No Hitler?

[juddlinski]

If there had been no Hitler/World War 2, and Europe had been at peace since World War I, how different would population levels be today? Would there be over-crowding problems?

[Lonnie]

Some say WW 2 started when Japan invaded China in 1923, othyers that it was a contiuation of the first war, but as far as overcrowding, with prolonged lifespans, advances in medecines etc, no matter what the scenario, overcrowding would probably happen anyway.

[Clanad]

In a way I agree as well as disagree with Lonnie.... In actuality, the estimated total number of deaths in WW II pales compared to the numbers that have been experienced in various nations of the world since the close of WW II. The Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, the Red March in China for Mao Tse Dhung, Nigeria, the Stalin Purges during the cold war, the Iran-Iraq War, ad infinitum, ad nauseum, have killed and continue to kill sufficient numbers to the point some nations are experiencing negative growth. Lonnie's point is well taken with the exception that the large majority of countries in the world don't experience the benefits as he lists... in my opinion...

[Lonnie]

The points you raise are very valid Clanad, I defer.

[bernardo]

Clanad wrote:

> the Red March in China for Mao Tse Dhung

I presume you mean "Mao Tse-tung" or "Mao Zedong", but do you mean the Long March (1930s)? Or the Great Leap Forward (1950s)?

> the Stalin Purges during the cold war

The cold war was from 1945 onwards. The Stalin purges were in the 1930s.

[Toureman]

This is keeping population levels down...................

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/5057890.stm

1.2 million deaths a year!

[Clanad]

While our comrade, bernardo is technically correct, the technicalities don't alter the huge, unimaginable numbers of dead people in Russia both before and following the WWII. Russia's deportation policies to the Siberian Gulags following WW II, when Stalin was still alive resulted in untold numbers of deaths. Stalin is well known as the source of this quote: "The death of one man is a tragedy. The death of millions is a statistic."
Additionally, I repeatedly read the observation on this site as well as others statments to the effect that Americans have no sense of irony... it appears that my play on words for Chariman Mao's name fell flat on it's face, at least with our esteemed bernardo. Additionally, my term for Mao's Great Leap Forward takes into account the propaganda slogan of the time (usually painted on a huge Red Flag); "Long live the General March Forward! Long live the Great Leap Forward! Long live the People's Commune!" But, thanks for the corrections!

[morbidstorm]

The ironic thing is that Wars save lives, a vast majority of medicines and surgical procedures came about through war medics/doctors. We know about the inside of a human body and how it works for a living human via a Napoleonic French soldier who was hit in the stomach by a cannonball. He miraculously survived and he had a big hole in his belly but his internal organs worked and he lived for several more years, and doctors were able to examine him.
Everyday thing such as Triage,ambulances,blood transportation, the list is endless, all came about through wars.
I beleive that after the second world war, populations grew anyway faster than the norm due to the need to repopulate Europe.
Good question and one that deserves thourough investigation as it something people do not consider.

[juddlinski]

yeah, a mate reckons that because there would be no post-war baby boom, population level's might be the same.

Obviously, this doesnt take into account for the Jewish population being wiped out in many countries.