As the people inhabiting the crowded coastline in the Northeast continue to try and rebuild a worn out infrastructure so they can once again live near or in an area prone to disaster, let's try something different.
America is beautiful and bountiful by its' God-made existence. There are rivers to cross, mountains to climb, deserts to flourish, plains to farm, forests to tend, valleys to nurture and cultivate. The point being; the country is full of room and open spaces, why crowd the coastlines, mercilessly.
I propose a forming of new cities across America in the open spaces. The first step to municipality will be to contract with Walmart, Target , K-Mart, Walgreens, Rite-Aid, McDonald's, Kroger, Ralph's, Food Giant, Chik-Fil-A, Shell Oil, Chevron, Big Bank(whichever one still has imagination) to build, at the crossroads, a vast, modern fuel efficient, people friendly shopping experience that will boggle the mind as well as pay for a planet friendly infrastructure. This style of development will reverse the trend of Small Town America's demise caused by these behemoths. If the future entrepeneurs want to challenge, they already have the blue print of what they are up against, not just the sudden, overwhelming presence of the shareholder driven, corporate monster waiting to undercut and suck them dry. I call it guerilla capitalism...skirmish, go after the poor performance of customer service neglect run amok. Over-crowded and under staffed Big Boxes of mindless robots and not of this Earth, Wal-Martians roaming the aisles.
God will be invocated to bless this enterprise from the beginning and will be asked at intervals to continue blessing it, if He so chooses. Churches, synagogues, temples, meeting halls and mosques will be sought out to be built and staffed and attended by making God front and center. If people who don't believe care to live here, it's what America means. They can go to AA meetings for Higher Power infusions.
Secondly, the residential monolith of America will be concentric and congruous to the shopping. People will be able to get to and fro on bikes, foot, trams, golf carts, etc.
Thirdly, all business entities will be encouraged to relocate with the structures, well designed and eco-friendly, and the jobs to also encourage citizens to relocate, live, work, shop and worship here. Tax abatement, infrastructure credit and incremental rebates by future development will entice new job creating entrepeneurs. They will be boosted to the level the community requires; of less grid-lock and more flesh on the pavement, not inside a three-thousand pound shell thundering along the road like anxious scarabs.
It will be an invitation to "get small while thinking big" on the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness which is so absent today at certain levels of society.
Fourthly, schools will be year-a-round, three semesters per calendar year. There will be a Winter break at Christmas time, a Spring break at Easter and a Summer break. Kids can graduate from high school in two years. Teachers will be paid like doctors and lawyers. Schools will be staffed with security, up to and including military personnel. Truancy will become a crime on students and parents, if necessary. Students will learn the sometimes lost value of discipline, both external and internal.
Fifthly,of course, some form of government will inevitably be required. Simple majority, with frequent elections, plenty of town meetings. Independent audits of budgets and books. A bit simplistic but we need less of it, not more.
Just a thought, but I don't think we will continue to progress unless we share the geography of America the beautiful, make it accessible to everyone, give people the opportunity to live somewhere besides on a row of pavement, bricks and mortar, near industry, pollution, crime. Weather events and Earth driven phenomena will continue to keep man on his toes. We are puny organisms on this Earth. I'm in Texas and everyday I pass from crowds to lengthy drives through pasture, woods, wetlands and farms in short minutes. It is often as if the fourth largest metropolitan area in the U. S. doesn't even exist. The Gulf of Mexico is near. the shifting of air masses converge on us. Droughts come and go. It's our responsibility, according to God, to be wardens of Earth. To be knowledgeable and wise in His knowledge.
Dorieville, Texas is coming to mind somewhere in the Brazos Valley off Hiway 30 where the livestock thinks it's Heaven.
14 years ago
