Solutions for the World's Biggest Problems

I'm reading the above-titled book, edited by Bjorn Lomborg, that was first published in 2007.

It's subtitled: Costs and Benefits

That's how I made my decision for Gore, in the 2000 election. I made a little 4-square box with pro's and con's for each candidate, and did a little comparison in my head for who I thought was the better candidate. It came out about even, for me, as was the election, but I thought Gore would be more interesting. I almost chose him out of entertainment value. Anyway,

Economic costs and benefits does the mathematical calculus to measure which solutions are the most cost-effective (bigger bang for buck).

Although I stated earlier that I think ALL solutions can, and should, be solved, I think the wefare economics approach of the Copenhagen Consensus is a good starting point, to get the world positive about healing itself.

Everything can seem so dismal.

It seems the UN is awash in problems and pessimism. Institutionally, the principles of the Secret are far from being a corporate culture at the UN, I perceive. I'm guilty, too. Optimism needs to take precedence over cynicism. Humans are problem-solvers. The brain is an organ that best operates when it is seeking a goal and solving a problem. It's encouraging to see the finish line. As I have said before, there is more than enough money (and willpower) to solve every last problem on our planet.

It will take vision and leadership and cooperation (the use of the hive-mind, such as the internet) to make as happy a world as possible. Bjorn Lomborg is one leader, among many. He has recently been employed by the UN to prioritize the world's problems (does he have a staff?), and the Copenhagen Commission is meeting again in 2008 to look in greater depth into prioritizing global solutions.

Despite my philosophical belief that all the problems are inter-related, and should and can be solved together, which puts me at odds with (a possibly too?) pragmatic Mr. Lomborg, I believe his approach is the best starting point.

Economics is largely psychological, and if we start solving the problems we can with immediate results, and with the largest payback, we'll be creating positivity and happiness and momentum and development and cash for more changes to come.

I think we should map out all the inter-relationships between all the world's problems, and pinpoint the spots that would have the greatest ripple effects, in a constantly re-evaluated process of where to keep spending.

Just as free trade allows the greatest creation of wealth, and localization of effort where it belongs, for greatest overall development, psychologically speaking, happiness spreads and ripples outward, too. If abject misery and suffering are reduced/eliminated, the entire world reaps a benefit, in my opinion (in the psychesphere). If all in all is all we are, then we each have a vested interest in making everybody happy, for our own happiness.

Caring for others should be universal, and selfishness should be kept to a minimum. The economic viewpoint that everyone benefits when everyone is out for themselves is off. Corporations are about getting the most money for the people (and stockholders) comprising each corporation. But the world is a unit. The whole world has to be seen as a corporation, of sorts. We're all in this, together. It's a global village, to be somewhat trite. We face common problems. We shouldn't have to rely on something like an alien invasion to unite.

Everyone makes themselves happy to a point, but we are interdependent on each other for survival, and need friends, family, acquaintances, coworkers, clients, classmates, churchgoers, whatever, for our social lives. Some think you should make yourself happy before making others happy. I say making others happy is an essential part of making yourself happy.

Common problems all earthlings face are: survival (I subsume reproduction under survival). Having a family and working together to raise children invests people with a need to care for humanity. Otherwise, the self becomes the center, which just dies, eventually. You're invested in ecology, peace, wealth, happiness, love, and survival of your children. You have a purpose, a goal, an objective, an envisioned future. You want your genes to propagate, to be scientific. You seek reproductive success.

But Bjorn is homosexual. Probably an evolutionary dead-end. His family has become all of humanity. He wants us all to be his children, and be better off. He wants to focus his energies on serving all mankind, instead of just his kid(s). He might have a bit of a messiah complex. That's my take on him.

Plants, pets, and children are most people's practice of nurturing. Work, too, provides goods and services to society at large. I'll contribute to the pool of ideas, if it's any help to anyone.

Besides survival, we all want to not suffer, and beyond simply existing, to enjoy life. We have basic needs: food/water, shelter/clothing, love/companionship, and health, mental and physical.
Mental health includes stimulation, like entertainment, and for some people, medications, perhaps. I think that's it. Companionship and mental health require friendships, probably, too.

Bjorn's list of 23 major problems are:
Economy: 1) Financial instability, 2)Lack of Intellectual Property Rights, 3)Money Laundering, and 4)Subsidies and Trade Barriers.

Environment: 5)Air Pollution, 6)Climate Change, 7)Deforestation, 8)Land Degradation, 9)The Economics of Biodiversity Loss, 10)Vulnerability to natural disasters.

Governance: 11)Arms Proliferation, 12)Conflicts, 13)Corruption, 14)Lack of Education, 15)Terrorism.

Health and Population: 16)Drugs, 17)Disease control, 18)Lack of people of working age, 19)Living conditions of children, 20)Living conditions of women, 21)Hunger and Malnutrition, 22)Unsafe water and lack of sanitation, 23)Population: Migration.

On your own, without the book, how would you rank these?, (if you had to).
I'll write more posts on the book as I read it.