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Clashing Views on Global Issues, Sixth Edition
Unit 1 Global Population Issue 1. Are Declining Growth Rates Rather Than Rapid Population Growth Today’s Major Global Population Problem? YES: Michael Meyer, from “Birth Dearth,” Newsweek (September 27, 2004) NO: Danielle Nierenberg and Mia MacDonald, from “The Population Story … So Far,” World Watch Magazine (September/October 2004) Michael Meyer, a writer for Newsweek International, argues that the new global population threat is not too many people as a consequence of continuing high growth rates. On the contrary, declining birth rates will ultimately lead to depopulation in many places on Earth, a virtual population implosion, in both the developed and developing worlds. Danielle Nierenberg, a research associate at the Worldwatch Institute, and Mia MacDonald, a policy analyst and Worldwatch Institute senior fellow, argue that the consequences of a still-rising population have worsened in some ways because of the simultaneous existence of fast-rising consumption patterns, creating a new set of concerns. Issue 2. Should the International Community Refocus on Programs to Help Developing Countries Curb Population Growth? YES: Terry M. Redding, from “The Population Challenge: Key to Global Survival,” The 21st Century Papers (The Population Institute, 2007) NO: Steven W. Mosher, from “McNamara’s Folly: Bankrolling Family Planning,” PRI Review (March–April 2003) Terry M. Redding, a communications consultant to The Population Institute, suggests that population growth is being unfortunately neglected in international development discussions, as the latter’s focus has been on other aspects of population such as reproductive health and women’s empowerment. Steven W. Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute, an organization devoted to debunking the idea that the world is overpopulated, argues that self-interest was the motivation for past efforts on the part of international funding agencies, including the World Bank, to curb population by pressuring developing countries to adopt fertility reduction programs. Issue 3. Is Global Aging in the Developed World a Major Problem? YES: Pete Engardio and Carol Matlack, from “Global Aging,” Business Week (January 31, 2005) NO: Rand Corporation, from “Population Implosion?” Research Brief, Rand Europe (2005) This Business Week cover story outlines the aging of the population in both the developed world and the newly emerging economies, suggesting that the time for action is now. This Rand Corporation study suggests that because of declining fertility, European populations are either growing more slowly or have actually begun to decline. Although these trends “portend difficult times ahead,” European governments should be able to confront these challenges successfully. Issue 4. Does Global Urbanization Lead Primarily to Undesirable Consequences? YES: Divya Abhat, Shauna Dineen, Tamsyn Jones, Jim Motavilli, Rebecca Sanborn, and Kate Slomkowski, from “Today’s ‘Mega-Cities’ Are Overcrowded and Environmentally Stressed,” http://www.emagazine.com (September/October 2005) NO: UNFPA, from UNFPA State of the World 2007: Unleashing the Potential of Urban Growth (2007) Divya Abhat, editor of E/The Environmental Magazine, and colleagues suggest that the world’s cities suffer from environmental ills, among them pollution, poverty, fresh water shortages, and disease. The UNFPA 2007 Report suggests that cities, in fact, facilitate a number of desirable conditions, such as gender-equitable change, more diverse employment possibilities, more economic well-being and security for women, women’s empowerment, and access to better health care, among other positive changes. Unit 2 Global Resources and the Environment Issue 5. Do Environmentalists Overstate Their Case? YES: Ronald Bailey, from “Debunking Green Myths,” Reason (February 2002) NO: David Pimentel, from “Skeptical of the Skeptical Environmentalist,” Skeptic (vol. 9, no. 2, 2002) Environmental journalist Ronald Bailey in his review of the Bj⊘rn Lomborg controversial book, The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World (Cambridge University Press, 2001), argues that “An environmentalist gets it right,” suggesting that finally someone has taken the environmental doomsdayers to task for their shoddy use of science. Bioscientist David Pimentel takes to task Bj⊘rn Lomborg’s findings, accusing him of selective use of data to support his conclusions. Issue 6. Should the World Continue to Rely on Oil as the Major Source of Energy? YES: Nansen G. Saleri, from “The World Has Plenty of Oil,” Wall Street Journal (March 4, 2008) NO: Lester R. Brown, from “Is World Oil Peaking?” Earth Policy Institute (November 15, 2007) Nansen G. Saleri, president and CEO of Quantum Reservoir Input and the oil industry’s preeminent authority on the issue, suggests that the world is “nowhere close to reaching a peak in global oil supplies.” He argues that the future transition to oil alternatives will be the result of their superiority rather than the diminishing supply of oil. Lester R. Brown, founder and president of Earth Policy Institute, suggests that there has been a “pronounced loss of momentum” in the growth of oil production, a likely result of demand outpacing discoveries, leading to declining oil production prospects. Issue 7. Will the World Be Able to Feed Itself in the Foreseeable Future? YES: Stephen Lendman, from “Global Food Crisis: Hunger Plagues Haiti and the World,” Global Research (April 21, 2008) NO: Bee Wilson, from “The Last Bite: Is the World’s Food System Collapsing?” The New Yorker (May 19, 2008) Stephen Lendman, a research associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization in Montreal, argues that the global food crisis is related to rising prices in an economically troubled time rather than to a lack of food production. Bee Wilson, a critic for The New Yorker, argues that the global food system is in need of radical change if the world is going to be able to feed itself in the future but that such prospects are unlikely to happen, as the “global manufacturers and wholesalers have an interest in continuing … stroking our colossal hunger.” Issue 8. Is the Threat of Global Warming Real? YES: David Biello, from “State of the Science: Beyond the Worst Case Climate Change Scenario,” Scientific American (November 26, 2007) NO: Richard S. Lindzen, from “No Global Warming,” Environment News, The Heartland Institute (August 2006) David Biello summarizes the 2007 report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which concludes that climate change is unequivocal, almost certain to be caused by human activity. Richard S. Lindzen takes issue with those who suggest that “the debate in the scientific community is over” regarding the existence of global warming, and argues that to believe in such warming requires one to “ignore the truly inconvenient facts.” Issue 9. Is the Threat of a Global Water Shortage Real? YES: Mark Clayton, from “Is Water Becoming ‘the New Oil’?” Christian Science Monitor (May 29, 2008) NO: Bj⊘rn Lomborg, from The Skeptical Environment: Measuring the Real State of the World (Cambridge University Press, 2001) Mark Clayton, staff writer for The Christian Science Monitor, suggests that changes in population, pollution, and climate are creating water shortages around the globe, leading private companies to take advantage of the increased demand for clean water while governments are slow to act.Lomborg contends that water is not only plentiful but is a renewable resource that, if properly treated as valuable, should not pose a future problem. Unit 3 Expanding Global Forces and Movements Issue 10. Can the Global Community “Win” the Drug War? YES: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, from “2007 World Drug Report” (2007) NO: Ethan... |
