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Sunday, November 03, 2013

More on the Vatican survey

Since we in the US may never know what was sent to the US Bishops from the Vatican, and since the version kindly created by Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good is so brief, I thought I'd read the UK Bishops' online version of the survey here. The questions in that survey, though, are pretty thick with theology and double speak, so you may want to read the translations of them at Questions from a Ewe.

A lot of the questions asked seem just strange but the one I found the most unbelievable was ... How can a more open attitude towards having children be fostered? How can an increase in births be promoted?

Hellooooo .....

The human population has been growing continuously since the end of the Black Death, around the year 1400, although the most significant increase has been in the last 50 years, mainly due to medical advancements and increases in agricultural productivity. Although the rate of population growth has been declining since the 1980s, the United Nations has expressed concern on continued excessive population growth in sub-Saharan Africa. As of November 3, 2013 the world's human population is estimated to be 7.122 billion by the United States Census Bureau, and over 7 billion by the United Nations. Most contemporary estimates for the carrying capacity of the Earth under existing conditions are between 4 billion and 16 billion. Depending on which estimate is used, human overpopulation may or may not have already occurred. Nevertheless, the rapid recent increase in human population is causing some concern. The population is expected to reach between 8 and 10.5 billion between the year 2040 and 2050. In May 2011, the United Nations increased the medium variant projections to 9.3 billion for 2050 and 10.1 billion for 2100. The recent rapid increase in human population over the past three centuries has raised concerns that the planet may not be able to sustain present or larger numbers of inhabitants. The InterAcademy Panel Statement on Population Growth, circa 1994, has stated that many environmental problems, such as rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, global warming, and pollution, are aggravated by the population expansion. - Wikipedia

It's as if the people running the church are living in some alternate universe :(

5 Comments:

Anonymous Richard said...

Did you ever read Stand On Zanzibar? One of my favorite science fiction novels of all time.
http://www.amazon.com/Stand-Zanzibar-John-Brunner/dp/0765326787

7:20 PM  
Blogger crystal said...

No, I've never read that, though I've heard of it. Maybe the library has it. When I think of over-population I always think Soylent Green :)

7:25 PM  
Anonymous Richard said...

Anyway, the theme is overpopulation. Wikipedia gives a pretty good summary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stand_on_Zanzibar

A little more autumny today, at least here in the foothills:)

7:32 PM  
Anonymous Richard said...

Ha! That was quick. I was commenting on my comment:) when I think of Soylent Green I think of Charlton Heston saying "Soylent Green is people!" yikes!

7:40 PM  
Blogger crystal said...

I saw a picture showing a box of Soylent Green cereal with the blurb 'now with more girls' :)

Thanks for the link - I'll take a look.

9:16 PM  

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