Instead Of Just Watching, We Could Become Americans With A Shared Vision, Doing Things Ourselves

What if, instead of just watching "America's Got Talent" (or any of their ilk) on TV, each community organized their own, local, we got talent, and we love to celebrate it, competitions; maybe as much, if not more, than the oddity of the economic monster that the various physical forms of human ability got turned into; as in all of the sports that dominate the education system now. And what if at least a good portion of the talents celebrated were those that helped the community do things better? As well as the ability to sing, dance, act, and play instruments, which are, on their own, very good things indeed to be doing more of; most especially if you are part of the doing yourself.

What if, instead of just watching "Modern Marvels" on TV (a show that should never have been cancelled), our kids could be taken to various parts of the marvels that make a community possible, and were show, first hand, and on a regular basis, just how the things they need to learn are applied, and why you need to understand them to keep them going. Taking them to these places so as have them put their hands on it, and their full faculties engaged by it, up close and personal, to see how important things give us what we need. Seeing first hand as well, how their parents, the parents of their friends, are a needed part of these things, just at they will need to be when they grow up.

What if, instead of just watching a report, from some dedicated investigative journalist, concerning a situation going on, that was not only immoral, on the face of it, but also horrible to contemplate, if you were on the receiving end of the bad part of this situation; what if, instead of that, you could have the mixed involvement, of an ever circulating group of fellow citizens, sharing first hand the realities of all of the tasks, and processes, that must be done to keep a community going, find these situations organically, as they arise? Find them, and then speak up about them at regular community meetings, because that would also be something of a regular, direct participation; as opposed to just listening to what a few, because they have monied interests, aruge stuff in front of a city council, that few in the community ever even see the inside of the building for (much less made use of themselves), on the local news show at dinner time, or just before bed.

What if work was being organically connected to your community, precisely so as to better help keep it going; so much so that there could never be any doubt, from that point on, that you mattered, and that you were needed. And that getting the basic things you need would just flow automatically from your participation in full scale, community life; especially with the bulk commodity essentials that could be produced by automation, in balance with you figuring out what you value, and want, for your own, personal, enjoyment; and then being given not only the material resources to create it, but the community access to all of the tools necessary to put it together yourself (having already benefited from universal access to the knowledge, and technologies, involved, as well as deep a connection to how to use those technologies.

These things are possible. They could be made to come into being. We only need to first understand the idea of it. Then to agree that it is a far more worthwhile alternative than what we have now; fraught with difficulties though there may be in getting all of the details sorted out on... Well, on just about every aspect of of it. Sorted out and negotiated so that everybody has to sacrifice a bit to make it happen.

This is what you have to do in order to have a vision that might be shared at all. But if you can do that then you can have something that Americans also share what I believe is a unique gift for. And that is simply the fact that Americans with a shared vision are a force of nature. And if we put our hearts, and our minds, to that vision, there is absolutely nothing that we cannot do. Absolutely nothing.

Think on that will you, as this year draws to a close. And you are mired in all of the B.S. that is going on now. We can, as ordinary folks, figure out a better way. We just have to believe it, and never lose faith in that. I am not going to give up on this, and I hope that you do not either. And also remember that, whether you think what I believe in is stupid, or that I think what you believe in is stupid, doesn't, in the end, matter nearly as much as holding on to the idea that we are still, all of us, just working people, trying to have reasonably stable communities; communities that reflect our values and allow us a decent, working chance, for us, and our children, to proper, going into a very challenging future; even in the midst of the turmoil of extreme weather, and uncertainties regarding resources.

Americans with a shared vision are a force of nature