Letters

Why Make More Babies?

Dear Alibi,

Six point eight billion of us human beings are alive today—six times as many now as were living less than 200 years ago! Why make more babies?

The world population was one billion in 1850, two billion in 1930, three billion in 1960, four billion in 1974, five billion in 1986 and six billion in 1999. Twice as many people are alive now as were living less than 50 years ago!

If you already have biological children, love them, treasure them, care for them and teach them by your own example to enjoy living simply, consuming no more than their fair share in our world family of 6.8 billion sisters and brothers, plus the many billions to follow us if human beings survive.

Billions more people consuming more resources, billions more people poisoning the Earth with more waste and pollution—where does it end? In massive disasters, suffering, wars, famine, starvation ...

The worst population problem is not in China, India or Africa—it is in the U.S. because most people here consume and pollute many times more per person than most people in China, India or Africa. The U.S. has less than 5 percent of the world’s people but consumes 25 percent of the world’s resources.

No American child has the right to live in luxury with a room full of toys and a closet packed with clothes while a child in Africa dies of hunger.

You have no right to spoil your child rotten while a child in China suffers in the cold with no home. I have no right to more than I need while others in this world have less than they need.

Your child is no more precious than a child in India, Haiti, Iraq or anywhere else on Earth.

Gandhi said there is enough for everyone’s need but not for everyone’s greed.

If you have no biological children and if you are committed to fairness for all people now and in the future how can you justify having more than one biological child? Far better yet, have none!

If you love children and want to help them, help the millions of children worldwide who desperately need love, care, food and shelter—adopt a child or become foster parents. Give money to those children’s organizations that stretch every dollar to do the most good with no fancy offices and no highly paid staff.

For many reasons I am glad I have no biological children. Why make more babies?

"Jesus Christ" Exclamation Is Not Cursing

Dear Alibi,

[Re: Blog, “Military Religious Freedom Foundation has 18 Active Cases at Fort Hood,” Nov. 6] Exclaiming "Oh God!" or "Jesus Christ!" to express exasperation might violate your interpretation of the ten commandments, but it is not cursing any more than saying "wow" is. It's a (usually mock) prayer implying that the other person has just said something so ridiculous that it merits divine intervention. I have never heard of Mikey Weinstein or anybody else say something like "you stupid Jesus Christ" as a curse.

The rest of MRFFWatch's trolling has convinced me by example just how easily religious intolerance can masquerade as military bravado. The American military exists to defend our freedoms. People who attempt to undermine our freedoms are working against this purpose.