spiralarchitect, I have to say what you said makes a lot of sense. In a way, I see it akin to the "third alternative" to this issue. It's kinda like what Steve has been promoting to solve many of the world's major problems: to raise the consciousness of us all and allow us to approach what seems like binary problems as actually a multifaceted issue.
In the long run, I see this as a valid solution. Also in the short run, we can start applying this mentality to ourselves and improve ourselves as much as we can day by day. Now through a governing perspective, I think they may also take steps towards limiting population growth.
China's tactic may be a little extreme so I suggest a nationwide education of the drastic results of overpopulation. There are already programs and organizations in place, but hopefully it can get even bigger.
Let me set it straight that I have nothing against kids and in fact I think they are cute and cuddly. In fact, I see our awakening process as something similar to training our minds to be like a baby's again where we can learn without the impedance of bias or prejudice. So kids are great! And the mother's love with the child is also something so beautiful that it chokes me up sometimes when I think about it.
However, I wondered to myself, "If we are able to enjoy such motherly love and the happiness of having children, why aren't other animals allowed to do the same?"
KevinG, you may have a point. Perhaps the problem is that not enough people in the world are well-educated and sustained enough to worry about the larger issues in life. From a practical perspective, we would seek first to improve the education of all WHILE at the same time limiting population growth in some way so that we don't have a conflicting growth of educated and non-educated people.
My life is certainly privileged and much better than many people's out there. In the end, I think what Buddha says makes a lot of sense, "Ignorance is the root of all suffering."
So if we educate the underprivileged to self-sustain and give them the necessary resources to climb up in society, ultimately we may start to see a real solution to the issue of population overgrowth. Let's just hope it's not too late by then...
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