| ....
The military has little to do because the
country stays out of wars.
Ships, aircraft,
submarines, missiles become obsolete.
Weapons are no longer made because we
don't need them. Existing stocks are
disassembled, recycled, buried.
.... Iintelligence agencies, spies and surveillance,
background checks, security systems, are phased
out as governments and citizens start
doing things in an open and honest fashion.
.... Nations
lose their importance as smaller
communities become more cohesive and self-sufficient.
The national government merely serves to
facilitate
inter-community and inter-regional exchange,
commerce and cooperation.
.... Patriotism becomes a quaint relic as people develop a
closer allegiance to their own neighbors
rather than to
a remote bureaucracy.
.... Alarm manufacturers must find new
lines of business because people
start leaving
their doors open again.
Window bars, two-way
mirrors, metal detectors, bulletproof glass,
barbed
wire, hiddern cameras all disappear.
.... Relatively small, close-knit, village-style enclaves are
formed where people live and work together,
share
resources, eat communally, look after each
other's kids,
share recreation time and establish a true
culture.
.... All, or nearly all of a community's food
comes from
local sources,
grown and brought to market by local
people who are themselves community members.
.... All energy, including that require for transport, comes
from renewable, non-polluting sources.
.... Stores operate by the honor system.
There are
no price tags and no cashiers. You pick
up what you
need, keep track of it yourself, and at
the end of the
month tally up your purchases and pay the
merchant.
.... Commercial ads are not necessary.
The best goods and the best place to find
them are
common knowledge, spread by word of mouth.
It's
part of the community education.
.... De-urbanization.
Big cities start to shrink as
people spread out into the countryside.
Trees and
green space begin to replace the concrete
and
asphalt of the urban jungle.
.... Gardens and small farms return in a big way.
Agriculture is organic. People eat more
vegetables and less meat, making cattle
ranches,
pig farms, etc. obsolete. What meat and
poultry
production there is is free range, organic.
.... Traffic and congestion disappear.
Most people
work within walking distance of where
they live. Those who must travel longer distances
use public transortion, or non-polluting personal
transport vehicles (e.g., bicycles, electric
scooters).
.... Tourism becomes a thing of the past. The setting in your
own community is so beautiful that you have no
desire to leave it. There's no need for vacation
trips
because you already
live in paradise.
.... No one watches movies anymore. Hollywood
closes up shop. People find there is much better
entertainment in the world around them.
|
.... Air travel is phased out. Long distance travel goes
by rail. Overseas travel goes by ship.
Airplanes become museum pieces.
.... Noise pollution ceases. No more distant roar from
highways or jet planes. Quietness prevails; nothing
but the
sounds of nature animals, birds, insects,
the wind,
the rain. The oceans are also silent as motorized
vessels
are replaced by sail craft. No more whale beachings
from tanker noise and super sonar blasts.
.... Light pollution ceases. Everyone rises at dawn goes to
bed at dusk. Houses and streets go dark
at night and
the
stellar arc is once again visible.
.... The work week is no longer rushed and frenzied. The
natural rhythm of work and rest takes over. People
work and live healthier.
.... The world enters a post-industrial era.
Industry and
economy condense to a smaller, lighter scale.
.... There is less need for interstate and international
commerce. Most goods are transported by human
or by
pack animal. What can't be carried goes by rail
or ship.
Tractor-trailors become obsolete.
.... Unlimited growth in high-technology is replaced by a
focus on the technologies that are essential
to the quality
of life. Scientists and engineers identify a
technology
plateau; a level that is good enough for
all future
generations.
.... Everything we build is either 100% recyclable down
to the smallest component, is biodegradable and
can
be safely composted, or is designed to last 10,000
years with little or no maintenance.
.... The gap between rich and poor disappears.
People
realize that it's more satisfying to work for
the common
good than it is to accumulate a mass of personal
wealth.
.... Poverty and hunger are solved by teaching people
to become to be self-sufficient; materially and
spiritually.
.... Population growth is checked as partners show more
restraint in having children. A sense of holiness
is restored to the marriage union.
.... Stock market investing gradually becomes unnecessary
as local entrepreneurs are supported by their
own
communities. The Wall
Street phenomenon becomes
an historical curiosity.
.... Local artisans make a comeback
tailors, furniture
makers, cobblers, artists restoring a
true local economy.
.... Fleeting fads and fashions gradually give way to lasting
traditions in food, clothing, lifestyle.
.... Teachers, educators, religious and spiritual leaders are
permanent members of the community they serve,
living
among the people they teach.
.... Community elders pass on life skills
from generation
to generation. Education becomes a lifelong process
for
every person.
.... There is no ugliness or decay. Every city, town and
community is green and beautiful. Human habitations
are integrated seemlessly with the region's natural,
ecosystem. Native plants, insects, birds, wildlife
co-exist harmoniously with people.
|
|