Population Woes

Soon, food production won't keep up with world population growth, and people will starve, said nineteenth-century Thomas Malthus and Paul Ehrlich in 1968. Both of these thinkers' predictions proved false.

Nevertheless, critics continue to advocate population control, ignoring the massive food surplus that exists throughout the world. People in developing countries complain about the lack of wheat, corn, and other staples, but the food exists. Food never reaches the consumers because political groups often try to use the supply as a weapon. For instance, one faction hoping for power may hide or export grains to upset the general public, who will blame the ruling party.

Other causes of "food shortages" are possible, such as low wages. When people can not afford to purchase food, then the problem is economic, rather than related to high-population growth.

While scare tactics regarding population growth leading to starvation can make huge headlines, common sense tells us that the situation isn't too bad. In fact, the entire human race has plenty to eat.