The Man Who Wants Us Dead

The biggest bomb doesn't explode how you would think. Let's explore the population bomb.

The most pressing threat to civilization is us -- and paradoxically, we’re also the solution. When Paul Ehrlich published “The Population Bomb” in 1968, he ushered in an era of doomsday predictions that we’re still in. There are more than twice as many people in the world now than when his book came out, and Ehrlich insists that the population bomb just hasn’t gone off yet.

But optimists like Julian Simon see something else happening. They acknowledge that man-made threats of destruction are not only challenges we can solve -- and that we’re in a better position every day to eliminate our problems -- but that we’re also better off for it.

The philosophical differences between Ehrlich and Simon led to the most famous bet in the world, a bet over natural resources that was really a bet about the future of the human race. And as wrong as Paul Ehrlich has proven to be, we’re so hard-wired to think like him that it’s actually perfectly reasonable to conclude we’re perpetually facing disaster.

*** CREDITS ***

Vsauce2

Hosted and Produced by Kevin Lieber

Research and Writing by Matthew Tabor

Editing by John Swan

Huge Thanks To Paula Lieber

What did you think about the population theory of The Population Bomb by Paul Ehrlich? Subscribe for more science, history, and education videos every month!
#Education #Science #Vsauce #History #doomsday #Humanity #populationbomb

[dracotoy]

"Im not wrong, its just that every single every person and data point is wrong. Because im peer reviewed" he is DELUSIONAL

[Lone]

What Ehrlich wanted sounds a lot like eugenics.

[trime]

Doomsayer: YOU WILL ALL DIE, UNLESS YOU GIVE ME POWER

Doomslayer: Not true, here is why..

Doomsayer and crowd: You are EVIL, you want us all to DIE.

[SidMajors]

I feel like the saying “If the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail” can be said about many people looking at the globe as a whole.

[THEScottCampbell]

I read "The Population Bomb" as a child. I've learned a lot since then, and not from that book. You learn more about the psychology of Paul Ehrlich from that book than about anything else. China took Ehrlich's advice and their country is collapsing on itself. People aren't butterflies.

[shaunh]

“Adding more people causes problems. But people are also the means to solve these problems.”

It seems that Ehrlich understood the first part, but Simon understood both the first and second part of that quote.

[jack.h]

Overpopulation alarmist fans vs human prosperity enjoyers

[LifeAsANoun]

I think there's less and less space for intellectually honest in-depth content about serious subjects. This was really something. Very well done.

[hatchmaster_]

It takes a special kind of monster to be wrong, be proven wrong, then to continue demanding that people die based on information he got wrong

[samthestache]

Optimism in regards to the state of the world? This is a breath of fresh air. Its been far too long since I've seen or heard anyone talking like this and having good things to say.

[IndrasChildDeepAsleep]

This should be the standard for educational videos (and it goes WAY beyond many on this platform). Thank you for doing this for everyone! I've been watching Vsauce and Vsauce2 since I was a kid. Much appreciation.

[drx]

I'm glad you made this one. Alarmism always sells, and often leads to policy that is far worse than what would have happened without centrally planned intervention.

[maxs]

Thank you. This type of journalism is needed. You combined the factual and emotional aspects of this discussion in a beautiful and vibrant way.

Thank you for using your finite time to inspire the next generation.

[Allanfallan]

I feel like the ideology that leads people to thinking that everything will only get worse is very similar to the ideology that humans couldn't have built something like the pyramids. If enough people come together to work on a problem, there's very little that humans can't overcome.

[FernandoFonseca]

Oh man, thank you so much for this. In the world of 5 minute attention span, you got me hooked to the entire video and enlighten me to think beyond the evident bad news presented to us. Thank you for this from the frontal top of my brain.

[Arterexius]

I used to follow the Venus Project, back when Jacque Fresco was still alive and I still use one of his quotes whenever I hear the doomsday folks ring their bells. "If you think we cannot change the world, it just means you're not one of those who will"

[Templarzealot]

Thank you for making this. Not enough people are making content like this. The world is in desperate need of some hopeium

[kathrynck]

Only one?
I thought there was a whole club, which meets every year in Switzerland.

[Leron...]

I really needed this video. Thank you, non-Balloon Kevin, for all of your hard work in putting this information together and reminding me about our ability to overcome the odds.

[seoulbrotherno]

This is a great companion video to "The Man Killed for Saving the World." The story of Ignaz Semmelweis can make you feel like there is no hope for humanity -especially when it is paired with Planck's observation that "science moves forward one funeral at a time." Thanks for pulling me back from the brink!