Even if we found a new, free, clean and renewable source of energy today and completely replaced the need for oil and fossil fuels, the world will still be in deep trouble. Even if people were not fighting over oil it would probably be something else, maybe water, topsoil or another finite resource.
The real problem is the exponential growth of the human population. It was in 1800 that human population first reached the one billion mark. In the span of my lifetime alone the human population will have almost tripled, from 2.5 billion in 1950 to 7 billion by 2011. The World population
I have no doomsday predictions but population growth rates exceed the economic growth thus poverty, famine and malnutrition are still not eliminated even in the "developed" countries. Traditional affluent conservatives will remain skeptical but the math seems undeniable, something will have to change.
Dan,
There is no question this has been coming for a long time. The emerging third world countries are the ones primarily facing the worst problem.
The developed countries do have a lower birthrate-especially in Western Europe.
Of course much of the food problem has to do with fuel prices. Only France with 90% of its energy coming from nuclear plants plus a lot of mass transportation is doing well. Our country with its SUVs and big trucks and lack of nuclear power plants--plus no plan to soon change is a major obstacle for the rest of the world. Also the failed idea of using corn for fuel has cost the world big time in food. There is a lot more to say but not time. Dad
What might be at the very core of the problem is too many (uneducated) people.
Posted by: dan at June 15, 2008 08:10 AM