Jogeephus
Well-known member
Thought this was an interesting read that addresses our resources.
http://www.garretthardinsociety.org/art ... _poor.html
http://www.garretthardinsociety.org/art ... _poor.html
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grannysoo
Well-known member
Interesting read, however I can't comment any more, for I would get this thread locked and probably banned from CT forever.
john250
Well-known member
Mr Hardin has good points about giving away food. I do think he was too pessimistic about the ability of humanity to adapt and improve.
"Whether or not the Green Revolution can increase food production as much as its champions claim is a debatable but possibly irrelevant point. Those who support this well-intended humanitarian effort should first consider some of the fundamentals of human ecology. Ironically, one man who did was the late Alan Gregg, a vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Two decades ago he expressed strong doubts about the wisdom of such attempts to increase food production. He likened the growth and spread of humanity over the surface of the earth to the spread of cancer in the human body, remarking that "cancerous growths demand food; but, as far as I know, they have never been cured by getting it." "
35 years later, India and China are exporters of food. If Africa could form stable governments they would likely have surpluses also.
I'm sort of a hopeless optimist.
"Whether or not the Green Revolution can increase food production as much as its champions claim is a debatable but possibly irrelevant point. Those who support this well-intended humanitarian effort should first consider some of the fundamentals of human ecology. Ironically, one man who did was the late Alan Gregg, a vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Two decades ago he expressed strong doubts about the wisdom of such attempts to increase food production. He likened the growth and spread of humanity over the surface of the earth to the spread of cancer in the human body, remarking that "cancerous growths demand food; but, as far as I know, they have never been cured by getting it." "
35 years later, India and China are exporters of food. If Africa could form stable governments they would likely have surpluses also.
I'm sort of a hopeless optimist.
grannysoo
Well-known member
john250":8dw09soh said:
Now dang it John, you just made me comment.
"If" is a mighty big word........
john250
Well-known member
grannysoo":1eokfthm said:
:lol2: :nod:
OP
OP
Jogeephus
Well-known member
john250":19n84tmc said:
I agree and I'm not one with the ability to think in global terms but the main message I get is that we need to be careful how we give. I can apply this practice in my little world and can understand it. Simply giving food is only a patch and doesn't seem to encourage adaptation. On the otherhand, I can see where helping people with knowledge and technology will actually help curb some of this. A good example to this is when a friend of mine went to one of those slavic nations and helped farmers with their root crops. His stay was only a few months but in just that short period he helped them increase their yields several times over with just a few simple principles they were unaware of. Everyone is better off from this.
