Like, we’re destroying the one place we know is a sure bet on where we can prosper if we keep it healthy, but instead the world’s richest man is trying to expand to other planets while this one’s ability to sustain life is in jeopardy. IMO that makes us potentially a very stupid species compared to a species that doesn’t really care about meeting other aliens because they value the life on their own planet far more than we do.
Unlikely.
We are eventually going to hit a real limit on the number of humans this planet can support. Whether or not we’ll get there, that’s not really in question. When we’ll reach that point, that’s harder to say, could be 5000 years, but I’d bet it’s closer to 500. At some point, relatively soon, we are going to need to start expanding into near space, the moon, earth orbit.
It would be the same for any intelligent species. They start their existence in relative equilibrium, until they start outperforming other species, they shape the world to fit their needs, they invent machines, medicine, and then they are no longer in equilibrium, their numbers are steadily increasing. Any intelligent species will eventually be more successful than their planet can support.
But if a star system were surrounded by a Dyson Swarm, millions or even billions of free floating habitats and space stations orbiting the star, that’s actually something we could detect. We know that isn’t happening all over the galaxy, because we actually probably wouldn’t miss that.
The Malthusian Theory. Generally considered invalid these days.