Population Effects, Trends, and Such

David, the one in the Bible, the one after God's own heart, found himself in a lot of trouble for deciding to count his troops. He wasn't trusting God. However, on other occasions, it was clear that it was ok with God to do counts of the entirety of Israel. No small part of the old testament is devoted to population information.

Mary and Joseph ended up in Bethlehem at the end of Mary's pregnancy because Herrod wanted a Census.



It is hard to drive to Palm Springs from West Los Angeles, CA., and not at least contemplate the nature of population. I found this density map here, which has several other cool maps showing the changing density of the Los Angeles basin over the past 50 years.

Science
Population trends
Demographics


My family lives in one of the more densely populated places on earth. Our own neighborhood is single family dwellings on 1/4 acre lots, so not that dense, but there are plenty of apartments and such in the area.

Living in "the city" offers lots of good things, like easy access to stores, cultural activities, financial and other business resources, etc. However, there are some negatives, too. Traffic, noise, and just that hemmed in feeling.

I suspect that some combination of abundant resources and the hemmed in feeling is the root of many evils that are hitting our headlines these days. It shouldn't surprise anyone that when populations are well fed and dense, the slow down reproductive activity. We have done so in the US and other Western Cultures.

But would it be a stretch to say that slowing down reproductive activity leads to things like abortion, homosexuality, and sexual acting out. Look for more on this subject in the weeks to come.