permaculture

[Harmon Seaver <hseaver@gmail.com>]

Lawrence F. London, Jr. wrote:
> Harmon Seaver wrote:
> 
>>    I obviously wasn't talking about implementing a new "killing fields"
>> a la Pol Pot, but of Mother Nature simply implementing what she always
>> does when populations outgrow their habitat. The developed countries
>> will be the first to undergo the pruning, since their food supply comes
>> mostly from afar, and because their prior economic collapse will be the
>> hardest.
>>    And without cheap oil, there is simply no way Mother Earth can
>> support the current population of humans. Probably not even half.
> 
> Whew, you had me worried there for a while Harmon. Instead you'll have your 
> ruthless demagogic genocidal
> surrogates do your dirty work for you with mother nature judge jury and 
> executioner. Convenient.
> 
       It won't be *I* having anything done -- it's simple population
dynamics. If you've ever studied Nature in the slightest, you'll have
seen it happen time and again. Humans are, when all is said and done,
just another animal, and subject to the same natural laws as any other.




> 1) how old are you

   65 -- how old are you?

> 2) are you interested in permaculture and sustainable permanent agriculture

 ??? You obviously haven't read many of my posts. And I've been involved
in organic gardening and biofuels of various kinds since the 60's.

> 3) what's up with your peculiar view of population control

  Not my "view" -- see the above.

> 4) what about sensible family planning through all possible methods of 
> contraception, sterilization, safe abortion
> combined with education about frugality, recycling, self-sufficiency, all 
> aspects of the permaculture lifestyle,
> home food production, home schooling, community building with all necessary 
> networks for sharing, exchange
> and trade

   That's all great stuff, and will benefit many. But once again --
without cheap oil, there is no possible way to feed the current
population of humans, probably not even half. You forget that most of
our cropland has been thoroughly poisoned with chemicals that will no
longer be available. Another substantial portion of cropland requires
irrigation and their source of water is rapidly drying up.
    You're probably not old enough to remember the pictures of the huge
numbers of people starving in areas of Africa where their improvidence
coupled with climate change had brought desertification to their former
farms. Only massive food relief saved many of them.
    That food relief will be no  more. Furthermore, we have huge numbers
of people in the US who are just too fat, lazy, and dumb to even make an
attempt at gardening of any kind. They'll wait for Jeeezzuzz to save
them, or the gov't to send food, or become victims of others more
predatory.
    Read Jared Diamond's latest book -- "Collapse". It's all about how
other societies have crashed from a combination of climate change and
their improvident (unknowing usually) trashing of their ecosystem.
    And probably the most serious problem for the US is a total lack of
political will on the part of any of the politicians, or the vast
majority of the public, to implement any sort of meaningful, organized,
change.
    Permaculture is great. Like I said, I'll always have plenty to eat,
so will my kids and grandkids. We'll live in warm houses, with
electricity, and adequate fuel for our tractors and trucks and other
machinery. But I think a lot of people in the US, primarily in the
cities, are going to starve or kill each other off fighting over food in
the next 25-50 years. I think there will be similar things happening all
over the world, primarily in cities, as governments dissolve when they
can't get fuel and food for their own armies. I think what we see going
on in Iraq and Somalia will become the norm everywhere.



-- 
Harmon Seaver