Hello America, Get Ready to Welcome Number 300 Million

Since there is already so much talk about the Mark Foley scandal, I thought I would get everyone prepared to welcome our 300th US citizen to our country. (either through birth or immigration)

The population is supposed to cross the 300 million mark sometime around mid-October. Three hundred million people is a lot of people! I'm sure if you live near a big city you are feeling the growth. I know in Washington, DC, you can feel the population stresses on the roads and in shopping centers on a daily basis.

More importantly, the population milestone should have everyone worried about its affect on the environmental, according to a report authored by the non-profit Center for Environment and Population. We are consuming an abundance of natural resources at an unprecedented rate compared to other countries across the world.

Here is an intriguing fact:

Half the continental United States can no longer support its original vegetation; nearly 1,000 plant and animal species are listed by the U.S. government as endangered or threatened, with 85 percent of those due to habitat loss or alteration.

We as Americans are ruining the environment not only for future Americans, but for our global neighbors as well. The pollutions we give off and the energy we consume impact the entire world.

Population growth isn't necessarily a bad thing but maybe its time to step back and look how these numbers play into various policy issues such as the environment, immigration, trade and academic research to name a few.