Malthus warned against shortages of food at just the exact time when the industrial revolution was paving the way for an undreamed of increase in the ability to produce it.
I am not at all sure that the premise of this article that the industrial revolution by 1838 had made only the capitalists rich. There was clearly a displacement of labor, and the creation for the first time of an urban, as opposed to a rural, underclass, but many people moved to the cities because they thought it would improve their lot in life. I think we tend to exaggerate the benefits of rural living.
Finally, there is evidence all over the world that industrial populations tend to self-limit. The consequences of underpopulation [expressed in the aging of populations] threatens to be as big a problem as overpopulation.
This is from PBS after all. The important fact is that it was Malthus' incorrect nonsense which Darwin based his whole theory on.
I remember being told in school (in the 70s) that by the time the year 2000 arrived, we'd be out of room, out of water, out of space, out of fuel, out of food and out of air. We were told birth control was a necessity, and that anything more than "replacement" was wrong.
It is 2005, isn't it? Haven't there been several countries in the news of late encouraging, even rewarding, their citizens for procreation?
Wish I could remember my teachers' names. I'd love to have a chat! Of course, I would have to bring our four children along for the ride.