how to control population

population growth
the "economist" magazine published some statistics within the last year showing that within the next twenty years , the world population (and the population in china in particular) would start to shrink . they actually forsaw some rather difficult times caused by such "shrinkage" - but there are always a lot of "perhaps" and "maybe" in these predictions .
remember , the vatican is now going to look at condoning the use of condoms - something no one would have thought possible even a year ago might now become permissable . (most things will change eventually ?). hbg

Hence my reference to:
Remember the implications of exponential versus linear.
Remember the implications of expected versus actual.

populations
we all still to continue to "predict , anticipate , expect ... " ; sometimes we'll be right on , sometimes we'll be way off , all part of the game of forcasting . hbg

I have a running bet with my wife that am more accurate than the weatherman. I say whatever the weather is today it will be the same/similar tomorrow. Of course I am wrong on every major turnaround but on average overtime I am more accurate.

Of course this is Vancouver weather which is notorious for "cloudy with occasional periods of sunshine and the possibility of showers, moderate temperatures throughout".

Nevertheless, I bet my weather prediction methodology would outdo the weatherman, on average over time in most places most of the time.

population
from the german :

"wenn der hahn kraeht auf dem mist ,
aendert sich das wetter oder es bleibt wie es ist"

loosely translated :

"when the rooster crows on the manure pile ,
the weather will change or stay as it is "

welcome to the rooster weather report . hbg

I say that, until the time that we can colonise other planets, we should make it illegal to have more than say 2 children, or make higher taxes for those who do.

People are already having far fewer children these days, then back in my grandparents days, when they had 10-20 kids.
To increase taxes for people with more children is absurd. These children are, after all, future tax payers.
I think more education and birth contol being offered to the very poor who already have had one child, could be useful, but since greedy rich countries seem to care more about spending hundreds of billions of dollars on illegal wars, the poor will continue to become poorer and so it goes.

No, higher taxes will discourage people from having many children. They do it in China (I think) why shouldn't the rest of the world follow?

Given that poorer families have the most children, and poorer families have the least income, there is no historically demonstrable correlation between economic hardship and family size.

Hence economic disincentives cannot be shwon as a historically valid incentive for smaller families. In fact just the opposite is true!

As per China: what China claims they are enforcing, and what China actual can enforce are entirely two different things.

go back to the beginning of this thread and reread, click on the links I provided in the first few pages. Then come back and discuss China.

Higher taxes would have little if any effect on having children. I agree with Chumley.

The answer is education, providing an opportunity to have a standard of living high enough so that a person doesn't feel they need to give birth to 8 children because only 2 or 3 will survive.

Birthrates are already falling fast throughout the world. Female fertility everywhere is demonstrably inversely proportional to economic development. Fertility in Europe, from Brittany to the Urals is 25% below the level required to sustain population equilibrium. Fertility in China is about the same as in Britain and France - and also below the equilibrium level. In the Moslem world fertility is much higher, but it too is falling fast as economic development spreads. The same is true in India and Latin America. Africa is a different story, but disease and poverty do their bit to limit population. Most demographers forecast that world population will peak during the coming century.

http://www.tranquileye.com/clock/

Someone call me if it stops accelerating.

I'm with you Eorl, and at the risk of repeating myself:

Remember the implications of exponential versus linear.
Remember the implications of expected versus actual.

Great link, it says it all.

Bob Hope: News - There is a baby born every minute...Gotta find that woman!

Fine then. Simply make it illegal to have more than x children.

aperson, you mean in a dictatorship, yeah?

have you even read any of the posts here, or the links?

Only if I was the dictator.

Hey I'm just flinging ideas around.

I think this thread topic is linked with homosexuality.

One of my posts from "Is homosexuality a bad thing?":


If it is increasing then we don't need to worry about this topic. If not...

A person,

Too simplistic. It leaves out of account that an increasing number of same-sex couples are looking to have children by either adoption or artificial insemination.

Naj.