Overpopulation

When President Kennedy stepped into office in the 1960s there were half as many people on the earth as there are today. In his inaugural speech he stated that poverty and hunger would be ended. It did not happen, and the task has become even harder to accomplish now that the amount of people on this earth has doubled. More and more people are going hungry everyday, more and more people are not having their needs met. To make matters worse the amount of people on this earth is growing and growing as the amount of resources stay the same. In an economy where growth is the measure of success what will happen when people can simply not grow anymore?

In biology there is a number called the carrying capacity. What that means is that for any given species there is a maximum population limit. Once this limit has been reached the population begins to suffer devastating effects. These effects include increased rates of disease, higher predation, starvation, etc. Nothing that the human race would like to be experiencing. However, we have seen over the past few years just that. The rate of starvation is increasing, the number of AIDs cases is increasing, SARs, birdflu, and swineflu have all reached pandemic potential. There is not doubt that nature balances out the population of species, humans however have been fighting nature.

What is needed, and needed fast, is a way to halt and eventually reverse the population of earth. This might seem very very harsh but it is what is needed in order for our species to live in a sustainable manner on this earth.

I would love to hear any thoughts you have about stopping the overpopulation of earth.

Health Care

Today's Social Justice Issue: HEALTH CARE

It seems simple enough. People need some form of health care. This health care does not come free. So... people need to find some way to pay for this health care. Our current system had individuals pay for this care. In this system the price is high and people can choose to or not to pay for this service. The problems start when someone without health care goes to the emergency room and receives care that they have not paid for. Where the money comes from to pay for this care is the rest of us who are paying for our own care. They simply raise our rates to cover for these emergency cases. There are many other problems with the system. It is expensive, leaving some people unable to afford health care. It leaves a burden on the insured to care for the uninsured, either through welfare, paying for retirement care, or emergency care for those not covered.

One alternative to the current system is to provide health care for everyone at no cost. In this system everyone is insured. It is a system that has been proven to work in Canada and a multitude of welfare-states in Europe. Such a system would be paid for through higher taxes.

What I think people fail to see is that this system is being paid for right now, but just by a few. Making it into a system that is supported by everyone's taxes will cut down on the overall cost.

That is what I think. What about you?

The Dollar Vote

Throughout the 1950's the United States played a dramatic role in numerous foreign countries as they influenced elections and toppled foreign leaders. There hand reached into Guatemala, Cuba, Iran, etc. It would seem that the United States government was the master of its own destiny and that of many other countries.

Ironically the Supreme Court recently ruled that corporations could begin spending as they see fit in U.S. elections. This includes foreign companies. Obama stated that the decision would allow domestic and "foreign corporations, to spend without limit on our elections." It would seem that the U.S. is no longer the master of even its own destiny. This is what happens when 51 of the 100 wealthiest governments/corporations are corporations.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/front_page/20090910_Court_weighs_election_finance.html

250 person tent village

Anyone driving south on I-25 between exit 140 and 138 can see a proud American flag rising out of a hobbled together tent. The tent, primarily made of a large blue tarp, is just the tip of the ice-berg. What can not be seen are the nearly 250 other homeless people living in tents that line monument creek off of the highway 24 east exit. The myriad of colored tents mark the home of the displaced, the poor, and the mentally ill. People who live outside in temperatures that have dropped to almost -20 F this winter.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14256366

Not only is this a social justice issue it is also a health issue. All the human waste from these people is entering the water supply. Anyone who drives through the city will certainly be turned off by the shanty town that continues to grow in it.

Here are some interesting facts:

Colorado Springs has over 350 churches listed in its yellow pages.
http://www.superpages.com/yellowpages/C-Churches/S-CO/T-Colorado+Springs/

The City of Colorado Springs just invested almost 10$ million in the Olympic Training Center
http://www.springsgov.com/News.aspx?NewsID=248

You would think that either the churches or the city could solve this problem. They have not. The homeless community in Colorado Springs continues to grow as more and more people are being forced to leave their homes and everything that they own.

My thoughts. If each church worked to adopt or take care of just 1 homeless person that is currently living along the creek the problem could be solved.

30,000

Each day somewhere around 30,000 people die of starvation or starvation related disease. In an attempt to fathom that number I made 30,000 tally marks. It took over 12 hours of writing to make the 30,000 marks. To think that that many people die everyday because they do not have enough food is awful. To make matters worse according to the UN all that is needed to stop that death is 7 billion dollars a year, or what citizens in the European Union collectively spend on Tobacco and Alcohol each year.

However, what I want to try and wrap my head around, is how the population of the Earth continues to grow so greatly when those that are already here can not be supported. Might it be better for someone to ensure that the babies that were born yesterday are able to survive before they go about making some of their own?

Making matters worse, the United States defense budget is 663.8 billion. Almost enough to end starvation for 10 years. We as tax payers should be up in arms about this. Even a 10% cut in the budget would provide greatly for these people. Just a little food for thought.

A City Divided

Last night I had the opportunity to see a city divided while attending a community meeting. The meeting focused on a way to keep open four local community centers. In the most recent election voters in Colorado Springs choose to not raise taxes. What that really turned out to be was a vote to close community centers, cut police forces, and gut public transportation. Although this was a city wide vote it would mostly greatly benefit the rich and greatly hurt the poor. The poor community was now left with less protection, no where safe for their children to go after school, and no way to get around. Meanwhile those with the money were left largely unaffected. After all, they own cars and drive to work, have nannies or daycare, and live in safe neighborhoods.

Although little was solved in the meeting what came to the light is that the voters of Colorado Springs really need a lesson in Social Justice. They had the opportunity to shelter the needy (the community center provides a safe place for children to go after school), continue to feed the elderly (the centers provide warm meals for seniors who can not otherwise afford one), and provide a safe place for an entire community (commodities are distributed to a community who could otherwise not afford to eat). They choose not too.

Colorado Springs, a supposed Christian city, decided to do nothing. What will happen when the kids of District 2 grow up? Who will now be responsible for crimes they commit? Who will help this community?

Justice for the poor last night was not present.