The Flaw

What is the rational basis for nations and kingdoms? What gives anyone the right to draw lines on a map and say “This is MINE – and I will KILL YOU if you try to take it from me”?

Yes, I understand the notion of people pooling resources together to provide infrastructure for a civilized society. Though one would think that everyone would see that as a self-interest that is in everyone’s best interest… and one would think that everyone would do their fair share so that those who have less don’t bear a greater percentage of the burden. And one would also think that we don’t need an emperor to dictate these things that should be axiomatic to all people.

Why do we, as the human race, insist that millions of fellow humans don’t have the right to healthy food and clean water? Why do we insist by our very actions that it is totally acceptable that millions of fellow humans simply starve and die, that it’s not our problem? Why do we think it is acceptable to export fizzy drinks around the world, but not the basics of life?

Why do we allow people to set themselves up as rulers and lords over others, and then allow them to deny the basics to “their own people”? Why do we squander the lion’s share of our finances on weapons of war? I ask that because that is what we actually do – take a look at the national budget.

What if everyone in the world actually agreed to live in peace and we all refused to allow anyone to usurp power over us? Certainly there is a realistic need to address those who refuse to live honorably toward their fellow humans… but if no one lacked what they needed, and no one demanded to amass untold riches at the expense of the rest of the human race, it wouldn’t take the majority of the national budget to deal with the rebellious… would it?

The more I consider the lyrics to John Lennon’s song “Imagine”, the more I see the simple wisdom in it. And the more I see just how primitive our thinking still is.

And for all you who will point to a book and say the reason for this is that everyone is essentially evil because your book says so… I say poppycock. Yes… poppycock. Because that’s nicer than the word I want to use.

I think the systems we have selfishly built and viciously protect are a “societal machine” that produces the very results we see all around us. The flaw is in the design itself.

I think it’s time to tear down that machine and design one better suited to healthier results for everyone. I don’t anticipate it will happen anytime soon… but just imagine it, won’t you? Because in the end it takes that kind of vision – the seed of a towering idea, planted deep in the soil of the human heart – to propel us forward to a better future. And isn’t that, in the end, the kingdom of God?