hing that can contribute to the prosperity of a nation. Only in the "very short run" are the effects of increased births negative (Simon 525); once the little ones grow up to become productive contributors to the society, everybody benefits. More population will add more consumers and producers alike: "increases in knowledge, pressures for beneficial changes, a youthful spirit, and . . . economies of scale."
In SimonÆs view, the imposition of population control policy on developing countries and the intentioned design of population control measures beyond voluntary family planning are unnecessary or useless. Famine fears are "false fears" (260), and growth "gives a boost to agricultural saving" (363).
This line of thought also allows Simon to criticize those who deplore population growth in developing countries as racist and to criticize China's one-child-only policy of birth control.
What Simon's economic argument comes down to is that population growth will bring down labor costs while bringing up more cost-efficient access t
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