General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Why Is Population Growth Seldom Discussed? [View all]rogerashton
(3,920 posts)1) Population trends are not as predictable as Malthusians suppose. That native-born populations have stabilized or are declining in the rich world establishes this. That is not to say that populations everywhere will stabilize as the countries become richer or will crash. Those things could happen. We just don't know. (Africa has a "population problem," in the sense that the high growth rate there is pressing on resources and results in a high dependency ratio, but Africa also has worse problems than that.)
2) If population were stabilized or if populations began to decline, that would not solve the problem of environmental degradation, which requires economic change. Thus, Malthusian chatter is a diversion that makes it all the less likely that we will take effective measures against environmental degradation.
3) Policies to limit population growth are very costly and the more successful they are, the more costly. The Chinese one-child policy is the proof example here. The "costs" to which I refer include the repression necessary to impose a one-child or similar policy and the problems that arise from an aging population. I doubt any political system other than an iron dictatorship could impose a strict limit on population growth.
4) There are some policies that will tend to slow population growth that do not require dictatorship: first and foremost the liberation and education of women. But there are other (and far better!!) reasons to support those measures.
5) The "carrying capacity of the planet" is not a constant. It depends on technology and the resource balance, and changes faster than the population does. Thus, a population policy based on "carrying capacity" is like trying to sail an oil tanker through a slalom course.
6) As Malthus advocated, a policy committed to zero population growth would never do anything to help the poor, since (according to Malthus) that would just give them opportunities to have more children and thus produce more misery. Malthus tells us that the best policy is one that increases the wealth of the wealthy, so that the wealthy will hire more servants! Malthusianism is a reactionary ideology. Progressives should avoid it completely.