SELECTED IDEAS OF BUCKMINSTER FULLER
CONCLUSION: HAVES VS HAVE-NOTS
As far back as 1952 Fuller pointed out that the percentage of poor in the world as compared to total population has since 1900 been steadily declining.
In the last 337+ years the percentage of the world's population that were poor has gone from about 99% to less than 30% in spite of the fact that the earth's population has increased from less than 1 billion to over 6 billion today!
Throughout all history before 1900 approximately all (99%) of humanity were poor.
His explanation for this abrupt change in the human condition was that mankind had finally learned through an increasing understanding of the laws of nature how to "do more with less".
In other words, science and inventions alone can account for our sudden wealth!
For further information see:
Utopia or Oblivion R B Fuller pages 330-32 1969
Inventory of World Resources, Human Trends/Needs, doc 1: World Game " pages 157-65 1971
The Dymaxion World of Buckminster Fuller Fuller/Marks pages 52-5 & 154-5 1973
Critical Path R B Fuller pages 216-17 1981
Poverty Predicted to Decline; Problem still 'Staggering', says World Bank Farnsworth 1A/7A, San Jose Mercury News 7-16-90

HOME   Updated Monday, February 19, 2007