The
inaugural meeting of the discussion group took
place on 19th June 2007
in High Lane when the subject was "Should Britain
Allow More Immigrants".
DISCUSSION
The discussion is led each time by a different member of the group who
also chooses the subject.
Meetings are held monthly on Wednesdays at 2:15 at Jim McDermott's
house.
At present the group is full.
On the 27th Jan. Sonia
introduced the subject of "Population increase". The discussion
started with the increase in the world's population, i.e. currently 100
million per annum and increasing year on year.
Unfortunately resources are not increasing, land availability increases
only because forests are being cleared thus decimating wild life and
destroying ecologies and natural habitats. Also water and food
production cannot keep up with demand. This obviously has led to
and will lead to conflict between peoples and eventually may develop
into global conflict. We then discussed overpopulation closer to
home and how it affects people in this country. It seems that our
population is increasing by immigration. We've all been told how
our population is getting older because of modern medicine, better
nutrition, better housing etc. and some people forecast a nation where
the majority will be unable to support themselves. Any
solutions? None that is acceptable either to Governments or
citizens. It is a very complex subject full of problems with some
practical, commonsense answers but nevertheless unacceptable
solutions. To some Leaders controlling the birth rate is not open
to discussion. To other national Leaders it is not a practical
proposition especially with populations of over one billion. To
others it is not culturally or traditionally acceptable. It is
like an unstoppable train.
On the 24th Feb. the topic of
"Cars and their impact on society: do we need them?" was suggested by
Marlene. We have all been told about the polluting effect of cars and
how this contributes to global warming which can have disastrous
consequences. They also require that enormous amounts of land be
concreted over to provide roads and parking places. They also
provide a very convenient way of getting from place to place especially
Supermarkets which could not exist without the car and we would be
forced to shop in the high street again. Cars are also
responsible for much employment with important contributions to the
national economy. But nationally and globally they are also
responsible for thousands of deaths and injuries and that too has an
effect on national economies. They are also powered by oil which
is not only a finite commodity but is responsible for a great deal of
international conflict. So do the pros outnumber the cons?
We would require a lot more time and information to answer that
question and in the end it probably comes down to personal choice.
The next meeting will be on March 24th.
Jim
McDermott