Save the Planet!

[Pelagic]

Ok… it is a New Year now and we sailors are known for thinking outside the box….
…So….HOW WOULD YOU SAVE THE PLANET?

Let’s assume you have been given the worldwide authority to solve the problem of an overwhelmed ecosystem.
…Your mandate is in the form of a benevolent dictatorship with democratic overtones to assure global fairness. No genocide or national favoritism allowed.

You must take dramatic and immediate action to restructure and reorganize the world’s population for maximum positive results to reverse the damages done.

What would be your solution?

[hpeer]

Good one.

Not a f'ing clue.

You need to get the population down to around 1 Billion give or take 50%.

Anyone who addresses that problem will be vilified as promoting mass murder.

I'm sure others will disagree with my 1 Billion, but that's my honest opinion. Short of that, I don't see a solution.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Ok… it is a New Year now and we sailors are known for thinking outside the box….
…So….HOW WOULD YOU SAVE THE PLANET?

I have no solutions for the planet, I only have solutions for me. I can continue to reduce my impact on this planet by living small and going slow. I can help build up the social capital of my communities, and I can help others (people far smarter than I) who are working to find our collective way out of this myopic view of the world that insists on placing a dollar sign beside everything and everyone.

... Or did you just want me to wave my magic wand and go POOF!

[Pelagic]

Sorry Mike, since this is in the Challenge section… I accept the criticism before that I have to do more than just ‘walk the walk’

No God like ‘poof’s’ allowed just the massive existing resources of every military, police, scientific, behavioral experts made willingly available for you to dictate the most effective solutions.

Come on guys, this is your big chance to look beyond the horizon and dictate a global solution.
(Non magical Omnipotence can be a bitch)

[boatman61]

People sterilised at Puberty (reversible)
People can only have children after;
1/married more than 7yrs when reverse is implimented
2/are financially secure
3/are not drug/alcohol abusers
Restricted to 1 male and 1 female child..
If one dies no replacement births..
If divorced and remarry no babies if you've used your allowance
That should stop a lot of divorces.. and abortions come to that.
Ban artificial insemination and promote adoption

that should stabilise the population then natural selection and Darwin should kick in and start a slow decline
Would need to be implemented world wide to be effective
That should raise some howls of protest

[Pelagic]

Good start Boatman…
You have my support for those rules but I think we still need to go further on reversing Overpopulation

Let’s first agree on the target numbers

Quick search on Google…
Various reliable estimates of the carrying capacity of the Earth vary between 4 and 16 billion. Currently the world population stands at more than 7 billion

Can we ALL agree that 4 Billion is our maximum population for this Challenge?

Birth vs Death Rate
Population Facts - Birth and Death Rates

Life expectancy
File:Esperanza de vida.PNG - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I would also remove all borders to create natural competition thru free relocation and outlaw all charity programs that does not empower self sufficiency under our “Save the Planet” STP guidelines.

Now how do we get the Birth vs Death Rate into negative numbers so that the Trend is from 7 billion to 4 Billion?
(Without reverting to Jonathon Swift's "Modest Proposal"

[Krogensailor]

What hubris! The planet is not in trouble. It is a closed loop system that will adjust and readjust to find it's equilibrium. It will be fine. Us? Not so much. We are the ones who are going away. And from a planetary view, given our history, not a great loss from the cosmic point of view. An experiment that didn't work out. We could, maybe, reset by seeking a more organic and global perspective. Seek to correct our disoriented condition. Lose money, religion, the fallacy of knowing better, the simple minded notion that we are somehow separated from each other, and everything else. Lose our fragmented , reductionist, schizoid, cosmically divorced mindset, for a mindset that gets all of the connections and the systems of connections. We could do it!!!! Not really, I'm just f--king with you. There's no hope whatsoever. Perhaps when there's a half a billion or so left, when they 'get' that we really are going away. I wonder if it will be the rich left at the endgame, or the resourceful? In the meantime enjoy sailing. sunsets, each other. Breathing.

[robert sailor]

I'm in your corner

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by Krogensailor

What hubris! The planet is not in trouble. It is a closed loop system that will adjust and readjust to find it's equilibrium. It will be fine. Us? Not so much. We are the ones who are going away. ...... Lose our fragmented , reductionist, schizoid, cosmically divorced mindset, for a mindset that gets all of the connections and the systems of connections. We could do it!!!! Not really, I'm just f--king with you. There's no hope whatsoever. Perhaps when there's a half a billion or so left, when they 'get' that we really are going away. I wonder if it will be the rich left at the endgame, or the resourceful? In the meantime enjoy sailing. sunsets, each other. Breathing.

Agreed… there is certain dictatorial arrogance to accepting the STP challenge, but as things get worse, the frightened population usually tend to turn to those controlling types, so we might as well come up with some fair and benevolent solutions.

Chill out… this is only a mental exercise in what it would take

Methinks Boatie that we have to first limit the Basic Family Unit to 3 (i.e. one child) BFU3
Furthermore not allow their only offspring to procreate until such time as one of the parents kick the bucket.

Need some better mathematician than I to figure out, if we apply the medium world’s life span of 67 years to BFU3.., will that eventually do the job to bring population down from existing 7 Billion to 4 Billion?

If so how long that will take by enforcing the BFU3? (Obviously the existing large families will need to have a lottery on which sibling can procreate)

Now, to providing the necessary controls in managing a sustainable living for all.
I think most sociologists would agree this means taking everyone out of their comfort zone, relocating them so they can be reeducated to become responsible world citizens.

Remove all currencies and switch to a weighted Barter System of Trade.
Remove all Land Ownership but allow each BFU a Native Title via a worldwide lottery
BFU3’s have the choice of providing Services or Food and all are encouraged to work their own land.
Native Title can only be leased to another BFU for 30 years
Focus on organic vegan farming and ban all large scale animal husbandry as food stocks including fish farming.
Outlaw the use of chemical fertilizers or any unnatural genetic tampering in food.
Ban all processed foods and condition the world citizens to eventually become Vegans

Ban the sale of all threatened fish stocks and focus on catching the invasive species as a food
Encourage the relocated families to catch those allowed invasive food stocks while they develop the land they receive
Investment in Fish hatchery programs to restocks/ releases the threatened species into the oceans.
Sink all large commercial fish boats to form new hatchery reefs
Fishing by traditional hook and line only

Reclaim lost farming land by building vertical cities for service oriented BFU’s
Outlaw private transport and phase out all polluting machinery.

Before anyone accuses me of being a communist, this is to illustrate how difficult even under dictatorship, it would be

[Krogensailor]

"Chill out… this is only a mental exercise", yes that's the problem. This is always a mental exercise. I really mean no disrespect, but mental masturbation is a better term. What's happening in the culture we live within is terminal. Unsustainable and if maintained as is, we are doomed. But yes lets get some popcorn out and look at it as a movie, yea, that's the ticket. Anything but change what we actually doooooo. Want a list?
if the destination is less than a mile walk. under 3 bike.
Earn as much money as you require, plus a prudent reserve. Leave the rest for the next guy
work only the hours needed to meet your needs. End unemployment.
Are you invested in the things that are wrecking the environment? Divest!
Do you eat meat? Stop. 1 lb of hamburger = 12,000 gl of water.
Eat only food that comes from no more than 100miles away
Avoid processed food. live longer in the bargain.
Got a big car? get rid of it.
Scooter/motorcycle.
Hybrid or electric car
Lose all incandescent lighting, turn off all those little leds on equipment
Thermostats on 78 for cool and 72 for heat.
Solar hot water heater if your south of 32deg.
if it has corn in it, don't eat it. Same with soy.
Don't wear clothing that's come from chemicals, (oil).
Boycott corps by not giving them your money.
Buy a used boat.
Do you really need all that electric **** on the boat?
Minimize using the motor on the boat.
Use your home dishwasher as a storage cabinet.
Drink filtered tap water. That's whats in those bottles.
Avoid anything stronger than beer and wine.
Jesus Christ, don't smoke!
Seek alternatives to medicines and Doctors.
Avoid lawyers like the plague.
Avoid eating things that don't grow in the climate your in.

This list can just go on and on.

But will the we actually do anything like this. I highly doubt it. Even if our live s depend on it we won't. I've seen folks smoke straight into the grave. Have thier legs cut off, sitting in a wheel chair eating candy bars. These aren't efforts that require any involvement from others. It's just you and your next choice. Nothing complicated at all. What we need to do is stop and look around us. Change our individual lives in every way we can and then move out into the world. "Be the change you want to see". Beleive me it ain't easy. You'll open your mouth to contribute and folks will tell you to "chill". But don't let that stop you, I wouldn't. I make all of the efforts/sacrifices in the above list, and more. Am I bragging? No. Am I perfect about it? no. But I am engaged, I'm in the game, not a spectator. My Pop always said, "Do the possibles today and the impossibles tomorrow". Will it work to save the "world"? I'm not that optimistic, but I will do whatever I can to be part of the solution.

[robert sailor]

Interesting ideas but most will never see day light. Our planet is all about consumerism and that needs growth. Look at Japan it has been shrinking in all areas including population and GDP and they are in panic mode to increase their population without imigration of course

[Krogensailor]

"Ok… it is a New Year now and we sailors are known for thinking outside the box….
…So….HOW WOULD YOU SAVE THE PLANET?

Let’s assume you have been given the worldwide authority to solve the problem of an overwhelmed ecosystem.
…Your mandate is in the form of a benevolent dictatorship with democratic overtones to assure global fairness. No genocide or national favoritism allowed.

You must take dramatic and immediate action to restructure and reorganize the world’s population for maximum positive results to reverse the damages done.

What would be your solution?"



Piece of cake.
Move from a monetary based system to a resource based system.

Understand that everyone is in, or no one is in.

(watch the Zietgiest film series)

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by Krogensailor

. My Pop always said, "Do the possibles today and the impossibles tomorrow". Will it work to save the "world"? I'm not that optimistic, but I will do whatever I can to be part of the solution.

Most noble of enlightened individuals to do their bit for the planet, hoping that by their example of LESS consumerism, they can somehow change the world. They are kidding themselves!

The reality of the worsening population dilemma is that…… ‘The survival of one’s own small family unit’ if you live at a poverty starvation level… far outweighs any global environmental conscience.

For us to really STP in a fair and peaceful way… we must be prepared to give up all of those inherited advantages…
Yes by accident of birth and/or immigration, we did inherit all the positional and military advantages from our parents to take away global resources from others

So, I suggest that the tough question becomes…
Are you prepared to relinquish all your wealth, power and social advantages in order for benevolent world leaders to educate, relocate and reassign global assets to the impoverished, as part of the solution?

This I believe would be the only way to inspire the starving masses to be equally noble?

Otherwise like a Darwinian Holocaust, we will silently bear witness to a coming genocide of unbelievable proportions that our leaders will reluctantly rationalize as a necessary evil.

As Atlas shrugs, I am glad I have no kids.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Ok… it is a New Year now and we sailors are known for thinking outside the box….
…So….HOW WOULD YOU SAVE THE PLANET?

Let’s assume you have been given the worldwide authority to solve the problem of an overwhelmed ecosystem.
…Your mandate is in the form of a benevolent dictatorship with democratic overtones to assure global fairness. No genocide or national favoritism allowed.

You must take dramatic and immediate action to restructure and reorganize the world’s population for maximum positive results to reverse the damages done.

What would be your solution?

Please everyone, include a "HOW" not just a "what" in your solutions. For example, "how" would you get the population down to "x". Ideas are worthless without a plan of implementation, i.e. .. how you gonna do it?

[captain58sailin]

What boatman 61 said, + no more plastic packaging on durable goods, recycle the plastic already in existence, do not create any new.