Anti-populationists - the new imperialists

Michael Lardelli’s argument is classic socio-biology. He debunks educating women in the third world so they can to control their reproductive destiny. Education and food aid are stop gap measures. Educating third world women, especially in Africa, is ineffective “political correctness”.

The anti-pops use a curious form of syllogism in their arguments which have been used by cults since time immemorial. It goes like this:

a. population is killing the environment;
b. we can save the environment;
c. help us rid the earth of population.

The fact that we are people in an environment traps us in the set called “population”. So they can link any human activity such as growing wheat, mining iron ore, building hospitals or picking your nose with environmental degradation. Who says? They do. What’s the internal pay off for the recruit? They feel like they’re saving the earth. It’s both an illogical and untrue syllogism.

The anti-pops play on the fear of an unknown future. They say that instead of waking up in the morning and having mangos and cereal for breakfast, the world will take a Hobbesian turn. It will be brutish with dog set against dog. Fear is their lever. Where’s the proof? They offer none.

The anti-pops are anti-immigration. They believe that the Australian environment - which many doubt they have seen - cannot take more refugees. Refugees of all types are portrayed as rabid consumers of goods and energy. Here the anti-pops meet One Nation. It’s a curious pairing. Their position sails dangerously close to the old “blacks and Asians out!” chant of the National Front.

The anti-pops have enemies and none harsher than Professor Frank Ferudi from the University of Kent in the UK.

“These (anti-populationist) environmentalists are fundamentally misanthropic. Their sociobiological stance is arguably more influential today than ever before. It reflects a loss of confidence in human potential and agency and indicates that humanist ideals enjoy little cultural affirmation,” Professor Ferudi says.

According to the UN the population of the more developed regions such as Europe, America, Canada and Australia is estimated at 1.2 billion and will change very little in the coming decades. The population of Europe is projected to decline, as fertility levels remain below replacement level.

In the developed world, the death rate of the post-war population will soar, not withstanding their death-defying attempts at immortality, over the next 40 years, as they pass on to the great gig in the sky.

Families in China on average have two children and in India it is 2.3 children per family. According to the UN, those numbers are trending down. Although these two population giants currently have 1.3 and 1.1 billion people respectively, they are not the prime focus of concern. The real concern is urban Africa with families of five, six or seven children.

The UN’s Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Millennium Declaration wants to promote sustainable development and reduce child mortality.