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A New Renaissance

If we turn our system on its head, Washington is rendered meaningless, and the neighborhood is the fundamental political unit, expressing the will of its sovereign, individual members. Neighborhoods select people from among their own to sit on town, county and state committees for the management of community affairs and common resources, utilities and services at these levels. These are people known and respected by their neighbors for their common sense, integrity and management abilities. Though every laborer is worthy of their hire, these public servants derive little other personal benefit from their positions of responsibility beyond the self-esteem and recognition which naturally accompany being useful to our fellow human beings. The financial system has been largely abolished and money has assumed its original, purely utilitarian function. We understand that enterprising people will still and always strive to create value for themselves and their neighbors without the overweening incentive of monetary reward and overarching desire for material accumulation. We’ve grown up enough, just barely, but enough to appreciate this.

Recognizing that America has largely, already been built, we realize that everything required to satisfy our fundamental needs exists right in front of our noses, that we and our neighbors are real, as is the earth beneath our feet, and that we’ve outgrown the abstractions and artifice which have propelled us to this moment. All citizens of our neighborhoods, in addition to the rights we’ve previously held as inalienable, maintain the right to sleep safe and warm in our own beds, in our own homes, every night of our lives, in a clean room at least, with a door that locks to provide privacy, and security for their persons and possessions. And people have the right to never go to bed hungry, whether they be indolent or industrious. In this culture, there are no destitute people, though enjoying full access to what the culture can provide requires participation. Thus, on the day of our new renaissance, every man and woman owns their mortgage free and clear, homeowners and renters alike own the space where they already live. And thus, at a stroke, we’ve eliminated most of our foundational fears, because we can be confident that our neighbors guarantee our right live and sleep where we already are, for as long as we choose. The time has come to give a little, to obtain much.

Every little thing we need exists already in our own neighborhoods, villages, towns, farms and fields. We see that all of the more broadly-scoped utilities, facilities and resources upon which our culture depends, power plants, waterworks, food production and distribution systems, even military bases and missile silos, are staffed and operated by people who live near them, in neighborhoods just like ours. Thus, on the day of great awakening, people whose jobs connect with vital services naturally go to work as usual, unless they’re needed at home. Many things can operate well enough with a skeleton crew, especially when empire building and the rat face have become things of the past. The financial system and multinational corporations have vanished entirely, over night, in the blink of an eye, leaving brick, mortar and waste artifacts scattered across the nation and much of the world. and many, many people are liberated to find new work for themselves, to create new careers in many cases, to reinvent themselves, without fear of landing homeless in the street, or even needing to ask for help. Among many wonders, new little factories will likely spring up all across America, the nation’s family and cooperative farms will produce a great bounty of wholesome food, and making war to benefit our national interest will be inconceivable.

Amnesty has been declared on all debt, student debt, mortgage and business debt, personal debt and of course national debt. We are a nation of engineers, the most ingenious and industrious the world has ever seen. Though it might seem risky, we’re confident in our better selves to devise healthy new means for managing the vital affairs of our daily life, since nearly all people of demonstrated responsibility, and those yet discovering it within themselves, clearly apprehend the unlimited opportunities inherent in their having declared independence from the archaic, artificial system which previously was enslaving them. The last Renaissance happened mostly by accident and twists of fate. This new one is born of a clearly perceived necessity, a desire for tolerance and self-respect, a true and practical compassion for our fellow human beings, and our great love for freedom and enormous possibilities.