Implosion: The real tragedy 

Explosion of population is often accompanied by explosion of gunpowder and exodus of refugees. Is population explosion a tragedy?

Several hundred years ago, population explosion in Europe generated explosion of bloodshed. It also generated geographical exploration, scientific experimentation and explosion of migration. The population explosion in Europe was not described as a tragedy. It was the most celebrated chapter in European history.

Things can look very different from short term perspective and long term perspective. In the Mayflower trip, 102 persons landed on the shore of the New World. 51 persons died in one year. From the short term perspective, it was a great tragedy. But from the long term perspective, the Mayflower trip was the defining moment in US history.

Now we look at the other side of the story: The natives who helped  the Mayflower people to settle down. At that time, the natives at the coastal area suffered population implosion due to a smallpox epidemic brought by an earlier attempt of European settlement.  Because of the population implosion of the natives, they sought alliance with the newcomers and helped the newcomers to survive the harsh winters. But once the newcomers firmly established themselves, they wanted more space for their explosive number of new babies. So the natives were extinguished. The population implosion of the natives was a tragedy.

Explosion is violent and spectacular. It captures all our attention and imagination. It is the result of increasing energy. Implosion is peaceful and silent. It rarely attracts a glimpse of our curiosity. It is the result of depleting energy. Implosion is the real tragedy!