Re: [OT] Bureau of Relocation
From: Nyrath the nearly wise <nyrath@c...>
Date: Sat, 13 May 2000 08:42:25 -0400
Subject: Re: [OT] Bureau of Relocation
Roger Books wrote:
>
> Just as an added bit of information for everyone that looks only
> at the money issue. I have a historian friend who can make a
> very strong case for the fact that almost every war pre-WWII war
> can easily be explained by population pressure, including the
> crusades. (Yes, taking over NA was a war against the natives).
There are some historians who will argue that
*all* wars, pre and post WWII have population pressure
as their root cause.
Good ol' Malthusian doctrine, if the population is
not kept in check by humane means, the Four Horsemen
of the Apocalypse will be ready to keep it in
check by brutal means.
(War, Pestilence, Famine, and Natural Death)
Not to start a flamewar or anything like that, but
Heinlein mentioned something like this in STARSHIP TROOPERS.
Please note that I did not say that Heinlein personally
believed this (perhaps he was speaking tongue in cheek).
In the novel, Rico (studying to become an officer) is given
a term paper about war. He discovers that all war comes
from population pressure (though sometimes you have to
dig deep in the records, the Crusades were mentioned).
So, can War be stopped by controlling population?
Answer: Yes. However, if humanity did this,
real soon (like next thursday), a more expansionistic
species (like the Bugs) moves in and eliminates this
race that "ain't gonna study war no more..."