Vladimir Putin ridiculed after demanding Russians have more sex to halt declining population

UK Daily Mail

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was mocked by his own countrymen today after urging Russians to start having more sex to put a stop to the country's declining population.

In one of his more controversial presidential election campaign pledges, Putin vowed to give cash incentives to mothers who have a third child, to help encourage more births.

Russia is the largest geographical country in the world but its 142 million population is smaller than both Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Putin, who served two consecutive presidential terms between 2000 and 2008 followed by his current term as prime minister, warned that the current steady population decline could see 50 million fewer Russians by 2050 to just 107million people...[Full Article]

Population of world 'could grow to 15bn by 2100'

Nearly 7 billion people now inhabit planet but projections that number will double this century have shocked academics

Paul Harris in New York
guardian.co.uk,
Saturday 22 October 2011 17.25 EDT
Article history

The UN has warned world population could reach 15 billion by 2100, adding pressure to crowded cities such as New Delhi. Photograph: Manish Swarup/AP

The United Nations will warn this week that the world's population could more than double to 15 billion by the end of this century, putting a catastrophic strain on the planet's resources unless urgent action is taken to curb growth rates, the Observer can reveal.

That figure is likely to shock many experts as it is far higher than many current estimates. A previous UN estimate had expected the world to have more than 10 billion people by 2100; currently, there are nearly 7 billion.

The new figure is contained in a landmark study by the United Nations Population Fund (Unfpa) that will be released this week. The report –The State of World Population 2011 – is being compiled to mark the expected moment this month when somewhere on Earth a person will be born who will take the current world population over the 7 billion mark, and will be released simultaneously in cities across the globe.

Some experts reacted with shock to the figure. Roger Martin, chairman of Population Matters, which campaigns on population control, said that the Earth was entering a dangerous new phase. "Our planet is approaching a perfect storm of population growth, climate change and peak oil," he said. "The planet is not actually sustaining 7 billion people."

The Earth has now doubled in population since the 1960s, boosted by high birthrates in Africa, Asia and Latin America as the spread of medicine and better healthcare has seen the mortality rate for young children decline. This has easily offset the general decline in the birthrate of advanced countries. It has also been boosted by an increase in lifespans of people across the world.

Some experts reacted with scepticism that the population would really hit the upper end of the predicted spectrum of growth and reach 15 billion so quickly. Professor Jack Goldstone of George Mason University, author of The Population Bomb, said that he thought world leaders would act to ensure the Earth's population would start to plateau below that higher level. "The means and the desire to reduce the number of children people have is spreading around the world," he said, adding that he thought a level of 10-12 billion would be more likely by 2100.

Many policy experts believe that governments and NGOs have the tools to limit and control the world's population. The key effort, many say, is simply making sure that effective family planning spreads throughout the developing world. "What's really critical is the political commitment of governments. Family planning is not actually that expensive," said John Bongaarts, vice-president of the New York-based Population Council.

However, campaigners on family planning issues often come across cultural and religious factors that make educating women and reducing the size of families difficult.

Some governments make a point of trying to increase their populations, while many religious groups preach against the use of contraceptives.

The Population Research Institute, a Virginia-based group linked to anti-abortion organisations in America, last week welcomed the news that the world's population was set to hit 7 billion this month. "Humanity's long-term problem is not going to be too many children, but too few," said the institute's president, Steven Mosher.

[Webmaster - The global-elitists continue to make their case of overpopulation, thereby supposedly justifying their depopulation efforts. Conspiracy theory? No...their own writings. George Bernard Shaw, Bertrand Russell, Aldeous Huxley, H.G. Wells, Charles Galton Darwin, Bill Gates, Ted Turner... eugenisists ... They, and people like them want to decide who will be born...who will live...and who will die. Their depopulation efforts have started: the food you eat, the water you drink, the vaccinations you take. Sterilization, cancer... all increasing exponentially over the last 50 years. It's real and it's here. It is already being done to us.]

Ghost towns on the increase as rural America accounts for just 16% of population

UK Daily Mail

• Migration will form a virtual mega-city stretching through Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, Maryland and ending in the capital Washington D.C.
• In 1910 72% of Americans lived in rural areas

Vast swathes of the U.S. countryside are emptying and communities becoming ghost towns as rural America now only accounts for just 16 per cent of the population.

The 2010 census results suggest that by 2050 many of these areas could shrink to virtually nothing as businesses collapse and schools close.

This dramatic population implosion is the culmination of a century of migration to cities, as in 1910 the share of rural America was at 72 per cent.

Blackout: This official graphic shows dominant U.S. urban areas, marked in white, while large swathes of rural areas are becoming darker as people move away

In 1950 the countryside remained home to a majority of Americans, amid post-World War II economic expansion and the baby boom.
However, once busy areas have been abandoned, in South Dakota for example, the town of Scenic is up for sale for $799,000 as today just eight people live there.

Overall the share of people in rural areas over the past decade fell to 16 percent, passing the previous low of 20 percent in 2000, and is expected to drop further because of the economic crisis.

But in contrast American cities are booming and will continue to swallow suburban communities, producing a virtual mega-city stretching through Boston, Massachusetts, through New York City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, Maryland and ending in the capital Washington, D.C.

'Some of the most isolated rural areas face a major uphill battle, with a broad area of the country emptying out,' said Mark Mather, associate vice president of the Population Reference Bureau, a research group in Washington, D.C.

'Many rural areas can't attract workers because there aren't any jobs, and businesses won't relocate there because there aren't enough qualified workers. So they are caught in a downward spiral.'

The rural share is expected to drop further as the U.S. population balloons from 309 million to 400 million by 2050, leading even more people to crowd cities and suburbs and fill in the land around them...[Full Article]

Researchers Find Sperm Counts On The Decline

MIAMI (CBS4) — When a couple has trouble getting pregnant, they often assume it’s because there’s a problem with the woman but that’s not always the case. The leading cause of male infertility is low sperm count and researchers have found sperm counts on the decline.

Dave and Teri have been trying to get pregnant since they married five years ago. They both assumed the problem was hers.

“It never crossed my mind that I was infertile or would have a problem with fertility,” said Dave.

Male fertility specialist Dr. Paul Turek said men did not think about their fertility. He says guys are like cars. “Men are engines that run hard almost all the time. And you can poison the engine. Not poison it but give it diluted fuel, water it down, get it out of tune somehow.”

Diluting the fuel is not something most men like to think about. However, according to studies in Europe and the United States, sperm counts and sperm quality have been dropping for the past 50 years. Guys typically have no idea how the environment or their own lifestyle can affect fertility.

“You know you can bring a sperm count to zero by taking hot baths every other day for a month,” Turek said. “It’ll take you three months to recover. It’ll go to zero.” That’s only the beginning of his list of sperm killers. “Smoking, nicotine, tobacco, other recreational drugs are bad,” Turek said.

Turek also said excess alcohol and hair loss medications can affect sperm count, along with illnesses, opiates and stress.

Do you keep a cell phone in your pocket? Use a laptop computer on your lap? Both can possibly raise testicular temperatures enough to hurt sperm production. Some pesticides mimic hormones that disrupt sperm growth and quality. And for the first time, studies show sperm can be affected by Bisphenol-A, a chemical contained in many plastic products.

Dave and Teri are among more than 8 million couples in the U.S. with fertility problems. Nearly half the time the problem is partially or totally on the male side.

“I’ve been on male birth control for 5 years and didn’t know it,” said Dave.

Around the time of his marriage, Dave complained of low energy to his doctor, who prescribed testosterone treatments. Testosterone and other steroids can cause sterility.

“Having a family, which I do consider part of my identity, I think we’re stuck right now,” he said. “And that, that makes me angry.”

Anger, disbelief, devastation; infertility is a diagnosis men don’t expect.

“These are things that a death in the family would induce, or losing a limb, or getting told you have cancer,” Turek said. “These are the same emotional impact. And they just never thought about it. It came from the blue sky, so it knocks ‘em out.”

Turek said male infertility is often curable. His advice to men — although he said most probably won’t listen — is to treat your body as well as you treat your car. He says while women get check-ups, men should get regular tune-ups.

“The body wants to work really hard, it wants to be the best it can and you can hurt that. Take better care of yourself.”

[Webmaster - If you get a chance, watch the 2006 movie "Children of Men". It is set in the year 2027 and there is widespread infertility...human beings can no longer procreate. It is a very interesting (and disturbing) movie with a definite predictive programming message. The movie is based on the novel 1992 novel "The Children of Men" by P.D. James. See the Google books version embedded below.]

"The Children of Men" by P.D. James

New census milestone: Hispanics to hit 50 million

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In a surprising show of growth, Hispanics accounted for more than half of the U.S. population increase over the last decade, exceeding estimates in most states. Pulled by migration to the Sun Belt, America's population center edged westward on a historic path to leave the Midwest...[Full Article]