09-27-2016, 08:33 PM
(This post was last modified: 09-27-2016, 08:37 PM by Stone de Croze.)
Some very good points made in this draft proposal, and as you rightly say it is an issue that has received increased attention in recent years.
There are two schools of thought on global population. Personally I would not go as far as endorsing a Malthusian argument whereby population will continue increasing, believing the alternative view that it will reach a peak and then begin to fall. The problem is it is likely the world will reach an age of scarcity prior to this as resources become limited.
I do not think any policy on population should solely be concerned with this country alone. I am sure all users of this forum are internationalists and believe global population is of concern. This is why I believe there has to be renewed efforts through the UN to tackle global population through education, healthcare and far greater distribution of economic wealth. The formers would help reduce the numbers of births whilst the latter would reduce the need for greater economic migration.
Nationally we have a dysfunctional system which allows students to leave schools, colleges and universities without the skills and desire to take up roles in the industries that are needed. We cannot afford to continue letting this happen, and the dependency on overseas workers it brings with it. Clearly this is looking at the more skilled sectors of employment, but there is also an attitude problem surrounding accepting particular types of work. Much of the problem is that since the days of Margaret Thatcher certain jobs such as cleaning and agricultural work have been frowned upon. A message must be delivered that no job is a poor job, that all jobs will pay a decent wage and that each job contributes towards the benefit of society. Obviously in addition to this we have to address a situation of wages being undercut, especially in agriculture and construction.
Regarding caring for the elderly, specialist care is often required. However in some cases, a lack of family and community values and ignoring the basic needs of elderly relatives and neighbours has resulted in more carers being required. Cooking meals is an example of this.
Restoring of family and community values, needs to be incorporated as part of an education system which looks at responsibility for sexual activity and the impact large families will have on sustainability.
Attitudes imposed upon people must also change, with pressure removed from young people to start families and the perception it is not normal to be child free, countered.
There is no single fix solution to creating an optimum population, and there will forever be many arguments as to what the optimum figure should be. What we have to do is work towards transforming the world into a place where our own continued existence does not have fatal consequences for future generations. A population, rapidly reaping resources (including land) at an unsustainable rate is not logical. Therefore working towards a sustainable, balanced population both nationally and globally is an ecological necessity.
There are two schools of thought on global population. Personally I would not go as far as endorsing a Malthusian argument whereby population will continue increasing, believing the alternative view that it will reach a peak and then begin to fall. The problem is it is likely the world will reach an age of scarcity prior to this as resources become limited.
I do not think any policy on population should solely be concerned with this country alone. I am sure all users of this forum are internationalists and believe global population is of concern. This is why I believe there has to be renewed efforts through the UN to tackle global population through education, healthcare and far greater distribution of economic wealth. The formers would help reduce the numbers of births whilst the latter would reduce the need for greater economic migration.
Nationally we have a dysfunctional system which allows students to leave schools, colleges and universities without the skills and desire to take up roles in the industries that are needed. We cannot afford to continue letting this happen, and the dependency on overseas workers it brings with it. Clearly this is looking at the more skilled sectors of employment, but there is also an attitude problem surrounding accepting particular types of work. Much of the problem is that since the days of Margaret Thatcher certain jobs such as cleaning and agricultural work have been frowned upon. A message must be delivered that no job is a poor job, that all jobs will pay a decent wage and that each job contributes towards the benefit of society. Obviously in addition to this we have to address a situation of wages being undercut, especially in agriculture and construction.
Regarding caring for the elderly, specialist care is often required. However in some cases, a lack of family and community values and ignoring the basic needs of elderly relatives and neighbours has resulted in more carers being required. Cooking meals is an example of this.
Restoring of family and community values, needs to be incorporated as part of an education system which looks at responsibility for sexual activity and the impact large families will have on sustainability.
Attitudes imposed upon people must also change, with pressure removed from young people to start families and the perception it is not normal to be child free, countered.
There is no single fix solution to creating an optimum population, and there will forever be many arguments as to what the optimum figure should be. What we have to do is work towards transforming the world into a place where our own continued existence does not have fatal consequences for future generations. A population, rapidly reaping resources (including land) at an unsustainable rate is not logical. Therefore working towards a sustainable, balanced population both nationally and globally is an ecological necessity.