[SustainableTompkins] Pacific Trash Vortex, Vol 22, Issue 23

[Thomas Shelley]

At 08:39 AM 10/24/2007 -0400, you wrote:


>With all due respect, 6 billion people do not have to contemplate the 
>impact of their waste stream on the environment, only about 300 million 
>Americans and about 300 million Europeans have too.  .....rest deleted.....

George--This was really a great response.  We all need to learn to live 
with consuming 80 percent less of the materials and energy we currently 
consume if the rest of the Earth is to survive at all.  I have a suspicion 
that this is going to be very difficult for the average US citizen to wrap 
their minds around, let alone accomplish in our lifetimes, which means that 
we are not in a good place, so say the least.  The recent research I have 
read suggests that even if the Amero-Euro populations were to reduce there 
overall consumption of everything by 80 percent, the carrying capacity of 
the Earth would be between .5B and 2 B people--between 1/12 and 1/3 of the 
current population.  So not only do we need to reduce our consumption of 
everything substantially, we also need to reduce our population by a 
similar amount.  I wish us all good luck 'cause we're going to need a lot 
of it!   Have a wonderful day....    Tom

Tom Shelley
118 E. Court St.
Ithaca, NY 14850
607 342-0864
tjs1 at cornell.edu
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