Slouching Towards Utopia ft. Brad DeLong
The New Liberal Podcast
00:00
Malthus and Mill on Population Growth
- Malthus's population concerns: In the 1800s, it was a reasonable concern that population growth would outstrip food production, leading to widespread starvation.
- John Stuart Mill's pessimism: As late as 1873, Mill argued that the Industrial Revolution hadn't improved the lives of the working class, who remained trapped in drudgery.
- Mill's solution: Mill advocated for government-imposed child licenses to control population growth as a prerequisite for creating a prosperous and humane world, fearing Malthus's predictions would otherwise prevail.
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