Collected letters

From the Herald-Sun, 2/11:

SEVEN billion people now three billion when I was a boy – scary statistic not to be applauded.

– Jocko, Frankston

SEVEN billion people and the leaders at CHOGM talk about anything but the gross overpopulation of our planet. Who will be the first leader to state a plain birth-control policy in an attempt to reduce world poverty. Birth control and cessation of IVF will be a start.

– Tim Stafford, Mt Eliza

3/11:

YOU hit the nail on the head, Tim (Text Talk, November 2). It seems no pollie wants to take on the real world problem: too many people.

– Andrew, Maribyrnong

Battery hens in suburban pens

THE push from planners and developers to increase the density of our residential arrangements results in reduced area of gardens, reduced light through windows, reduced tree canopy and increased traffic. What is in this transformation for us? The question should be asked – just as the battery hen would surely like to ask – what is in it for her if her small cage size is further reduced? The push to cram us in is all about accommodating people who do not live here at the expense of those who do.

– Jill Quirk, East Malvern

Lifestyle lost in a mega-Melbourne

WE don’t want Melbourne’s population to be eight million. We don’t want to turn it into Manhattan. We like a house and garden and we like space. The idea of cramming eight million in here comes from the Committee for Melbourne, speaking for Big Business who wants more profit from selling more to more people, not caring if our lifestyle is wrecked because we are overcrowded and are short of infrastructure. It is time for governments to take action by slowing migration to a manageable level.

– Mary Drost, Camberwell

“Population growth sees myths reborn”, The Age, 1/11. Opinion piece by Paul Ehrlich.