Societal Ills

Intriguing thread. I read the entire Conversations with God series by Neale Donald Walsch, and several points here are reflected in those books. For those who have not heard of them, they are a verbatim record of a fascinating conversation that Mr. Walsch had with God. One of my pet thought exercises during my extensive sabbatical was this: If you could start this over, how would you do it? What environment would you construct to not only nurture the good, innate qualities that we all share but also to stifle the bad ones? It became apparent to me (try these lines of thought yourself if you disagree) in just a few minutes that only a holistic approach will cause any sort of lasting change. Our minds have agglomerated the weight and turmoil of the "human condition", our bodies are wracked with disease and toxins, and our souls are suffused with distrust and hatred. I also came to realize that powerful forces are at work here, most of which would prefer that people not unite behind any cause or course of action not proposed and sanctioned by them. If this sounds conspiratorial or "new agey" to you, please give some honest, unbiased thought to where we are as a society today. For example, what would hsppen if each and everyone of us were to meet in person to discuss our ideas rather than hide behind the anonymity of forums such as this? At the very least, we'd then be seen as different, straying from the herd, maybe worthy of more attention by various agencies (who are already here I assure you) and if we were unfortunate enough to be perceived as a threat (however minor - no pun intended) by anyone "in power," who can guess what would happen next? Media smear campaigns, problem/reaction/solution, political hopefuls basing their entire platform on eradicating those folks who think differently then us, etc. My proposed cure for all of this is simply to not feed into it, and think for yourself. I for one, no longer pay any attention to the fear-aggrandizing mass media. I figure if anything is going to seriously affect me, someone else will point it out soon enough. One of our grand befallings with every technological increase since the Gutenberg press is giving up our own thoughts about the world for those of others. This is great if you know and trust the people leading you, but how many of us really know the person pulling the strings? Is this person acting in our interest or their own? But enough about what doesn't work. I could fill ten thousand posts with that, and it's not productive. The question looming before us, indeed before our whole species, is this: What WILL work? My thought is that small communities of like-minded, progressive individuals is what we need today. I feel that all should live as they choose, with a very few rules in place governing this life, namely, that you don't cause harm to anyone, do not judge anyone else, and that you contribute to the community via work and support. The maximum penalty for violation of these rules would be expulsion from the community. I feel that the competitive spirit we have developed could be wholly dispensed with. Instead of drilling our children with useless dates and facts, and having them mainly learn about the changes brought about by violence, courses could be taught on meaningful topics such as: How to think, Working together as a team, Life Skills, etc. This community would of necessity be closed, with members voting on all issues, and new members only coming in by community approval. I see working greenhouses in all buildings to collect the sun's warmth, freshen the air and open the mind. I see festivals and celebrations occurring often. More later...