I wish those with political & economic clout would read books like this. ( )

A somber yet fulfilling read that everyone ought to read. Though I suspect most would rather drive over the cliff's edge unwittingly and suffer the consequences dramatically. ( )

The main point of the book is simple: if we want to save our planet we need to get human population growth reversed and under control, which, in turn, most likely, is going to benefit all other effects on nature and resource abuse. The solutions presented are also simple and in many countries already quite successful, but of course birth control across the world is easier said than done. However, the examples of when it is not working are eye opening and when it is working are dazzling, and the evidence that individuals with a passion can make a difference is amazing. If you want to learn about different cultures around the world and how they deal with overpopulation, this is a must-read. ( )

3.5 stars

This primarily looks at human overpopulation of our planet. How can we survive? What do we need to do and how do we do it? Weisman looks at different countries, communities, cultures... Some are ones that have promoted large families. In some cases, some countries are reaching or have already reached their limit of what their country or area can realistically support – what have they done/are doing to help with this?

This was interesting, certainly a topic that many consider taboo, but really is one of the biggest issues when it comes to the issues with our planet’s environment (the other one being consumerism... which, of course, is amplified with a larger world population). Have to admit, though, it took a long time for me to read; it did help that a good chunk of it at the end was references. ( )

As the title suggests, I think it's important that we strive to continue learning new things. If you read Countdown you're sure to do just that. The book's title sounds rather ominous but the topic broached within its pages isn't fictional or even "this is a scenario dreamed up by the author with enough facts to make it sound plausible". No, the notion that there are too many humans jammed onto this planet draining the limited resources is one that most of us are aware of if not actively concerned about. Homo sapiens has fairly swarmed across the globe gobbling up as much arable land as possible and watering that land through any means necessary. The problem is we're stuck in a cycle. We have so many mouths to feed so we need to grow more food which means depleting more resources and using up more space. However, the more food we put in those mouths and the more we advance medically the more bodies there are to take up space and consume more food and create more bodies and...you get where I'm going with this. I have vaguely thought about this before and wondered what the Earth could realistically sustain while we destroy habitats and cause entire species to go extinct. Where is the line? Have we crossed it already? READ THIS BOOK. I was so impressed by Weisman that I've already downloaded The World Without Us in which he conducts a thought experiment about what would happen to the planet if all of humanity were wiped out. O_O That'll be down the road because I have another title that's practically begging to be read. ( )

Countdown is a brave and important book. Overpopulation and population control is a minefield. It's personally emotional and controversial. Yet Weisman deals humanely with an issue that is the global elephant in the room. Nearly every problem facing humanity can be solved by reducing population. And the technology is low tech, cheap and available now: voluntary family planning (condoms, access to safe abortion, education, etc). Country by country Weisman travels the world looking at how different places have dealt with population, the consequences and the predictions. He looks at shrinking countries like Japan, and expanding places like Pakistan which is predicted to have more people than the entire USA, but in an area the size of Texas - with nuclear arms.

The book has made a real change in how I view things like global warming, species loss, wars, water scarcity and other large-scale existential threats to humanity. No matter what we do to fix the problem - another green revolution, solving global warming - it kicks the can down the road because without a reduction in population new constraints will appear. Population is the #1 problem and solution. Weisman is the master of asking good questions and he doesn't always have answers but he does make you think and consider and provide the information. This hour long presentation by Weisman gives a good overview of some key points. ( )

At the current birth rates, the earth is _targeted to hit a population of 10 million people in just a few decades. Is that a problem? Yes, especially since scientists estimate that a sustainable population on our planet is only 2 billion. But wait...the world's population is at 8 billion people now and we are doing fine. The problem is that we're not doing fine. We are tapping resources like ground water and fossil fuels at a rate much higher than they can be replenished. And already, in parts of the world, wars are being fought over food, arable land and water. Should we panic? No. Should we act? Absolutely. And a good place to start is to read this book. Alan Weisman has traveled around the world visiting countries and seeing the impact population has had on the environment, standard of living and the local society. He talks to people who are working on population control and people who feel that they have an obligation to procreate. He tells stories from Palestine where the birth rate has taken an exponential leap. And Japan, where the population is shrinking and there are not enough young people to care for an aging society.

This book was fascinating in its broad view of how different countries and cultures view our growing population. It was eye opening to see how complicated the problem is and how many people are working toward a solution. Although the issue is extremely serious, this book wasn't depressing. It was eye opening and an undeniable call to action. ( )

A very interesting book that examines population growth and controls and their effects and needs. Interesting examination of both the Chinese one child policy and the Ayotolleh's changing views and needs for population expansion and the choices made by people versus government or religion. Also examines the environmental capacity for water and food. While many statistics are presented the work itself is highly readable. ( )

Environmentalism has its strengths, but it also has its weaknesses.
Generally speaking I find books written by Malthusians repetitive and spurious. Not this one, however.
Weisman's strength appears to lie in his citation of statistic upon statistic to bolster the case for population controls, but many of those statistics are also a weakness.
Statistics can be skewed and exaggerated, and Weisman exposes the weakness by citing the highly debatable nature of statistics at points in this work. Said statistics form the basis of claims made by proponents of environmental crisis as if they were indubitatively true. As recent conclusions in the scientific community on global cooling illustrate, the jury goes in and out all the time without arriving at a verdict.
Notwithstanding the suspected veracity of the data (all inductive science is fraught with doubtful conclusions) Weisman does a service by providing us with it.
Conclusions on the part of the readers will be made on the basis of their worldview: a materialist and a theist will likely come out on different sides, per usual.
Still, the read is anything but boring in the case of "Countdown."