# too many people **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 16, 1999, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070 "1999-11-16T15:32:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/1 "1999-11-16T15:32:00Z")
Is there an overpopulation problem? I read somewhere that all the world’s people could fit in the state of Texas. Are there too many people,or just not enough resources? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/2 "1999-11-16T15:48:00Z")
I think they’re already trying to fit into Texas…most of the world’s people were on the road in Lubbock as I was driving to class this morning. Might have been more than all the world’s people, actually. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/3 "1999-11-16T16:16:00Z")
Orangecakes, that wouldn’t happen to be “All the Trouble in the World: The Lighter Side of Overpopulation, Famine, Plague, Ecological Disaster, Ethnic Hatred, and Poverty,” by P.J. O’rourke would it? * * * **Dopeler effect:** The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly. ---
**Author:** ![Falcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/49beb7/32.png) [@Falcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falcon)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/4 "1999-11-16T16:33:00Z")
All right…I’m now taking bets on how fast this thread turns into a fun exercise like the one over in GD… BTW, if anyone wants to read it, it’s the thread called “6 billion?” ---
**Author:** ![J\_String](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@J\_String](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J_String)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/5 "1999-11-16T16:39:00Z")
IIRC, Mr. O’Roarke said something to the effect that all the world’s population, at the density of Manhattan, could fit in what was Yugoslavia. He went on to say that if we were going to act like New Yorkers, Yugoslavia was what we deserved. * * * It’s a long way to heaven, but only three short steps to hell. ---
**Author:** ![Mullinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@Mullinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mullinator)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/6 "1999-11-16T17:06:00Z")
I think “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathon Swift could alleviate all of your concerns. * * * Well, shut my mouth. It’s also illegal to put squirrels down your pants for the purposes of gambling. ---
**Author:** ![Sealemon88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c68b51/32.png) [@Sealemon88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sealemon88)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/7 "1999-11-16T17:36:00Z")
Well, hell. All the people in the world could fit in South Houston if ya pile 'em up. The problem is all the **stuff** most people have, taking up room, and the fact that sooner or later, we’re gonna run out of fossil fuels. I think we’ll find solutions to both of these, but not until we get our asses into space. * * * You say “cheesy” like that’s a **BAD** thing. ---
**Author:** ![PurpleCrackwhore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@PurpleCrackwhore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PurpleCrackwhore)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/8 "1999-11-16T17:37:00Z")
Don’t have an answer to your question, but I am willing to send all the people in my area to Texas to find out for ya. And as far as resources… I do believe Texas has enough beef and cowboy hats for them all. =) * * * “Only when he no longer knows what he is doing, does the painter do good things.” --Edgar Degas ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/9 "1999-11-16T17:49:00Z")
- - - One point I remember is that he noted that being concerned about overpopulation is an acceptable way for progressives to be racist. - MC ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 1999, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/10 "1999-11-17T06:25:00Z")
Well,in China they are trying not to have too many children. And good thing my friend(about 37yrs old) doesn’t live there.She has 12 kids! There was the book Population Explosion;also The Birth Dearth by Ben Wattenberg,who contends that we won’t have enough white folks pretty soon and what a horrible thing! Weird. Will there be enough food for everyone,is what I mean? ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 1999, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/too-many-people/11070/11 "1999-11-17T06:39:00Z")
Orangecakes, I direct your attention to the Great Debates forum. The topic “6 billion” has pages and pages of facts, figures, opinion, and a few flames to boot, on population size, resources, food supply, etc… At one point, a related topic concerning the obstinancy of one of the posters (it won’t take you long to figure out which one that would be) spun off in the Pit, but I don’t think it is still active.