Most pro-life advocates believe every life is precious. Well, if it’s so precious, why is the market so saturated?

If you’re reading The State Press, you’ve probably made it to college by now. Congratulations. And if you’ve made it all the way to college, then you should know that the world’s population has grown immensely since the 20th century.

Advances in medicine and agriculture have allowed the human race to live longer and make more babies. Advances in fashion, for example the mini-skirt, may have also helped the latter. Look around for a while, there’s bound to be one nearby. Some of you may even stop reading altogether.

No one can complain about penicillin and booty shorts. But there are consequences of longer life expectancies and higher birth rates. Yeah, Granny may still be alive, but at what cost to the world?

The Population Reference Bureau released its “2008 Word Population Data Sheet” this month. According to the report, there are approximately 6.705 billion people on the Earth (where else would they be?).

The study also says that 5.5 billion people live in countries classified as undeveloped by the United Nations. Only 1.2 billion live in developed countries.

Poor people have more kids. Go figure.

Uganda has 29.2 million people. According to a report from Tarsis Kabwegyere, Uganda’s minister for relief and disaster preparedness, 3.5 million of them face starvation. The PRB’s data sheet projects the Ugandan population will grow 263 percent between now and 2050.

Why should a country that has 3.5 million starving people be allowed to grow? Starvation means people die from not getting adequate amounts of food. And if there isn’t enough food to let everyone in the country live, where’s the logic in adding more mouths to feed?

A country that cannot sustain its people with the most basic of human necessities definitely requires a major overhaul.

The overhaul: childbirth restriction.

Childbirth laws like the one in the People’s Republic of China are sad, even cruel. But there is no acceptable alternative. Forced sterilization, for one, would lead to eugenics, or genetic engineering through selective breeding. Furthermore, if the government were just to hand out condoms and birth control pills, the population could just as easily throw them away.

Would the fines from childbirth laws cripple an offending family in Uganda? Absolutely.

These laws certainly hurt families in China. Those who break them suffer consequences. Laws without enforcement are not laws at all.

Giving overpopulated and underdeveloped countries food packages is like a lifeguard calling 911 instead of giving CPR.

It helps, but unless the root issue is solved, the result is death. And it will be messy.

Chris can be reached by e-mail at cogino@asu.edu.