Comments on: Some Big Facts

By: Gil

Gil — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 07:02:00 +0000

“In virtually every part of the planet where hunger or famine is an issue, it’s been caused by government.”

Uh oh! Non-sequitor time! No, a lot of ongoing poverty seems to be caused by cultural traditions especially that the measure of a Man and a Woman is how many anklebiters you can churn out.

Borlaug also complained about the Malthusian actions of poor nations and cultures – more food production means more babies will be born negating the improvements in food production.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:48:00 +0000

I agree: Why not? I’m sure not going to tell you that you must procreate. I doubt Borlaug would have, either.

In virtually every part of the planet where hunger or famine is an issue, it’s been caused by government.

Borlaug’s breakthroughs have provided us with the means to feed every human on the planet. Eradication of socialism would make it happen.

By: deweaver

deweaver — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 17:56:00 +0000

Another 3 billion people being added at a rate that is equal to our declining rate of increase in crop yields could force us all to become vegan wimps.

Note that the rate of increase in crop yields is hitting a point of diminishing returns, where you are pushing basic thermodynamics and biochemistry that you can’t get around. Even the ultimate GMO of changing C3 rice into a C4 (has to do with how many carbon atoms are fixed per photon in photosynthesis) plant like corn will only by about 25% yield increase.

If all wealth was just software, population is no problem, however the planet is finite with a finite amount of fresh water and that, combined with the laws of physics, provides population limits, if we want to continue to eat and drink.

By: Gil

Gil — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 06:30:00 +0000

Why not voluntary sub-replacement birthrates? What’s to say lower population increases wealth as fewer people invites mechanisation. Suppose you can’t appliances to the middle- to upper-class people in tradition societies because the well-to-do already don’t do their own washing – they hire people to do all these things because labour is dirt-cheap. Didn’t the Plague cause a burst of freedom for the remaining lower classes and start the Renaissance for the West? Labour was suddenly expensive and workers had more options and were less easily controlled thus inviting exploration into the science of mechanics?

By: Gil

Gil — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 06:20:00 +0000

Was Western Imperialism ‘freedom’ then? Western Imperialism wouldn’t have got as far if it weren’t the high birthrates of the Old World. There a quaint 1800s statistic where huge emigration from the Old World to the New World saw no drop in the population of the Old World because of very high birthrates. The Western country that saw any drop in population then was Ireland.