At one time, producing more and more babies was seen as essential to the continuance of the human race. This was seen as our sole weapon against disease, famine, wars and natural disasters. A woman often gave birth to a dozen babies, knowing well that only two or three would survive. My grandmother delivered ten children. Only four of them, including my mother, survived. My father has not seen any of his brothers. In fact even his mother passed away when breastfeeding him. If you ask a man in his 70s about his brothers and sisters, he will tell you that infant mortality rates were higher than survival rates among them. Therefore, you and I are lucky to be alive! Not too long ago, the earth did not have a problem in receiving more and more humans. Lands were vast, water was abundantly available, vegetation covered the earth's surface and food supply was greater than demand. Medical advancements, higher educational levels, and better health awareness have all contributed to the reduced infant mortality rates and an increase in life expectancy rates in all countries. And now we have a reverse problem of sorts caused by rising population and a decrease in resources. During the last century alone, many species of animals ceased to exist in the Arabian Peninsula, fish have disappeared from the Japan Sea, deforestation has hit West Europe, and lakes are running short of water due to misuse at the mouth of rivers. Humanity is no longer in need of excessive reproduction as was the case in the past. On the contrary, humans need to reduce birth rates to preserve their small planet and sustain its power to be self-sufficient. The English mathematician, Robert Malthus, was the first to raise the red flag in 1798. He drew attention to the underlying risks of the rapid population growth, out beating the resources of earth and the services rendered by the state. He argued that population multiplies geometrically (2, 4, 16, 32) and food arithmetically (1, 2, 3, 4). Consequently, humans will inevitably fight for resources if they become scarce, or will continue to expand into new living regions. Take the case of Riyadh city. It has grown and expanded rapidly over the past 60 years. The population of Saudis has also jumped from four million to 22 million individuals. I had earlier written an article warning against the consequences of excessive reproduction, particularly in our country. I had indicated in that article that we often complain of poor services, paucity of hospitals, and crowded classrooms. At the same time, we disregard our own role, as parents, in aggravating the problem. When the "reproduction wheel" is moving faster than the "development wheel", rates of poverty and joblessness are bound to rise, bringing along with various crises, such as housing, schooling opportunities and appropriate health care. When we were a small population, oil was able to solve our problems. However, we are now in a critical situation which cannot be overcome by a free resource like oil.
