from "getting people to admit there's a problem"- fine advice for a 12 step meeting, but geopolitically sort of an empty suggestion- what is your concrete alternate vision, including practical policy implementation?

Science got us into much of this mess, to be sure. I'm not positive science can get us out, but I am pretty sure we don't have any other choice.