Shame of Man (57 page)

There are persuasive computer models suggesting that something similar is now happening to the whole of Earth. Common sense agrees. We are, after all, the same species that did it to Easter Island. Famine may be our future. In the prior volume,
Isle of Woman,
I conjectured that cannibalism would occur on a global scale as the food system collapsed. This volume evades that issue by focusing on the fringe, where the population never rises as high, so has less distance to fall. But even so, Draconian measures are likely to be required, with rigid control of population and protection of natural resources. Thus the six-person family lots of the final chapter, absolute control of births, and nonpolluting fuel cells whose residue is water, used to power vehicles and other devices. Thus death or banishment for those who willfully violate such strictures. Because if the lid is not kept on, the overpopulation and pollution and destruction of vital resources will resume, and that can not be tolerated. Gaea has been harmed too much already.

We are living in an age of disastrous pseudo-affluence that will soon enough be curbed, one way or another, as it was on Easter Island. I hope that this time sanity comes before destruction. Otherwise the shame of man will also be the doom of mankind.

All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 1994 by Piers Anthony Jacob

ISBN: 978-1-4976-5820-2

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