Nothing new here. All of the world's problems- hunger, poverty, disease, and war- are derived from competition for natural resources, which in turn is derived from overpopulation. Any species needs to live within the confines of its habitat.
I agree that we have some tough times ahead. We'll probably see more widespread war, and maybe even a pandemic of disease as oil supplies dry up.
I don't see a Mad Max style world with 500 Million humans like this person, however. The flip side is that while our population continues to grow, our consumption of oil is slowly going down (on a per capita basis). We now have 50 MPG hybrids instead of 12 MPG land yachts, and we have flat-panel computer monitors that consume 35 watts instead of CRTs that comsume 200 watts. Alternative fuel power generation is slowly increasing, too. We're bound to have a traumatic transition from our society of conspicuous consumption to a more streamlined lifestyle- that's for certain. Maybe $3.50/gallon gasoline will give people a nudge in that direction!
There's one thing for sure- we need to spread ourselves off of this planet. One of two things is guaranteed here: either we begin to colonize other planets or we will have the human population trimmed by global war/ pandemic. There's no doubt that our current population and growth is unsustainable. At least President Bush is making the biggest strides here of any president- developing alternative energy and setting goals for Moon and Mars missions.
It all makes one question the future economic viablility of the airline industry in general, doesn't it? Interesting times...
