Timothy Powell
FNR 101-01
Dr. Harris

The battle lines have been drawn and the enemy is on the horizon. Indeed, we must prepare to wage yet another battle against the human spirit. But this will not be a war against drugs or crime, but instead, will be a war against numbers. Specifically, the numbers of people like you and me that have yet to be born sometime in the distant future. This is the population bomb that threatens to blow America apart at the very seams of its existence. The purpose of this paper will be to examine the ramifications of this population bomb and then though contraceptives and the intervention of government, support the idea that families in the US should be limited to two children per household.

Plain and simple there are too many people in this society. We have long since exceeded our carrying capacity and but for our technology and Gods' grace, would have wasted away long ago. For so long have we all wanted our own little corner of paradise, but now we have more people than even foreseeable corners left. The result, those who can afford the American dream pay handsomely to get it, while the rest of us eke out a living in the city. The problem is that more and more of us must now crowd into the city and thus force the city to import more and more sustainable goods in order to function. The final link in this chain is the depletion of natural renewable and non-renewable resources at a phenomenal rate. The problem is further exasperated by the fact that those who are left living in the city are reproducing at a rate that can only magnify the potential for disaster.

The truth of the matter is that while it will take social attitude adjustments to rectify the population imbalance in our cities, there is a way right now to keep the population from ballooning out of control. Multiple forms of contraceptives are now as easy to obtain as candy in the store. From condoms to sterilization we live in an age and society where it is possible and practical to plan for the next generation. Indeed the only thing that thwarts the effective use of these methods is not the fractional amount of inefficiency in the methods themselves, but, the huge number of inconsistent and careless attitudes that are behind there use.

If there is to be any real change in America's population number than our government must be the first to set and enforce it. Laws should be passed, dutifully followed, and vigorously enforced. The government in China already has set an example for the world in taking direct action to preserve its country for the future. Though we do not have a Marxist regime, our population problem is just as real as China's and our government needs a similar zeal in pushing this issue upon our people. Our government must pave the way towards a stable tomorrow where we can all be assured that we will have enough to live comfortably.

But while there are clear reasons to support this position, these reasons are not without there own shortcomings. They must be scrutinized for there feasibility and ultimately critically evaluated as to whether they will be arm us with the right weapons to combat our problem.

It is true that we live in the most technologically innovative country on earth and it's high time that we put all that knowledge to work for us. We have already increased crop production 10 fold with genetic engineering and large scale crop production. Gone is the day where we were dependent upon product A from place B, but, only if condition C could be fulfilled. We are nationally interdependent and with the development of better and safer forms of mass transportation product A could be grown in places X, Y, and Z where conditions were optimal and still be on your plate in 3 - 4 days. We have the potential to feed ourselves and perhaps half the world over if we would but seize the opportunities that lie before us.

The use of contraceptives has been advocated as a solution to our population problem, but, in reality it has become part of the problem. Our bodies where engineered to procreate under the right conditions, and indeed, they have become quite efficient at doing so. But this efficiency has been increasing more and more with the mass introduction of contraceptive devices. The reason: when you interfere with a natural process of the body it adapts in order to try to overcome its handicap. It's no different than Darwin's reasoning behind Evolution. Organisms facing a change in their environment either get more efficient so as to adapt or they perish. In humans, our bodies are doing precisely what they need to sexually survive. Combine this with the lack of consistency and human error with which most forms of birth control are used, and, this gives our bodies their fighting chance to evolve giving us another generation to ad to the numbers sheets.

The thought of the government telling me how many kids I can father is abhorrent and goes against everything America stands for. As a African-American, my people have had to fight for their physical independence and we haven't come this far just to lose our sexual independence now. Another reason that this idea is absurd is that how would the government practically enforce this kind of law. What would be the penalty for sexually liberating yourself with four or five children? --forced sterilization. Indeed, to any rational human being, the implications becomes something closer to a government against the people, not of them or for them.

As in all things there must be some kind of middle ground we can hold on to. Indeed, we do have too many people crowding up our cities, but mass "technicsizing" our country may only set us up for future problems should the technology fail or become obsolete. Likewise handing out barrels of contraceptives is ineffective if no wants to use them, or, when they fail to use them consistently end up in the same predicament. And while the thought of having our own government step in and regulate population numbers may have potential, it does indeed go against our fundamental liberties and beliefs as a democracy,

So what then is left? Is there no real solution for our society such as it is? In my opinion, I think we have the potential to solve all of or problems, including this one. Families should be actively encouraged to have only as many children as they can take care of. Without tossing around numbers, quotas, or ratios, things like love, and adequate food and shelter, should be used as criteria for people to think about in planning for the next generation. The choice must be made by the individuals, encouraged by the community, and, rewarded by our government. We can no longer continue to ignore the ticking time bombs sealed up in our hormones and gametes. We must meet this problem head-on and of one mind. For indeed we have met the enemy and it is locked up within ourselves.