re: #4 dragonfire1981

I think what the article is discussing is population distribution. If you cut the Middle East + China out of the map you remove a huge chunk of the world’s population right there.

but also, it is predicted that world population may peak sometime in the next 40 years and stabilize or decline thereafter

iirc in the u.s. currently overall population growth is coming from immigrants whereas among people born here the growth rate is replacement level only

in italy the native population level has been more or less flat for a number of years

consider this: if the u.s. population was not increasing, then the commonly used rule-of-thumb about the necessity of the economy producing 150 thousand new jobs every month just to keep up with population growth would be out the door, and the grow grow grow dynamics of the american economy would change radically