Book review of "Game Over"

Reading “Game Over” made me think of a similar thesis over 300 years ago.  Thomas Malthus a classical economist – Before there was the subject of Economics described a situation that existed in long ago Europe.  He put forth that the food supply of the world grew on an arithmetic basis while population grew on a geometric basis.  Malthus felt this foretold dramatic declines in population due to wars, disease, and famine.  So the “Mathusian Dilema” put forth in “ Game Over” is not a new one.

It is clear that the populations of India and China will not be able to live the middle class life style of the average American – Not enough raw materials exist unless some sort of technological breakthru takes place on a huge order.

The book caused me to reflect upon a situation in the past when a rising industrial power was being restrained in it’s desperate search for raw materials to feed it’s factories – Japan in 1941 – This desperate need for raw materials caused a miscalculation on a political and military basis that had terrible consequences for Japan and the rest of the world – Yet provided the spur for the technological leaps forward – (nuclear power, jet aircraft, missile technology etc…).   One can only guess where such a miscalculation would lead us today.