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OT?: October 12, 1999 - A date that shall live in infamy..
SANETeers:
Knowing full well that I am opening a can of worms from the left,
right and others, the Sustainable Agriculture forum is the perfect place to
bring up our current threat to sustainable anything.
For those of you who are unaware, today the spaceship Earth marks
its 6-Billionth passenger. Here is one link for a story by MSNBC:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/320915.asp which presents both sides
and an article sent me by the Environmental Defense Fund -
Six Billion People and Counting!
----------------------
To: All Environmental Defense Fund Activists
From: Azur Moulaert, Member Action Network Manager
Date: Friday October 8, 1999
Re: Six Billion People and Counting!
On October 12, the world's population will hit six billion people.
This milestone raises a number of critical questions about the future for
that 6 billionth person and for all of us. Will that child have adequate
health care and enough food and water? Will she/he have any economic
opportunities beyond exploitative labor practices and exploitation of our
natural heritage? Without change, the answer to most of those questions
will clearly be no. Population and the environment are inextricably
linked. We already know -- all too well -- that unchecked population
growth rapidly depletes resources and dramatically threatens the
environment. Today, nearly one billion people on the planet are not
getting enough to eat. More than half a billion people are living in
countries suffering chronic shortages of fresh water. Looking forward, we
must also consider that almost half of the current six billion people are
under the age of 25; and only half the married women in the world have
access to modern contraceptives or reproductive health information and
services. The pressures on the earth and on the growing number of its
inhabitants are clear. Without change, these pressures will only increase.
Our nation's support for voluntary family planning initiatives in the
world's poorest countries is one of the great humanitarian success stories
and has historically enjoyed strong bipartisan support in the Congress.
U.S. funding has allowed more than 50 million poor women to have access to
desperately needed services, and to make choices about the number and
spacing of their children. In recent years, though, Congress has severely
restricted global efforts to expand these programs. In fact, U.S. funding
for such efforts has been cut by one-third since 1995. As a result,
programs and clinics have been shut down or severely cut back. At EDF, we
recognize that population and consumption are interlocking issues. To
resolve the world's major environmental challenges will require stabilizing
the world's population, at the lowest possible level, along with using
resources sustainably, alleviating poverty, promoting non-polluting
technologies, and implementing efficient and equitable economic development
policies. Both developed and developing countries should have the means to
address these problems, including population issues. In short, as we work
to meet current needs for a healthy environment, it just makes sense to
provide communities with voluntary, culturally sensitive means for a
healthy and equitable future. If you agree, please take a moment during
this historic time to let your representatives in Congress know that Y6B
(year of six billion) is the right time to restore America's traditional
role of supporting family planning. It's and essential part of the answer
for the future.
Draw you own opinions, but keep in mind that nothing is unlimited.
Walker Bennett
wbennett@caldwellspartin.com
wabennett@gw.total-web.net
w_bennett@msn.com
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