Zero
Population Growthof Greater Boston
Zero
Population Growth
Volume 9, Number 1 |
January/February 1999 |
Are you an informed citizen? Do you like to consider yourself well read and up on the important issues of the day? Do you think for yourself? Do you have carefully considered opinions about the state of the world? Are you amazed by those who don't share your view? Do you perhaps feel a bit smug since you "get it" and they don't?
I have news for you. Most of us haven't got a clue about what's really going on. Oh sure, we know all about Monica, Theodore, and O.J. (If you're reading this in some future time, you can be forgiven for saying "Who?") We even keep tabs on people who are justifiably famous: Bill, Boris, Saddam. We are on a first-name basis with the world.
But consider the source. Almost all our news comes to us in sound bites on the six o'clock news, sandwiched between ads for luxury cars and "sport utes". If we have time, we may glance briefly at the headlines before turning to the sports or entertainment section. Any deeper insight is likely to come from co-workers at the water cooler, who (we like to think) probably know less than we do.
Even the more analytical facets of the media, such as current events talk shows and newspaper editorials, focus almost exclusively on the top stories. They rarely consider the underlying trends and forces which shape our world.
Occasionally, the popular media will tackle an unpopular issue. But they invariably paint it as a debate between opposing sides, each with legitimate arguments and points of view. This gives the story its "human interest" angle, since everyone loves a good fight. Of course, they dutifully yield equal time to each side, in order to avoid being "politically incorrect". Both get two minutes or two columns, depending on the format. The fact that the spokesperson for one of the sides is a highly paid puppet of the military-industrial complex is apparently irrelevant. Sometimes the "sponsorship" is displayed boldly and openly; usually a benign-sounding front group disguises it.
The popular media have the power to influence thought on a grand scale. By their decisions about what is and is not newsworthy, they set the agenda for our national debate. And within each topic, they subtly spin the stories to bias us toward a preferred outcome.
But, you ask, can this really happen to me? Is it possible that the media have channeled and guided my thoughts into such narrow straits that I can no longer see beyond them? Surely not! I'm an independent thinker! I may consider what the TV has to say, but I make up my own mind!
The mind is a creature of habit. It likes to travel in familiar, well-worn pathways. It is most comfortable with the known, the reliable, the tried-and-true. New information makes it uncomfortable. When challenged, it tries to find a way to fit the new with the old. Whatever doesn't fit is likely rejected, since it's so much easier than having to re-arrange all the old knowledge.
If we were living in stable times, none of this would matter. We could go on gabbing about Bill and Monica to our hearts' content. But these are not stable times.
Unfortunately, there are a host of allegorical tidal waves and tsunamis that are currently gathering strength in the ocean of our future lives. They are the real "top stories" -- the ones that will have a major impact on our world in the near future. The worst part is that it's already too late to avert them. The best we can do is try to prepare for when they hit. At this point, it's still too early to tell exactly what kind of damage they will cause. But a good understanding of their mechanisms may help us to survive them.
The ironic thing is, anyone who bothers to look can see them coming. It is as if you were standing on the deck of the Titanic, and suddenly glimpsed an iceberg on the horizon. As you realize that you are heading straight toward it, you excitedly try to inform the other passengers. However, they are so caught up in the events taking place on board that they don't pay much attention
A luxury liner is a very massive vehicle, with a considerable amount of momentum. If it is on a collision course with one minute before impact, its fate can be predicted with a high degree of certainty. Similarly, our Earth is a massive vehicle with considerable momentum. We may not know the future with precision, but we can certainly see what lies ahead. And the view is not pretty.
At the beginning of this article I claimed that the media doesn’t tell us what’s really going on. That’s because they are so focused on the top stories, such as Clinton’s impeachment or the Eric Rudolph manhunt. These may make interesting reading, but they will have little impact on our collective future. What’s worse, they displace the stories that could be written about the underlying trends and forces that shape our world.
But these stories have been written; you just have to know where to find them. They are contained in books by some extremely prescient and visionary authors. Fortunately, these authors not only see what lies ahead, but also are good at explaining it to the rest of us. They describe the impending dangers in plain and compelling language.
Following is a list of four such books. Two of them read like novels: they tell the story chronologically, through an investigative reporter's eyes. They detail the personalities of the people involved, letting us taste both their frustrations and their discoveries. The others cover what could be tedious ground in a fascinating way. In short, they are all a "good read".
This list is by no means comprehensive. It is merely a first step off the path of conventional thinking. I hope to expand it in future columns. Please let me know if you are aware of other books that belong on it.
After each book, I give a brief synopsis of its main theme. But doing
so is really unfair to each of them, since they all take a very long-range,
holistic perspective. The themes only frame a discussion of much larger
issues, which are at once theoretical and pragmatic for those of us who
plan to inhabit the future.
These books are paradigm shifters: they have the potential to jar
your world-view in deep and unsettling ways. They may even cause you to
question everything that you thought you knew. The ideas may be strange
and uncomfortable to you. Your mind may hum and buzz with the sounds of
intellectual battle. Brave defenders of the mighty stone castle will shoot
flaming arrows of rationalization at marauding starships. Meanwhile, the
starships circle about, firing their thought-torpedoes into every opening
they can find.
Eventually, things calm down. The battle is decided one way or the other. You may stay with your previous beliefs, and completely reject the new paradigms. They were just too odd, too unpleasant -- too ... different.
On the other hand, you may come to see your prior worldview as hopelessly naive and limited. You may find that you have begun a journey of deeper understanding. As Robert Heinlein, the great classic sci-fi author would say, you are starting to "grok in fullness". And the reward may just be that things make more sense than before. You’ll have a clue about what’s really going on.
Gregory Wilcox is the webmaster for the Greater Boston Chapter of Zero Population Growth (http://www.populationconnection.org/chapters/boston/). He writes environmental risk analysis software for Arthur D. Little, Inc., and has an M.S. in electrical engineering. He lives in Candler, NC.
My trip to Honduras was truly horrendous. I spent eight days there last month as a representative of the Central American Emergency Committee of Massachusetts. The trip was sponsored by The Rotary Club, American Airlines and Senator John Kerry's office. The situation is much more critical than I had ever imagined, as the damage from Hurricane Mitch is very extensive and the relief supplies are not getting through.
Honduras is a very mountainous country. Only a small percentage of its land is viable for constructing homes or for agriculture. One of the devastating effects of this hurricane was that it enlarged the width of the riverbeds that go through the valleys by about four times their original size. The torrents of water washed away many homes and much of the topsoil leaving the Hondurans with far less land on which to live. The rivers now are flowing with contaminated water. The people boil this water by making fires using the dead foliage left by the storm. This source of fuel will be gone in a few months as the mountains have long since been deforested.
The people have been left without an adequate amount of land to support their population. In addition, the average family has more than six children, most of whom are under ten years old. I met plenty of Hondurans who recognize that overpopulation is an enormous problem for them. Yet they can do very little about it because the majority of them are poorly educated and find it difficult to be independent of the cultural biases and teachings of the Catholic Church. Even after this storm, there is a more insidious storm that remains -- one whose effects will be long running.
Upon my return to Boston I appeared at a meeting of the Central American Emergency Committee to report on my trip. After describing the situation I was asked a number of questions. One of them was, "What can we do now?" I replied that there are short-term solutions and long-term solutions. The critical need right at this moment is to help the Honduran people "get over the hump." As for the long-term, I carefully explained that the population growth rate must be drastically reduced both in Honduras and elsewhere. Nobody offered any resistance to the suggestion. All those listening were immigrants, and they seemed to understand and agree.
So, it's good to be back. What I learned is an important lesson. The burning and over-consumption of fossil fuels, as is happening in the United States and elsewhere in the developed world, is causing global warming by releasing “greenhouse” gases. In turn, these gases block heat energy from escaping the earth’s atmosphere, which results in a surge of trapped heat energy. This trapped heat is responsible for our ever-increasing erratic weather patterns, which includes the extreme cold.
Hurricane Mitch dealt a severe blow to Central America, causing immense suffering. But it’s a small planet: such catastrophes can happen anywhere, even though they are initiated by events happening elsewhere. These events include overpopulation and excessive consumption, as seen in the United States and elsewhere in the developed world. Humanity’s focus should be a reduction in the use of fossil fuels and in the sources of other “greenhouse” gases, combined with a reduction in the numbers of people who depend on these resources. We are all in this together. What happened in Central America is a worldwide problem that knows no frontiers.
After considerable reflection, Mike Hanauer reached his decision
to resign from the Board of Directors after serving about two and a half
years. In his resignation letter, he cited
a strong resistance by the Board to address critical policy issues.
One of those issues was a lack of interest in focusing attention on ways
to increase the public’s awareness of the consequences of US population
growth.
Therefore, Mike, feeling that his presence on the Board was ineffective, decided that he would better serve this cause by giving of his time and energy elsewhere.
If you would like to know more of the details, please contact Mike at (781) 862-5927 or MGHanauer@alumni.uml.edu
We will meet at the home of Christina Gordon, 61 Foster Street in Cambridge. Her home is near the Mount Auburn Hospital. Please call her for directions at (617) 661-3235
Don’t miss this meeting! We are going to have a presentation by Roland Van Liew on quinicrine. He has had articles published on the subject in two magazines, the Free Inquiry Magazine and Eidos Magazine.
In addition, we are going to have updates on several important projects. Volunteers are needed for future activities. Be there!
Please see the meeting schedule for general information and other meeting dates.
The winter meeting of New England Coalition for Sustainable Population is scheduled from 11 AM to 3 PM, Smith College in Northampton, MA. Contact Annie Faulkner for more information: (603) 847-9798 or d9cat@cheshire.net
In his story on midday traffic jams, USA TODAY reporter Scott Bowles hit some key points on the emerging trends of increased older drivers and the lengthening workday as factors leading to increased traffic congestion during the middle of the day ("It's lunchtime...What's the rush?; Midday jams even tougher for drivers to swallow," Cover Story, Nov. 23).
He also provided some relevant statistics that lend further insight into these trends.
Despite those insights, the article missed a golden opportunity to shed light on the real problem underlying the traffic congestion on the nation's roads these days.
That problem is population growth.
While the story mentions the fact that more Americans own more cars and drive them more than ever, there are no statistics to show just how big a factor this growing population really is.
According to estimates retrieved from the U.S. Census Bureau website, the United States population increased by approximately 47 million people from 1977 to 1997.
What's more, the U.S. population is growing at a rate of 2.4 million people a year, and middle-of-the-road projections indicate that it will continue to grow by more than two million people a year well into the 21st century.
Worldwide, the population is increasing by a staggering 80 million people a year.
If we as a nation have any hope of making lasting progress in the fight against traffic congestion and aggressive driving--not to mention suburban sprawl, global warming, deforestation, and rising severity and costs of natural disasters--isn't it time we called more attention to rapid U.S. and global population growth as a contributing factor?
The October edition of National Geographic Magazine gave appropriate attention to the issue of population growth.
In the future, I hope USA TODAY and the rest of the media will do the same. I wouldn't want to imagine what the congestion on our roads will be like if population growth continues to be ignored or mentioned with grossly misleading subtlety.
David Hutchings
West Newton, Mass.
A small but attentive crowd turned out to hear Jeff Herman speak at the Lipke Auditorium at the UMass/Boston campus on Wednesday, November 18th. During the first half of his talk, Jeff provided the audience with a timeline depicting significant events in world history. Most notable was the invention of agriculture and the establishment of social hierarchies some 10,000 years ago. It was at this time, Jeff noted, that mankind’s numbers began to multiply rapidly. While the human population was doubling about every 2,000 years for centuries before the birth of Christ, it began to double about every 500 years in the centuries following the birth of Christ. By 1700 the population reached 1/2 billion people, doubling to 1 billion people in 1830. In those days a person had a 60% chance of surviving to the age of 5, and a 1 in 20 chance of living until the age of 60. While it took thousands of years for the human population to reach 1 billion in 1830, with tremendous advances in agriculture, technology, and medicine in the 20th century, we are on the verge of seeing the population double from 3 billion people in 1970 to an expected 6 billion people in 1999.
Jeff spoke briefly about the United Nations volunteer work he did in Central America from 1970-1986. It was during this time that he took part in protests against the Vietnam War; this fact was highlighted by passing around a newspaper article from the 1970's mentioning Jeff's anti-war efforts. He then spoke of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. These organizations were created during the 1970’s and loaned $800 billion to developing countries in the 1970's and 1980's. While the people in developed countries making these loans profited by earning annual salaries over $100,000, the loans assured that the citizens of the developing world were destined for lives of servitude. The average developing country now devotes 60% of its annual budget to repaying interest on these loans.
Jeff attributed many of the problems faced by developing countries today to these inter-national policies. This is particularly true in Central America where the effects of Hurricane Mitch were exacerbated by widespread poverty and poor use of land caused by migration of the region's poorest citizens. A brief video clip was shown in which Jeff appeared on a news program. A representative from the White House stated that the damage in Nicaragua and Honduras was worsened by the effects of El Nino. Jeff stopped the tape at this point, and elaborated on the effects of human activity. He pointed out that overpopulation of lands near rivers, and their subsequent overdevelopment, makes these areas vulnerable. When they are hit by powerful El Nino driven storms, such as Hurricane Mitch, vast amounts of land are lost. Additionally, as some scientists have suggested, erratic weather patterns and more powerful storms may be the result of global warming. Jeff noted that this is attributable to the world's increased use of fossil fuels and increased carbon dioxide emissions, both of which are by-products of overpopulation.
Some discussion followed regarding the educational system in the United States. In Jeff's opinion, a major challenge we face is that most people are so specialized in their area of expertise that they fail to see the big picture. But if you stand back and take a look, some major trends emerge. One such trend: population growth. He noted that many people fail to see the connection between population growth and the effect it has on many facets of their professions and everyday lives. This failure is an obstacle that ZPG seeks to overcome by increasing awareness amongst policymakers and the general public.
Some excellent questions were then posed by the students in the audience. One person did not find it equitable that so much of the responsibility of birth control is placed on women. He suggested that more money be invested in research for male contraception. Furthermore, he said that he would be happy to take birth control pills if it meant that his girlfriend/spouse would not have to. Some discussion followed regarding legislation that would require health insurance companies to cover the cost of FDA approved contraception methods under their medical plans. Jeff talked about the status of current legislation of this nature (both in Massachusetts and in other states), and there was discussion of opposition to such policy by some religious organizations. Jeff concluded his talk by providing additional background information on ZPG. He also passed out membership applications for students interested in learning more about what they can do to help raise awareness of population issues.
New measurements make it increasingly clear people, not something natural such as sunspots or volcanoes, are responsible for global warming, US researchers said. Tom Wigley of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, CO and colleagues analyzed 115 years of global temperature data and concluded that the release of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, explains most of the 1 degree Fahrenheit increase in the planet’s average temperature over the last century. They said the sun was probably responsible for some changes. But the Earth’s climate would have to be six times as sensitive to the sun’s effects than it actually is for the sun alone to be responsible for global warming.
