Overpopulation Recognition Avoidance

As already pointed out, given the population curve, one cannot, rationally, expect any other than dramatic change in the life of humanity. Since this is not commonly the case amongst humans, there must be some reason for recognition avoidance. Humans develop their life styles along the lines they do based on several experiences: 1) the teaching of their parents and teachers, 2) other experiences of their lives from which they have derived lessons about life, and 3) the ideology or religion they subscribe to. The more unconscious the reasons for one's lifestyle, the greater difficulty one will have changing it.

Of these reasons for our lifestyles, the most difficult to comprehend are those emanating from religion. So, for population activists, this is where the need for understanding exists.

In the case of Christianity, the most compelling reason arises from the primary statement about itself of the religion, known as The Lord's Prayer. This prayer, according to the description of Jesus' life provided in the Gospels (the first four books of the New Testament), was given to the faithful by Jesus himself, and contains the following lines:

Our father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven;
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil,
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever;
Amen.

The significant passage is in bold type. This phrase says much about Christianity and underlies the conflict here. It describes the proper relationship between the faithful and God, and suggests that, to be considered faithful, one must abstain from usurping the prerogatives of God. That is, there should be some separation between the acts of man and the acts of God. Where this line of division is, of course, is a controversial question. For those that oppose the methods of population control, their most common reason will be that it falls over the line. If it did not, they would say, then what does? Surely, the most perplexing problem of all is the question of killing humans and the associated questions regarding birth. In fact, they would say, man is always placing too many questions that should be on the other side on this side of the line, so that one is unlikely to err by placing too much on the other side.

In fact, it is very easy to conclude that the reason the overpopulation problem exists is precisely due to the placement of too many questions on our side of the line. For instance, allowing ourselves to develop vaccines and anti-biotics. So, they would say, since the arrogant are the source of the problem, is it likely that those same arrogant, now suggesting we should assume responsibility for the life and death of humans, can be correct?

The second major group to indulge in recognition avoidance will be technologists. This is because technology, as applied to the fields of medicine and food production, is the main culprit in the production of human overpopulation in the first place, so that, were they to believe in it, they would have to admit to themselves that the basis of their lives, belief in technology, is in error.

Thus, we are now talking about the Christian conservatives and all others that believe in technology and would blanch at the prospect of giving up cars, TV, and indoor plumbing. I would say that is a large majority of Americans. In fact, I would go so far as to say that believers in overpopulation do not go so far as to analyze it to the point of identifying the reasons for the problem, and were they to do so, many would find reasons to adopt the Limbaugh attitude towards the issue.