2B or not 2B?

Although global warming has focused mankind upon the symptoms of the problem, the central issue from the human viewpoint is the survival of mankind and escape from the inevitable mass starvation and suffering that continued apparently uncontrolled human population growth will produce, and which is already occurring at times in various parts of the world.  That is, how to limit the human population living within a limited resource such as this planet, and what a sustainable population is - given a reasonable standard of living for all and maintaining and preserving the integrity and biodiversity of life on earth.

That is, the slash and burn, feeding an ever increasing human population at all costs approach, with science and technology contributing by simply trying to keep up with the required food production by any means possible – whether safe or sustainable longer-term or not – must stop, but whilst much can be done to stop the destruction of the rainforests and coral reefs and the drive to turn all life into a machine to feed mankind in the short term, the continued drive to increase human population at all costs from many religious groups must be addressed at its heart.

It is understandable that when tribes had to compete against one another for survival, the drive to be the largest, acquire and consume the most and grow the fastest was strong, but for millennia now it has also been clear that the earth and its resources is finite, and that there will inevitably come a time when these separate groups must either conquer all others and become one or unite together under one purpose but many traditions for the good of all.  This time is now, and any further delay will simply lead to a do-it-yourself apocalypse. 

Just as the sustainability of life depends upon integrity and biodiversity, the longer-term viability of society depends critically upon preserving the integrity and diversity of thought processes within that society, and the concepts of free will, ethics and informed consent and decision-making.  In this, the many traditions must unite without subsuming their distinctive colours but in taking the best of all and the restraint that the ‘best’ action at any one time can easily change over time and one must adopt a flexible approach to considered change.

The longer-term sustainable human population with a reasonable standard of living is less than two billion, but clearly it will take over a century to achieve this, even given concerted efforts to limit childbirth to typically one or two children per family, but the sooner that community and religious leaders begin working towards this the sooner the necessary discussions and change will be achieved.  It may perhaps be likened to drink-driving.  At one time drink-driving was viewed with amusement, but within the last few decades and with significant governmental information campaigns the general attitude within the UK has changed to one of unacceptability…

Surviving for the Future

With a few hundred in each tribe and the total human population measured in the low millions, the imperative of each tribe was to survive, and so growing the population and taking over valuable resources and territory from others was the primary objective.  Allied to this was developing the science and technology with which to maximise the utility of resources and develop the most effective defensive and offensive weaponry.  

The wise ones knew that developing understanding of ‘the other,’ was critical, as ultimately they would have to live side by side within the confines of a finite planet – even if the implications of this fact where not to be communicated to the general public at this time.  ‘Go forth and multiply’ was the order of the day – to be updated when appropriate at a later stage.  They gently guided each tribe in their wisdom, but kept silent upon that which society did not yet need to or was not ready to receive. 

 

 

Just for the Record

Many societies developed complex webs of myth and legend; theories of where we had come from and where we were going.

For Native Americans, with myriad fossil records exposed on vast seams torn through history, there were cycles of life before mankind, and we were just one more in the chain.  For Aboriginal Australians, walking alone into the wilderness was both a rite of passage and a way of escaping linear time and thought completely and communing with one’s ancestors.  For others, huge fossilised bones were evidence of mythical creatures, or giant humans from some ideal past-time, that had shrunken and fallen away from perfection to become modern man.  For still more, history was that written through myths in word of mouth and skin over a few millennia, with nothing before the Word, and the assumption that we were probably halfway through history and so had just a few millennia to go at most… 

Recent estimates put Earth at around five billion years old, with mankind a quarter of a million and life on Earth becoming unsustainable around a billion years from now, although this Universe could potentially sustain life for a much longer period of time. 

 

 

Space and Time for Life

As language developed and awareness grew of more than the immediate, the need to plan effectively for the future and decide the best course of action, both as individuals and as societies, became ever more pressing.  For those near the sea or large flat plains, it became obvious to the wise ones that the world was most likely a finite sphere, and they could even estimate its size…   Knowing their limits in space, they also needed to know their position in time – how long they had existed and, given how they managed the limited resources of Earth, how much longer did they have?

 

 

Learning to Live for Life

One consequence of man’s uniquely powerful mind is that, just as the ancient texts say, as well as tending to the wellbeing of man and society, he has a fundamental responsibility to tend, nurture and protect all life on Earth.  There are a number of stages of development society has to go through in order to achieve this, which are largely determined by recognising his responsibility and that the Earth is a finite entity of finite resources, so that unchecked population growth, planetary exploitation and wanton destruction has consequences: the grass is always greener somewhere else only when there is somewhere else to go…