[extropy-chat] ex-tropical

[Adrian Tymes]

--- The Avantguardian <avantguardian2020 at yahoo.com>
wrote:
> Adrian Tymes <wingcat at pacbell.net> wrote:
> 
> Emigration, on the other hand, would probably not
> cause a high birth rate to compensate. Net result:
> depopulation.
> 
> That is what I was trying to communicate.
> 
> 
> * That is still nonsense, Adrian. The vast majority
> of people in the world today don't even have access
> to automobiles or airplanes. I seriously doubt that
> even if space travel were to become as routine as
> booking a flight would a significantly sizable
> portion of the world be able to afford to leave it.
> So the world will not be depopulated by emigration.
> Chances are at best a lucky privilaged few will be
> able to leave and the rest will in remain in squalor
> to succumb to famine, disease, war, or perhaps even
> survive as they may. 

I draw an analogy to Britain circa colonial times:
sending people to America was one way of relieving
overpopulation, and it wasn't just a priveleged few
who went - even those who wouldn't otherwise have
access to ships at all.  Also, people are working on
ways of making space flight much cheaper - less than
$100K, maybe eventually less than $1K, per person per
flight.  If there was somewhere up there to move to
today, I know quite a few people who might be willing
to spend $100K to move up there, depending on the
quality and cost of living in said hypothetical
destination.

Although, as has been pointed out, a more practical
way to handle overpopulation would be to increase the
Earth's carrying capacity for humans through better
medicine, better agrotech, and so forth - just like
the way humanity moved from millions to billions.

> In general, I don't like criticizing what people say
> on this list because I feel it stifles interesting
> if not perfect ideas from being expressed.

Honest criticism refines ideas.  Your points are good,
and place a limit on the rate of emigration: e.g.,
mass emigration to space *won't* happen overnight.

> But in
> this case I figure I owe you one.

Nothing is owed.  Criticism is given, criticism is
received, and we are all the better for it.  Just so
long as it doesn't become personal.