The Population Fix: Breaking America's Addiction to Population Growth

By Edward C. Hartman

Alarming, amusing, disarmingly simple and to-the-point, The Population Fix describes the causes and the effects of America's addiction to population growth and explains how average citizens can regain... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0977612503
• ISBN13: 9780977612505
• Release Date: July 2006
• Publisher: Californians for Popu
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 9.0" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Will get the reader thinking in a new way

There are few problems in present-day America, from water shortages to traffic congestion to over-crowded schools, that are not exacerbated by America's addiction to population growth. This book aims to change that. The author places much of the blame on a high rate of net migration (not just illegal immigrants) and a high fertility rate among some groups. There are many groups who benefit by high population growth, and like things just the way they are. Among them are builders and developers, farmers, the hospitality industry, food processors and middle class Americans. Supposedly, these would all collapse if it wasn't for cheap foreign labor unwilling to demand a decent wage and decent working conditions out of fear of being deported. Why are middle class Americans included as part of the problem? How many people hire someone to mow their lawn or take care of their pool, instead of doing it themselves? What would happen if all 10 million (or so) illegal immigrants in America suddenly left? First of all, the world would not come to an end. Young people who spend their days on cellphones or playing computer games would get a taste of some honest hard work. Native-born Americans would be able to demand better wages and working conditions from farmers and builders who presently pay illegal immigrants as little as possible. Less money would be needed for infrastructure (like schools and road repair). America's addiction to population growth also has many victims. For those just out of prison, the best way to stay out is with a job, even a menial one. Every illegal alien dishwasher, for example, means one more parolee who doesn't have a chance to better himself. What about illegal aliens who are killed or maimed on the job? Students are affected because rampant population growth forces school districts to build more schools or cram more and more students into each school. What is to be done? First of all, decide for yourself, how many people is enough? How big should America get? If a politician talks about "smart growth" or easing immigration rules, don't be afraid to call them on it. If a magazine or newspaper seems to have a pro-growth bias, cancel your subscription, and tell them why. If you need to hire employees, even just someone to mow your lawn, make sure they can converse in English. If you find that you have unknowingly hired an illegal alien, fire them, but do it legally. Donate to groups involved in population, fertility or net migration. This is a very interesting book that will really get the reader thinking in a different way. It's worth reading.

The Population Fix

Ed Hartman seemed to have an epiphany at the birth of his grandson and started his journey of writing "The Population Fix." It's a relatively easy read and gives the reader facts about America's addiction to population growth. I was reading this book when our country's population officially topped 300 million and followed closely the debates about whether this milestone was good or not. Certainly, some of the pundits would have benefitted by reading this book. Hartman raises the question of whether we want to leave a legacy for our descendants of a country with a population of a billion + and, if we don't want to leave sucha legacy, what we can do about it now. Each chapter is followed by questions for the reader to ponder and recommended action steps to help remedy the situation. Hartman coined the term "populationist" to describe a person who is aware of population issues and works to help resolve them. One cannot read this book without becoming somewhat of a "populationist."

The Population Fix

Ed Hartman seemed to have an epiphany at the birth of his grandson and started his journey of writing "The Population Fix." It's a relatively easy read and gives the reader facts about America's addiction to population growth. I was reading this book when our country's population officially topped 300 million and followed closely the debates about whether this was good or not. Certainly, some of the pundits would have benefitted from reading this book. Hartman raises the question of whether we want to leave a legacy for our descendants of a country with a population of a billion + and, if we don't want to leave such a legacy, what we can do about it now. Each chapter is followed by questions for the reader to ponder and recommended action steps to help remedy the situation. Hartman coined the term "populationist" to describe a person who is aware of population issues and works to help resolve them. One cannot read this book without becoming somewhat of a "populationist."

You need to read this book

If you think America is a big country and can support a population of 500,000,000 (it's scary just to write this number) by the year 2050, then this book is not for you. If it doesn't bother you that we'll have a population of 300,000,000 in October, 2006, then again, this book is not for you. But if you're like me, and Ed Hartman, the author of this book, and you are bothered by ". . . bankrupt hospitals, crowded classrooms, declining water supplies, endangered wildlife, failing highways and bridges, growing land fills, overpriced and poorly constructed housing, polluted air, uncertain energy supplies [yes, war in the Middle East will have a devastating effect on our oil supply], resurgent diseases, shrinking farmland, spreading urban sprawl, vanishing forests and wilderness, and . . . ," (add your own problem with excessive population), then this book is definitely for you. Hartman very cleverly builds his argument againstrampant population growth on the analogy of drug taking: hence, the title, THE POPULATION FIX. As in addiction, so in population. There is the addiction--growth is good, no qualification. And there are the addicts--builders and those who claim to need cheap labor ("jobs Americans won't do"). Give 12 million illegals amnesty. Let them bring in their relatives. Growth is good. As in drugs, there are victims in addition to those who take the drugs. In the case of population, the American taxpayer doesn't get his money's worth (see the deterioration of the infrastructure mentioned above), our common culture and language are disappearing, and our birthright is being given away (in-state tuition at state colleges for illegal immigrants and affirmative action for immigrants). The author continues his analogy with the pushers, the enablers, and most importantly, two chapters on treatment and withdrawal. In these chapters he gives the reader a reality check on just how many people this country will have, given various scenarios. He asks the reader, "How Many Are Enough?" His own figure is 250 million people. Sounds good to me, too. If you are alarmed by what you already know or read in this book about runaway population, Hartman has many suggestions in three appendices for doing something. This is a great book. I wish I could say I enjoyed reading it. But the subject is just too alarming. I was born in 1938, and I've seen the population of this country just grow and grow. Why? It is claimed that Social Security needs more people to pay into it. Nonsense, says the author. That method of paying retirees is nothing but a pyramid scheme. How will we pay the retirees who were brought in to pay the retirees . . . Hartman has a quote from Albert Bartlett, a professor of Physics at Colorado University, which succinctly summarizes his argument: "Can you think of anything that will get better, if we crowd more people into our towns, cities, states, nations, or world?"

Be a populationist!

If you have concerns about the growth of population in the US....this is the book for you.Ed Hartman does a great job of breaking down the issues involved and providing the reader with steps we can all take to address the problem....before we end up with a Billion Americans!