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E-M:/ population/environmentalism
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Enviro-Mich message from "Anna Dorothy Graham" <grahama9@msu.edu>
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Look, wealthy white Americans should be having big families even less than
poor, black Africans, because wealthy white children in the U.S. burn up
more of the earth's resources than anyone else alive. But no one should,
anywhere. READ THIS MESSAGE CAREFULLY.
Why is it so radical to suggest on an environmental email list that global
population growth needs to slow down? The World Wildlife Fund came to
exactly that same conclusion in a major report just a couple of years ago.
What is so dreadful about asking people anywhere to have two children
instead of eight, so that they themselves can be wealthier, their children
healthier and better educated, and so that they can have adequate food to
eat and water to drink? Honest to Pete, I can't understand why this is
offensive.
Not to mention the little fringe benefit that ALL life on earth can be
sustained.
Anna
In a message dated 2/7/2008 3:22:31 PM Eastern Standard Time,
grahama9@msu.edu writes:
Enviro-Mich message from "Anna Dorothy Graham" <grahama9@msu.edu>
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One way to combat poverty is for a government to implement a strict one
child per family policy -- this is exactly what China did and why China did
it, and you can all see where China is today (which is not necessarily a
good thing for the rest of the world in terms of their increasing
consumption, but it certainly improved living conditions in China).
I wouldn't ever advocate measures like forced sterilization and forced
abortion, but I don't think we should provide foreign aid to poor countries
that do not have a responsible family planning program in place. I also
think that rich nations allow poor nations to externalize their population
problems with liberal immigration policies. Our own is among the most
liberal in the world (believe it or not).
Anna
I would bet my house that those poor families with five kids in third world
countries who do not "have responsible family programs" use a heck of a lot
less energy and have a much lower carbon footprint than a family of TWO here in
the USA. We Americans crank the heat up to 80 in our 2500 sq foot homes , turn
the Air Conditioning down to 70 in the summer, and keep every light burning
day and night while we drive one person per Hummer to work. The problem on
Earth is not because some woman in India needs to have sons, its because we
greedy fat Americans think we can take what we want from who we want and use it all
up.
WE Americans are the problem WE Americans need to be the solution. Other
nations are greedily following our industrial revolution model. They are gaining
the same mind set that we Americans have. HEY if THEY are using it, then how
about me??? We Americans should lead by example, not by "fixing" other nations.
Really want things to change? Quit watching the TV. Quit buying magazines.
Stop buying useless crap and make our dollars work towards saving the planet.
My idea to save the planet.
Prime time tv. The shows are much like "Greys Anatomy" or "One Tree Hill" or
"The OC" or whatever other shows people are watching. The female actors are
sexy tall Victoria Secret type women (not real Victoria Secret models 'cuz
their catalog is destroying the Brazilian rain forest). In the shows these hot
scantily clad women purchase only fair-trade goods and sustainable products.
As they lounge in their hot tubs with their locally grown cotton organic towels
and sip on wine (made from locally grown grapes) they whisper and giggle
about how hot the guy was who installed their solar panels. They bend
provocatively over their geothermal units (with their biodegradable breast implants) and
ask muscular tan well endowed men (who are obviously intelligent and sexy)
how to adjust the heat.
Week after week they sit around in their energy efficient homes, raving about
the great deals they got on preowned sustainable products, and how they cut
back on their carbon footprint. They even get cute little white carbon
footprint T-shirts (super tight of course) and wear them while swimming.
The guys in the shows know all about these alternative energy industries, of
course. They are hunky, hot, and of course extremely wealthy. They snub
their noses at people who drive in cars that have less than three people in them.
They live in homes where they are always trying to one up the other to see
who saves the most energy and impacts the planet the least. Its a fierce
competition with lots of heated arguments and strutting. None of these hot guys
would dare be seen in a car that gets less than 40mpg. When they go out
partying, its always at some extremely energy efficient home, and they drink and eat
goods grown from less than 50 miles away. They use public transportation that
has all sorts of fabulous seating for "high end" persons that pay a little
more. They brag about owning Kit homes like these :
_http://www.greenmodernkits.com/c3.htm_ (http://www.greenmodernkits.com/c3.htm)
They all work in buildings like these:
_http://wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5457_
(http://wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5457)
Shows like TMZ will show Celebrities that wear hemp, and who drive Prius and
Yaris. Celebrities are featured that brag about how LITTLE energy they use.
None of them jet to the Awards show, they do it from home via satellite. Rap
music and hip hop music becomes all about what wimps energy users are.
One year of nothing but this will turn the sheep around.
Namaste,
Edie
**************Biggest Grammy Award surprises of all time on AOL Music.
(http://music.aol.com/grammys/pictures/never-won-a-grammy?NCID=aolcmp003000000025
48)
Anna Kirkwood Graham, J.D., Ph.D.
"There is no trifling with nature; it is always true, grave and severe; it
is always in the right, and the faults and errors fall to our share."
-- Goethe
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