Why do we have to grow the economy?
Why can't we just have a stable economy where over time better products and services replace lesser quality products and services? Why do we have to have more?
The concern for the future shouldn't be about the absolute number of consumers and producers, but the mix.
Certainly if over time the vast majority of humans are over 70 then that could present some interesting problems.
But if the world were to top out at 8 billion people and stay there for a thousand years, and if the free market is indeed the best form of economy, then it should be able to adjust.
The leftist critique of capitalism and free markets is that they necessarily need to grow or die, i.e. they are Ponzi schemes. The odd thing to me is that most supporters of the free market use the same language as their critics, but they just turn logic on its head. They claim that free markets lead to growth in markets and isn't that always and everywhere a good thing?
The simple answer is 'No'. Economic growth is not always a good thing. Yes, if we knew that we would be able to put significant people on the Moon, Mars, Titan, etc. Or if we knew we could manage 100 billion people on Earth alone, which seems a bit preposterous.
But what if at some point in the future every culture decides that two kids or fewer per family is enough? And what if it turns out it's too damned expensive to send more than a few people to live on the Moon or Mars? Then we're stuck at somewhere between 8 and 12 billion consumers/producers for centuries to come.
If free markets can't handle that situation, then something better needs to be developed. Personally I think free markets can handle a static population. I believe that many of the people who think they are making good arguments in favor of free markets that depend on growth are actually making weaker arguments than they can.
"Why do we have to grow the economy?"
Growth is a relatively new.
Thru all the centuries and millennia, going back to the dawn of civilization, there wasn't much growth, or growth was very small.
It was the industrial revolution that put mankind on the exponential growth curve. The steam engine and the internal combustion engine and the fossil fuel to power them. The first oil wells were in 1860 to produce kerosene for home lighting. The IC engine was invented and put in horseless carriages and about a 100 years ago autos were mass produced.
As I pointed out in #27 population is supposed to peak at 11 billion in 2100, but who knows for sure.
