Demographic Changes in Korea

There are many proponents and opponents of the correlation between population growth and economic growth. But among the latter, University of California Berkeley academic John Lie is perhaps one of the most eloquent.

In an article titled Implications of Demographic Changes in Korea (Insight into Korea, Herald Media 2007), Lie argued that economic growth beyond a certain level does not enhance and may in fact erode the quality of life.

Lie said that "it is difficult for me to believe that Seoul’s concrete jungle (pictured) and traffic jams represent the telos of either Korean civilization or human progress. To me, at least, they are aesthetic blights and social disasters."

"Why would it be so terrible to have fewer South Koreans? There will be more space for people and fewer cars on the road. What would ordinary people be giving up if the economy were to enter a steady-state level? In the age of global warming and impending environmental catastrophes, what we least need is a single-minded stress on economic growth that systematically undervalues clean air, healthy living, and leisurely pursuits. What are human beings for? To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, policymakers who obsessively worry about population and economic decline strike me as people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing."

Whoa.

But as for Lie's description "the telos of either Korean civilization or human progress" – what are "telos"? Or was that a typo?