The Road Less Traveled

Last week our group went to the Galapagos Islands.  I find it interesting that nature has as much say in the human system as humans have say in the natural system.  The population control there made me think about how our world may change in the coming decades.  With ever increasing problems of water, food, and overall resource availability is it possible that some day the entire planet could be regulated like these islands are? What would govern such a society? How could human rights be upheld in such a global system?  If the entire world adapted to a limited population standard, how would we say who was good enough to live?  The issue seems like a very extenuating circumstance but in fact, supposedly, humans are already overpopulated for the amount of resources on this planet.  Most Americans, actually, have a ecological footprint that is equivalent to multiple "planets" of resources if everyone adopted the same way of life.  If this continues (and assuming we don't come up with an genius way to inhabit another planet) some day we may have to choose who gets a chance to live.  In the Galapagos, only those with enough money or those who are born on the islands have the ability to stay.  Having a job there is a temporary pass to live there but that is not permanent.  For me, its interesting to ponder if the world needed to cut back population would that be how we chose who could stay? Would how much money someone makes be the selective pressure we put on ourselves to survive? We would truly take the form of mother nature creating a social darwinism selecting for rich people.  Westernization  is starting to show signs of turning into a system such as this one.  It is a scary thought that such a violation of human rights is pretty much banging on the front door of the global society.  The effects of such a system would change the world ethic.  How do you set standards on living when it is an inalienable human right?