Human Overpopulation: Fact or Falsehood?

[Misiziri]

Now I happened to stumble upon something on the Internet mentioning this subject and thought I could put it here. Anyways, it's a topic a lot of people seem to argue about: is human overpopulation actually something to worry about right now or is this just BS? I won't state my opinion but it'd be interesting to see what you guys have to say, especially you debate-lovers out there (you know who you are x] )

[Regulus]

Well, the idea that every population has a limit is definitely not something that can be argued about, it is a fact. If there are more predators than prey, the prey population decreases, and some predators are forced to starve.

But, as humans, we have a few tricks up our sleeve to circumvent this. We 'create' our own food, by breeding animals and farming land. However, even this has it's limits. What happens when we don't have enough land to farm? We won't have enough food, and then the inevitable is going to happen.

Whether or not we are close to overpopulation, I am unsure of. However, I do know that our population as it is today has a negative effect on our environment, and that is a sure sign that our numbers are getting too high.

The thing is though, with some large-scale adjustments, this can be changed. We could build giant floating cities to live on, and use the land we have now exclusively for farming. Or, dare I say it, we could leave Earth behind and colonize other planets altogether. Keep in mind, though, that these are extreme measures. There are much smaller ways to boost the efficiency of land use, which can also help.

Basically, it's like global warming. Yes, it may not be a problem. But there is a chance it could be a problem, and there are measures we can take to prevent that.

[Tora]

Or, dare I say it, we could leave Earth behind and colonize other planets altogether.

Honestly I think this is going to happen sooner or later. Maybe not in our life time, but I can still see it happening.

Honestly though I don't think we are anywhere near over populating the world yet. It really comes down to where you live I guess, but I don't really see it being a problem unless you are somewhere like China right now.

[Tabby]

Well.. I don't see where's the issue.

Nothing a good ol' war can't fix ^^

[Regulus]

Yes, it varies by region. China and India are the countries that are really suffering. Our population in America is fine.

Honestly, when we are running low on resources, a war is exactly what will happen.

[Tabby]

Lol I honestly don't think India and China will keep arms crossed, either some war will occur by srs or a huge ammount of migration waves, it will also lead some anti-inmigration politics around the world, also you can wait a huge economical deficit when these chinese people start to seek for democracy and bigger ambitions; the energy needed as to run those overpopulated cities and the construction of the large ammount of buildings to locate the increasing population is just really excesive right now, in some years i don't think the world will be able to hold them...

[Regulus]

and colonizing other planets will possibly happen in the distant future but never because of overpopulation. either because we destroyed our planet with pollution or because our fuels are running out.

I consider that to be a result of overpopulation. In my opinion, it doesn't necessarily refer exclusively to food, but resources in general. Fuel, or any form of energy, for that matter, is our most limited resource in the developed world.

However, there is one thing I really disagree with. You say developed countries are in the final stages of overpopulation, meaning that we've gone through the same thing as China and India before. We haven't. The worldwide population rate is increasing rapidly, as a whole. I don't doubt that the problem will fix itself, but it's more than just a few countries.

[Azdgari]

I guess the real question is, what is the optimal population of the Earth?

[Azdgari]

In terms of resources moreso than land, probably.

[Regulus]

In terms of resources moreso than land, probably.

Resources will run out eventually, there is no ultimate amount of people that can live here. Even if one person lived on earth, the resources would have dried out someday. It will just bring the moment closer. But yes I think we might get in trouble with resources, but that is just the way we humans live now.

Not exactly. You're forgetting that even 'non-renewable' resources have a regeneration rate. It's just a very slow one, compared to the rate at which the resource is used.