One of the lessons of environmentalism is that even without global warming, all the countries of the world could not possibly become economically like the U.S. is today.

Yet, in a letter that appeared in the Nov. 24 Eugene Weekly, Greg Williams claims that overpopulation is the real problem. Such rhetoric serves as an attempt to divert attention away from overconsumption in the world’s richer countries, transferring blame onto very poor people. Human numbers can be rising among people who contribute very little to global warming.

Industrial civilization has caused such unhappiness among many people in the U.S. that they feel they must buy more and more stuff. I suggest finding alternatives to unnecessary shopping, such as playing music. The U.S. is on a path to self-destruction. A price on carbon is only the beginning.

Milton Takei

Eugene