PowerSwitch

I feel that overpopulation is the root cause of all the current problems (60 million in a country the size of the UK is madness) and I'd implement policies to reduce the UK population down to a max of 30 million. By increasing social awareness of the issues of overpopulation and adjusting the taxation system to encourage people to produce less kids we could bring the numbers down. I'd also stop immigration, we already have too many people crammed into this small island at the moment which are causing the basic services to creek at the seams, it seems insane to be adding more. Sure, we'd go through a painful period where there were more old people than young but we'd all have to work longer till we hit equilibrium again. Fairly radical stuff but someone has to have the courage to tackle this problem.

The trouble is would it be too little too late?

It's not the number of people that matters, it's what they do.

I would say it's the product of the number of people multiplied by what they do - both factors matter.

Stopping immigration won't do much. Apparently there's more ex-pat Brits living abroad than there are foreign people in the UK. Stopping immigration to these shores will mean that we should stop people leaving too. Although high fuel prices may put a stop to most immigration anyway.

What would I do? Public transport for starters, plus encouragement of low energy entertainment ie musical instruments, sports and so on. Less Xboxes and HDTVs and the like.

biffvernon wrote:It's not the number of people that matters, it's what they do.

Agreed, although I would say ?socioeconomic system? rather than ?what they do?. I think the UK (and even the world) can hold more people. I don?t think we have hit max population yet. For what I have read 8-9 billion could be the upper limit. However, I don?t think we can keep even the people we have without changing the way we do things. I think we need a change to our current socioeconomic system.

Just one policy?

Too hard!

The most effective thing would be a long-running (i.e. permanent) and unavoidable educational campaign in all forms of the media, from TV to newspapers to door-to-door, looking at energy awareness, economic awareness and roots to true sustainability, and the moral imperative for each person to achieve that.

Until people realise their boat has floated up shit-creek, they're not going to feel that compelled to row their way out. This is, of course, assuming they have a paddle by that point.

Teach 'Energy' in schools.

Use the media to alert people to the problem, and to disuade people from this consumption mindset which could be partially blamed for the problem.

Offer businesses incentives to allow flexible working arrangements for employees. To help reduce the collosal waste of energy from cars idling in traffic jams.

Provide incentives to relocalise food production.

Start-up a WW2 style effort to develop a technological solution.

How about the most ecologically minded tax system conceivable.

There's a summarised projection (12 pages) of a vision of it by James Robertson on his newsletter here.

I might do a peak oil specific write up about it soon.

The most effective thing would be a long-running (i.e. permanent) and unavoidable educational campaign in all forms of the media, from TV to newspapers to door-to-door, looking at energy awareness, economic awareness and roots to true sustainability, and the moral imperative for each person to achieve that.

I'd agree that educating the populace about the situation that we are in is the very first thing that we need to do. Without the will of the people nothing will change until mother nature forces us to.

I'll vote for any party that has the balls to stand up to the people of the UK and tell them straight about the dire situation we are in but they all seem so damn spineless.

Ballard wrote:Teach 'Energy' in schools.

Teach Permaculture in schools.

John B & Ballard....

I'm a Science teacher... & I've been putting a message 'out there' for years....

.... now that I know more about Peak Oil issues the message will be just about as direct as I can make it & still keep my job!

Okay, not quite so bad... I do want my students to want to come back too.

Cabrone wrote:I'll vote for any party that has the balls to stand up to the people of the UK and tell them straight about the dire situation we are in but they all seem so damn spineless.

You sure? http://www.bnp.org.uk/peakoil/index.htm

Joe

Do you think that the BNP is worse than the Labour/Conservative/Liberal or any other party for that matter? In what ways are they worse? Is it because of how you perceive they would be, what they say, how they measure up with how others have faired etc etc?

The reason I ask this question is that for a long while I have questioned over and over what is really going on, what is hype as I know most of us hear have done.

When you consider many of the links we have followed here about sustainable methods, capitalism, pions of debt it does get very confusing.

Powerdown is going to be very uncomfortable for the general masses. I keep thinking, who will do it better not right as no one is going to do it right as far as I can see.

Will wonders never cease - a smidgin of common sense at the BNP! And a link to PowerSwitch as well (a dubious benefit).

Mind you, I once saw a link to Wolf at the Door on David Icke's website...