I have to say - this is a very interesting topic to debate!
- There are 2 views on the population issue :
- The opimistic viewpoint - our technologie will develop at a speed sufficient for our population to continue growing forever
- The other one [i can't rememeber if this one is ''malthusian''] - our population will reach a point beyond which it can no longer be supported . Lots of people will die because of famine, disease, war.... - and then we'll all be ok again.
Now, it seems to me... that with the latest research showing how climate change will affect productivity etc, and with the fact that healthcare is always getting better - we're gonna crash at some point, I'd say sooner rather than later.
There have even been suggestions that the levelling out process is already occuring in some places where the population is too large to be supported.
Also, the aging population - yeah it IS a problem, but I'd say economic problem mainly, in developped countries at least. I think the real problem's gonna start when less developed contries improve their healthcare sufficiently for them to have a similar life expectancy to us - because it'll take a while for their birth rates to drop, and then, population will become huge, and surely we're screwed?
Also, fact: 90% of the money spent on your healthcare is spent during the last year of your life.
[appologies for long post, but i find this topic really interesting]