----- Original Message ----- From: "Dan M" <[email protected]> To: "'Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion'" <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2009 2:49 AM Subject: RE: Scouted: U.S. to collapse in next two years?
> They are. In my haste in writing I was less precise than I wanted to be. > I > was thinking about the major developed countries (e.g. Western Europe, the > UK and Japan). I know Canada is almost a suburb of the US, with most of > the > population living within 100 miles of the US (and most living south of > Duluth MN, where I grew up). Western Europe isn't a country and I think you are being very condescending suggesting that Australia & Canada aren't major countries. I would like to challenge you to find any reliable agency that makes a distinction between major & minor developed countries, and lists the USA on one side and Australia & Canada on the other. If you absolutely must make a distinction, perhaps G8 countries is a better option. > I thought that much of Australia is not suitable for high density > populations, but I'll stand to be corrected. > And of course, Nordic > countries have low population densities in the far north and in the > mountains. > The point I was trying to make is that the US is far less populated than > where most of the rest of the developed world lives. For example, the 4th > largest metropolitan area in the US (the Houston Metro Area) has the same > population density as the whole of the UK (including the rugged NW of > Scotland). Vast swaths of the US have both good farm land and relatively > low population densities (e.g. Iowa at ~50/sq. mi.) So, there is a lot of > room for the US to increase its population before it approaches Europe. > > Finally, I have a question for those from Oz. My understanding is that > most > of the population of Oz lives on the southern coast because the vast > center > of Australia is not a great place to put a lot of people. Is that > accurate? Mostly true. More people could live inland, but most (for some unknown reason - possibly shopping realated for about 50% of the population) prefer to live in the big cities, which were built on the coast. You could argue that urban areas should be located in arid areas so that the good farmland is not wasted but that is a side issue. Regards, Wayne _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
