The New New Deal--Heavy Government Intervention

The process of developing my understanding of my utopian society was no easy task.  Thinking about important issues and ideas that I would implement in my ideal world only brings to the surface the issues that are characteristic of  modern society.  However, approaching this idea through an environmentalist perspective provides an easier scope to such a broad and almost unattainable task. 

The first thing that I would implement in my utopian society was my approach to politics.  While I believe that America has a proper basis for providing representation based on the population, there exist too many outside influences that have the capability of pushing agendas that might not necessarily be reflective of the needs/wants of the American public.  I would eliminate the role of big business in government (lobbying, campaign funding) and allow for the politicians to act freely and representative of their voting constituents.  In addition, society would not be plagued by political commercials aimed at skewing votes and bashing opponents.  This may be somewhat of a pet peeve, but I personally hate having to watch extreme political attacks while trying to watch my favorite program (and I'm sorry Indiana politicians, being a card carrying member of the NRA is typically something that politicians would not divulge). While this post is by no means a political manifesto, those are just two of the many issues that I see existing within our politics and would address those first in my utopian make-over of the United States.

My utopian society would offer great government intervention in the everyday lives of its citizens as a means of ensuring every citizen with the essentials for life.  The goal of my government would be to elicit feelings of community that have become non-existent in the current state of American society.  The economic structure of my society would offer initial equal salaries of all--with opportunities to earn bonuses for exceptional work.  Radical? Yes, however the issues that exist within our current society are largely due to the economic discrepancies that exist which call into question "the American dream" and how this idea has been attainable to only a small portion of the population.  Economic coupled with race issues often drive apart the sense of community as people either act in a selfish manner or do not understand/were not offered opportunities to live amongst a diverse population.  As I re-read my writing I can tell that I am beginning to digress from the ultimate goal and that is to develop my understanding for a utopian approach to the environment. 

It may be fairly evident by now that I am in favor of government intervention as a role of not only redistributing wealth, but providing services to the consumer that is not based on profit margins, quarterly reports, stock holder expectations, bonuses, salaries etc.  As an entity within society that is representative of the population I feel as though it is in the best interest within my society for the government to regulate both food and water.  Grocery stores would exist as they do today, but would offer less processed foods, as well as lowering prices to accommodate so that food does not maintain itself as such a heavy financial burden within my utopian society.  Vices such as Alcohol and Tobacco would still exist, but at a much cheaper price so that those who choose to divulge in such practices are not making a great financial impact on their families everyday lives. 

The emphasis and ultimate creation of community within my utopia would allow for the actions of people to be completed in a manner that acts for the community over the personal needs.  In my utopia, recycling and sustainable practices would become mainstream ideas.  Recycling would become a more efficient branch within society as there would exist a great influx in the shear numbers of products and participants in the practice. Corporate waste would be cut off through government intervention and corporations would no longer be disconnected from society, but would act in a manner that reflects the needs and ideas of the community.  Everyday corporations, businesses, the family home etc. would be given allotted amounts of energy/water credits, forcing them to change their practices and not only adopt more sustainable ideas. More credits can be bought for a hefty price from the government, who in turn would take that money and invest into "green energy" such as solar and wind power.  This practice would deter individuals from acting selfishly within the home and would bring more simplistic ideas to mainstream everyday practices, such as relying on sun(day)light or opening windows as a means of regulating temperatures within the home. 

Progress within my utopia would no longer be judged by GDP, but rather by declining energy consumption.  It would be the stated goal of the large community to act in ways that are responsible to the the environment and to the government (which coincidentally places a heavy emphasis on the environment).  While somewhat radical in my thoughts with the idea of income distribution, I personally feel as though it is the cause of many issues within our current society and only fuels greed at both corporate and personal levels.  The reduction in power of the corporation and the increased financial capabilities of the government offer constituents a government that is truly capable of implementing progressive ideas and funding promises made to the community.  New initiatives started within my utopia would also  be inherently green as car manufacturers would only offer hybrid and fuel-efficient cars to the public, while at the same time funneling "profits" into research for the betterment of their products and society.  Likewise, buildings would offer more efficient initiatives to ensure a respectable relationship between my utopia and the environment.

Reading through my blog, it is evident to see that my utopia is extremely radical and not feasible in the current world that we live in.  However, the thoughts listed above provide my belief in what would be a way to solve many issues that plague the contemporary state of both American lives, as well as the American poltiical realm.  While heavy government intervention may be viewed as un-American, the growing disparities between socioeconomic status and the perpetual nature of these classes is an issue that has widely been overlooked in society.  This in turn would eliminate feelings of dependency on consumerism and instead re-arrange our priorities and move towards more traditional values centered around family. within  Approaching this idea with the environment in mind brought to the surface the many issues surrounding the topic that exist, and often go overlooked today.  I welcome the criticism to these ideas and challenge the readers to provide other perspectives to addressing these issues and acting in a manner that increases the livelihood of the population as a whole.

PS--Outside of the enviornmental issues within my society, there would be a heavy emphasis on the role of education.  As a future teacher it pains me when I seeing the realm of education continually falling victim to budget cuts due to the ease and lack of litigation that these ideas require.  Within my utopia, educational funding would be excessive in nature and the process of learning would offer a much more interactive experience.