dardnerHi Patricia,
I can’t be sure of how well they have thought this all out but if the United States were covered with active volcanoes I am sure the government would go out of its way to incentivize people to live there.
It is funny you mention misanthropes. I have a friend who argues about how awful people are to the planet and how much better off the planet would be without the presence of human stupidicus. You should have seen the look of dismay on his face when I explained to him that his environmental concerns are meaningless without people to experience it, as the state of the environment is only significant with its ability to support human beings. And the irony is that left on its own the planet will eventually wipe out all life as we know it and all but the truly misanthropic will be calling for man-made climate change to remedy us from this fate.