Can a doctrine of perpetual growth endure in a finite world?

Answer 1

Not in the current paradigm. There can only be perpetual growth where there are infinite resources. This may come as a result of technological change which would provide for forms of infinite resources, but currently we are using resources more quickly than they can be supplied.

From the wikipedia article on sustainability: "Critics of American society state that the philosophy of infinite economic growth and infinite growth in consumption are completely unsustainable and will cause great harm to human civilization in the future. In recognition that the Earth is finite, there has been a growing awareness that there must be limits to certain kinds of human activity if life on the planet is to survive if not indefinitely, at least for the next seven generations."

Answer 2

it depends on what you call growth.
Perpetual spiritual growth can endure in a finite material world.

What is growth ? If it s economic growth then again how to measure it. Noone has ever proven that there has been a rise in thelevel of agregate utility in the western world. Indeed there s no measure of utility. If one speaks of a rise in GDP, well it may indeed be possible to have a rise in GDP with a fall in the use of fossil energy and limited resources. But is GDP a good measure of economic growth ?

It also depends of the speed of the growth, infinite growth at a slower and slower pace is more probable than perpetual growth at a constant or rising pace.

For those stupid people who believe that new resources can indefinetely be discovered ... Gee what a lack of common sense. For instance water, land and air are basic commodities needed for human survival. If they become scarce and or polluted, and they do, then it threatens the future of humanity and or life on earth. It s impossible to use always more water and pollute always more in a world with finite resources of water.

So far the human specy is behaving as the lemmings. There is more food (coal oil nuclear amount to food) so the population rises. Then there is no more food. THe population falls. Malthus showed it long ago.
So far no infinite source of energy has been found and if it had it would violate the physic laws we know.

So we are limited by the sun energy intake and the resources available on earth and those that we can get in the space using those resources.

Answer 3

the answer is YES, we can.
Not because resources are finite, but because we have resources we dont even know we have. For example, a thousand years ago the middle east (the arab middl east) was dominated by nomads who traded in spice, etc. They had no idea that they wre sitting under a proverbial gold mine (black gold, ie oil), now thanks to technology in the 19th and 20th century they have become very important. Now will oil run out? Yes, because its a finite resource, but new sources of material and energy will be found as old ones are lost. So perpetual growth is possible so long as innovation keeps up with the depletion of natural resources.

Answer 4

The entire premise of your question is wrong. We do not live in a finite world. Never has the world run out of resources.

100 years ago, no one heard of an atom, much less nuclear power. 100 years from now, we will have technology and energy sources no one today has imagined. That is what has always happened and always will.
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Answer 5

Yes, not because resources are infinite but there is no upper limit to wealth. Old things can be reprocessed into new and better things. All with less and less labor which makes us all wealthier and keeps the economy growing.

The process requires the creation of wealth. Efficiency allows us to produce more an more wealth with fewer resources.