Date: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 15:50:47 -0400 (EDT)
From: Brad Page
Subject: Fwd: birth control/Chatham Park; ecology/development in Chatham County
—– Forwarded Message —–
From: “John R Dykers”
To: “Brad Page”
Cc: “chatlist”
Sent: Saturday, October 19, 2013 1:47:39 PM
Subject: birth control/Chatham Park; ecology/development in Chatham County

T’ain’t easy. I am still working on the first volumn of “Sex and the 21st Century, R/PxT=Q”. The first line currently is, “Imagine how much more precious every person will be when each of us causes only one or two pregnancies.” We love babies individually, but all of us in the aggregate are overwhelming our nest, e.g. Chatham Park and Chatham County. But the development will bring ammenities that some prefer to our pine forests and pastures and deer. (we formerly had lots of quail and almost no deer untill we planted those fallow weed filled fields with fescue for my cows!)
So sad your mother had to go to Mexico to have abortions. Conception prevention was much less advanced in the 30’s with birth control pills just arriving in the 1960’s. Fortunately the reality is that fertility rates ARE falling all over the world, especially in economically improving areas where children are not concieved as people to take care of us in our old age. The nature of work is changing and we can and do work to an older age on average..
One of the best pregnancy preventers is the computerized baby that high school student have to carry around and tend to just like a real baby for two weeks! Of course it would help if we did not subsidize births with tax exemptions or other programs, but once the baby is born, it needs care; this gets into politics and money, so lets leave that for a different forum. Preventing conception by avoiding intercourse or practicing adequate contraception sure beats geriatricide in our book.
You embolden me, so sent this to Chatlist too.
John Dykers
Personally, both my farms are in the land conservancy.
—– Original Message —–
From: Brad Page
To: John R Dykers
Cc: Chatham Chatlist
Sent: Saturday, October 19, 2013 10:53 AM
Subject: birth control
John,
Thanks for your comment on Chatham Park. I think at heart you’re right but that’s not the whole story, in my opinion.
I am the oldest child of three and my mother was the oldest child of three. I was born in 1940, married in 1960 and in the ensuing years fathered 3 children. Of those three I have 5 grandchildren and from them 14 great grandchildren. Before my birth my mother visited Mexico on three occasions in the 1930’s for successful and dangerous abortions. Altogether, I don’t think my story is that unique and, you’re right, it’s probably what got us in this mess.
Part of the problem with Chatham Park has to do with one man’s greed and what appears to be a boundless hunger to absorb a largely rural and “useless” county of low population density. For many in this world Chatham Park with its paved roads, concrete and glass structures, and grassy clear-cut areas is the ultimate progress in high-quality human existence. For others it’s an invasion and they try to contain it. Trouble is with developers they’re like the camel who gets his nose under the tent: pretty soon you’re bedmades and he doesn’t smell so good.
I know the strip malls are coming down 15-501 from Chapel Hill. Apex will probably annex us in the next 5 decades. For what?
Back to the mess. Can we unring the bell of overpopulation? In Texas the governor is touting his high-growth economy but they have one big problem – they’re running out of water because they’re attracting people from all over the US to their low-cost housing. Chatham Park is a harbinger of the same thing except Jordan Lake will become totally unusable while someone profits at the expense of all of Chatham County’s citizens.
On birth control there are ideas such as aggressively pushing condom use in the high schools, talking up population issues, teaching real economics in grade school so children can come to understand the effects of over-consumption of scarce resources. How can we make this happen?
While we’re talking these things over and arguing “rights” the developer world is bringing on the architects, engineers, town board lobbyists, financial experts and the bulldozers. When the process starts, such as at Walmart, the average citizen throws up the hands and says, “What can I do about it?” I know the feeling. What can I do about it? Shall I leave it to a small minority such as Pittsboro Matters to fight the good fight?
I’m asking. I can’t change who and what I am after 73 years. Can I help others change the apparent entrenched customs of American society toward overconsumption of its children’ s futures so that Chatham Park’s become irrelevant?
Got me going, my friend. I’m posting this on the Chatlist.
Brad Page