Green & Mean?

So, as I was cruising the web the other day, I came across this article from the Times Online which quotes green guru and former chairman of the Green party, Jonathon Porritt, who says he believes that curbing population growth through contraception and abortion should be at the center of global warming and environmental policy. Porrit thinks it should be illegal for couples to have more than two children. He believes having more than two offspring is irresponsible and does nothing more than contribute an unbearable burden on the environment.

Said Porritt:

“I am unapologetic about asking people to connect up their own responsibility for their total environmental footprint and how they decide to procreate and how many children they think are appropriate.”

Porritt, who has two children, wants to persuade environmental pressure groups to make population a focus of campaigning:

“Many organizations think it is not part of their business. My mission with the Friends of the Earth and the Greenpeaces of this world is to say, ‘You are betraying the interests of your members by refusing to address population issues and you are doing it for the wrong reasons because you think it is too controversial.”

I’m not shocked by these statements – in fact, it’s not the first time I’ve heard this kind of solution being presented in many areas of the world, but it’s absolutely not something I agree with and by looking at the comments on the Times Online article site, many others also agree that this is certainly not the best solution.

How about you? What do Eco Friendly Tips readers think?