According to the News tonight, Scientists have discovered a vaccine that can prevent up to 1,000,000 deaths a year, mainly in children, 90% of which would be in Africa.
Although this is undoubtably a great achievement, would it be wise to use it? (what I mean is) how would present- day Africa cope with an extra 900,000 mouths to feed each year?
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what a dilemma... cure the sick then feeding them, im sure it can be done if we have the will to do it
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>>im sure it can be done if we have the will to do it <<
Thats just the crux of the matter, we may have the best will in the world, but the famines and the deaths from starvation that you see on T.V almost every day shows that we cant, so why add to it and condem millions more to the same fate?
It would be wiser to roll-out as much contraception as possible until a way is found to ensure that extra numbers could be supported.
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>>Although this is undoubtably a great achievement, would it be wise to use it? (what I mean is) how would present- day Africa cope with an extra 900,000 mouths to feed each year?<<
Yep! - I thought exactly the same when I first heard that story, and it doesn't only pertain to Africa either.
Amazing stuff though this biowhateveritis research.
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Theyr'e only Africans, and mostly Afrrican children at that . Let them die. Not important like us Europeans are they? Don't ' really suffer like us do they? Let's consider another idea. How about not providing any medical treatment for any UK National over the age of 60. Huge drain on the countries resources. How does that suit?
Malaria is one of the great scourges of the world inflicting pain ans suffering on an unimaginable scale and restricting economic growth . Contrary to popular belief a high death rate is compensated for by an even higher birth rate. Every statistic shows that lowering the death rate leads to a lowering of the birth rate. In a developing country the only security of any kind is your family. A large family is a guarantee tht at least one or two children will survive. If you are confident that your children will survive you will not have so many.
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If this vaccine actually works it will be a guaranteed Nobel Prize for the developers.
Africa can easily feed its population many times over.
The problem is largely one of politics (ie. war)
Malaria is rife where there is plenty of water/food, and not common in the very dry bits.
Last edited by: Lygonos on Thu 10 Nov 11 at 23:41
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>>Theyr'e only Africans, and mostly Afrrican children at that . Let them die. Not important like us Europeans are they? Don't ' really suffer like us do they? Let's consider another idea. How about not providing any medical treatment for any UK National over the age of 60. Huge drain on the countries resources. How does that suit?<<
Avery sarcastic answer to a quite valid question,! and one that I think is both unwarranted and un-neccassary. I think you could quite easily tell by the way both my previous comments were phrased that that attitude was never in my mindset from the off!
Therefore, I will ask you the question differently:
Do you think Africa has population support problems, and do you think this vaccine will be of any help when "political" forces are (allegedly) not helping much in the famine crisises?
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High birthrates are usually associated with high deathrates. Cure the latter and the former is automatically reduced.
Go back in your family tree, and you'll probably find a grand-parent or great-grand parent with a large number of children.
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>> High birthrates are usually associated with high deathrates. Cure the latter and the former is
>> automatically reduced.
Errrr, actually not.
Unfortunately within some cultures the ability to procreate, and be seen to be procreating, is a measure of one's manliness.
Likewise, the woman likes to prove that she is still fertile.
So we have a scenario in many parts of the continent where sprogs get popped out at regular intervals.
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It also doesn't help that there's an incredibly strong Catholic-led anti-contraception campaign across a lot of Africa.
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>> Errrr, actually not.
>> Unfortunately within some cultures
You have a point Ian, in that cultures vary in this as in other ways. So do individuals actually. There are still happy families of ten or so even in western Europe.
However: all other things being equal, prosperity in the first instance, leading soon to better healthcare, tends to lead, not immediately but in the long run, to a decline in the birthrate and in the even longer run to a decline in fertility. This is off the top of my head though. I could look it up but can't be bothered.
Stands to reason guv. Even in 'some cultures', to use your expression, women given the choice would prefer not to be knackered and prolapsed at 35. And from what I know (I imagine you do too), women in 'some cultures' know very well how to make their wishes known. The chaps may respond with violence in the first place, but in time they get tired of that and come grumbling into the early twentieth century.
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>>Theyr'e only Africans, and mostly Afrrican children at that . Let them die. Not important like us Europeans are they?<<
Yep! - good point CG, and 'taken on board'.
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Sadly, Malthus has yet to be proven wrong. But I don't think we'll do it by letting people die of malaria.
Very poor people in countries with no welfare and high infant mortality have as many children as they can to ensure that some are around to look after them when they are old.
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Malaria vaccine - zookeeper
