Ways to deal with overpopulation

[Lukeje]

It's not really 7 billion. It's only about 7,000,000,000 people (i.e. seven thousand million). I still don't understand why Americans use the short scale...

I'm not following you, a billion is a thousand millions, so those two are the same thing?

What is 7 billion to you then if not the same as seven thousand million?

7 x 10[sup]12[/sup].

 

[Dfskelleton]

Anyone else think of this first?

I know! We just bulldoze everyone!

 

[Rainforce]

No, no, and again no.
As a secular Humanist, the notion of selective breeding in humans (for example, eugenics) is disgusting and the notion that some deserve to live more than others is plain wrong.
These days a man can live for two lives, two generations - literally, the average age in the western world is somewhere between 65 and 70, which means one could live through two lifetimes and accomplish twice more than his counterpart a century ago.
.
A solution?
Colonize Mars.
.
To tell you the truth, soon the price of food will rise, the availability of food will decrease... You will see bread riots in Seattle in a decade or two. That is how regimes are toppled and people die. A grim future indeed, but a future we cannot avoid.

so you want us to be the disease that spreads through the solar system and later all of space, huh.
always hungry for power, always expanding.

No way man, no EFFING way. We can keep ourselves under control.
you yourself think that we're no animals no more.

we really should rather keep our numbers under control with the little ressources we have.
I mean it's one entire fucking planet, how much more could we need.
Also, why are you giving nonexisting people rights, that's plain retarded. It's not even certain that said people will ever exist.
There's also enough food for everyone, just the way capitalism handles it wastes it en masse.
"A grim future indeed", huh. Well, "you ain't seen nothing yet"

@op restricting reproduction seems to be a good way, but I don't really want to trade in our longevity D:

 

[orangeban]

I support what I call "positive" population control, as opposed to "negative" population control.

Basically, "positive" control is stuff like more contraception, helping developing countries, better sex education.

"Negative" control is things like eugenics, killing off old people, stopping people from breeding.

 

[orangeban]

No, no, and again no.
As a secular Humanist, the notion of selective breeding in humans (for example, eugenics) is disgusting and the notion that some deserve to live more than others is plain wrong.
These days a man can live for two lives, two generations - literally, the average age in the western world is somewhere between 65 and 70, which means one could live through two lifetimes and accomplish twice more than his counterpart a century ago.
.
A solution?
Colonize Mars.
.
To tell you the truth, soon the price of food will rise, the availability of food will decrease... You will see bread riots in Seattle in a decade or two. That is how regimes are toppled and people die. A grim future indeed, but a future we cannot avoid.

so you want us to be the disease that spreads through the solar system and later all of space, huh.
always hungry for power, always expanding.

No way man, no EFFING way. We can keep ourselves under control.
you yourself think that we're no animals no more.

we really should rather keep our numbers under control with the little ressources we have.
I mean it's one entire fucking planet, how much more could we need.
Also, why are you giving nonexisting people rights, that's plain retarded. It's not even certain that said people will ever exist.
There's also enough food for everyone, just the way capitalism handles it wastes it en masse.
"A grim future indeed", huh. Well, "you ain't seen nothing yet"

@op restricting reproduction seems to be a good way, but I don't really want to trade in our longevity D:

Why can't we expand through space? We'll settle on some hunk of rock, devoid of life (the chances of us running into aliens is incredibly slim), and we use that useless boulder to improve all our lives. Surely that is something worth attempting?

 

[El Poncho]

Dig a really big cave and set up towns underground.

We may need a lot of dwarves to get it done properly though.

 

[gellert1984]

The Birth Lottery system in Larry Niven's Known Space universe seems to work well-
Every family can have two children, but you need to have a license for any more, which is achieved through a lottery.

Which work right up until a bunch of two headed space cowards turn up and start fiddling with the lottery trying to create lucky humans, only to discover that whats lucky for them may not be lucky for anyone else.

On Topic: Soylent green is people.

 

[orangeban]

2) No child benefit after the first. So if you can't afford it, you can't have it.

Here's the issue with this one, why do the rich deserve children, while the poor don't?

 

[Rainforce]

Why can't we expand through space? We'll settle on some hunk of rock, devoid of life (the chances of us running into aliens is incredibly slim), and we use that useless boulder to improve all our lives. Surely that is something worth attempting?

it's a good thing, if you put it like that. but it's a bad thing if we chew through planet by planet because our own one get's too small. I have no problems with outposts for explorative reasons, etc.. just the second we degrade into something primitive I'm kinda off the boat.

 

[Zeema]

Kill Criminals make crimes alot more punishing

and killl the stupid and the WBC

 

[ShindoL Shill]

simple: what do you call 1 major, unforgivable criminal on the moon? problem.
what do you call 5 of these criminals on the moon? problem.
what do you call all the these criminals on the moon? problem solved.

basically, we need to colonise the moon, mars and maybe pluto when we get powerful enough space heaters.

 

[TheIronRuler]

No, no, and again no.
As a secular Humanist, the notion of selective breeding in humans (for example, eugenics) is disgusting and the notion that some deserve to live more than others is plain wrong.
These days a man can live for two lives, two generations - literally, the average age in the western world is somewhere between 65 and 70, which means one could live through two lifetimes and accomplish twice more than his counterpart a century ago.
.
A solution?
Colonize Mars.
.
To tell you the truth, soon the price of food will rise, the availability of food will decrease... You will see bread riots in Seattle in a decade or two. That is how regimes are toppled and people die. A grim future indeed, but a future we cannot avoid.

so you want us to be the disease that spreads through the solar system and later all of space, huh.
always hungry for power, always expanding.

No way man, no EFFING way. We can keep ourselves under control.
you yourself think that we're no animals no more.

we really should rather keep our numbers under control with the little ressources we have.
I mean it's one entire fucking planet, how much more could we need.
Also, why are you giving nonexisting people rights, that's plain retarded. It's not even certain that said people will ever exist.
There's also enough food for everyone, just the way capitalism handles it wastes it en masse.
"A grim future indeed", huh. Well, "you ain't seen nothing yet"

@op restricting reproduction seems to be a good way, but I don't really want to trade in our longevity D:

.
Why not? Imperialism through the stars sounds fun, but it's a shame we won't be able to find a 'bread basket' world in our solar system.
It's not capitalism I'm talking about. Food really is growing scarcer. The climate is shifting. Just like how the poor in Egypt rose against their regime because they could hardly afford to eat (oversimplification, but go with it), so will others in their own countries. Bounty will always exist, but the number of people that will have such a thing will decrease in the future.

 

[orangeban]

Why can't we expand through space? We'll settle on some hunk of rock, devoid of life (the chances of us running into aliens is incredibly slim), and we use that useless boulder to improve all our lives. Surely that is something worth attempting?

it's a good thing, if you put it like that. but it's a bad thing if we chew through planet by planet because our own one get's too small. I have no problems with outposts for explorative reasons, etc.. just the second we degrade into something that primitive I'm kinda off the boat.

Yeah, chewing through planets would be pretty frickin' stupid, so I can support you on that certainly.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Why can't we expand through space? We'll settle on some hunk of rock, devoid of life (the chances of us running into aliens is incredibly slim), and we use that useless boulder to improve all our lives. Surely that is something worth attempting?

it's a good thing, if you put it like that. but it's a bad thing if we chew through planet by planet because our own one get's too small. I have no problems with outposts for explorative reasons, etc.. just the second we degrade into something that primitive I'm kinda off the boat.

Yeah, chewing through planets would be pretty frickin' stupid, so I can support you on that certainly.

You're right, Planet cracking might just make us find a device that turns people into necromorphs. Oh, wait, that's the plot for Dead Space.

 

[YesIPlayTheBagpipes]

have certain people who are registered to breed and the rest of us can all go gay for a generation.

 

[YesIPlayTheBagpipes]

but seriously the only long term solution can be off-world colonisation.

 

[CouchCommando]

damn it one of those 6,999,999,999 mofos took mah job.

 

[Da Orky Man]

No, no, and again no.
As a secular Humanist, the notion of selective breeding in humans (for example, eugenics) is disgusting and the notion that some deserve to live more than others is plain wrong.
These days a man can live for two lives, two generations - literally, the average age in the western world is somewhere between 65 and 70, which means one could live through two lifetimes and accomplish twice more than his counterpart a century ago.
.
A solution?
Colonize Mars.
.
To tell you the truth, soon the price of food will rise, the availability of food will decrease... You will see bread riots in Seattle in a decade or two. That is how regimes are toppled and people die. A grim future indeed, but a future we cannot avoid.

Colonising Mars would be a long-term thing. We should start as soon as we can, but we need something to work until then.
I still think China has the best idea. As unpleasant as it is, limiting population growth may be the best solution. That, and investing in GM crops that are much more efficient.

 

[Rainforce]

.
Why not? Imperialism through the stars sounds fun, but it's a shame we won't be able to find a 'bread basket' world in our solar system.
It's not capitalism I'm talking about. Food really is growing scarcer. The climate is shifting. Just like how the poor in Egypt rose against their regime because they could hardly afford to eat (oversimplification, but go with it), so will others in their own countries. Bounty will always exist, but the number of people that will have such a thing will decrease in the future.

a bit more modesty couldn't hurt...
...
well, I hope future versions of me at least get their chance to stop future versions of you : O

anyways, yes, the climate is shifting, but that's how the world works.
and just because we can actually measure it this time, doesn't mean that mankind hasn't experienced it many times before. Evolution marches on, too, and we already have tons of ways to manipulate the crops we're growing, be it genetically or through irrigation systems, etc..
We're doing fine, most of our problems just stem from our own ignorance. (which sadly is the case for each one of us >_>)