Utopian Society

Why is it we don’t live in a Utopian Society?  As in, “a place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government and social conditions” (from Merriam-Webster Dictionary)?

Since the United States is made up of (for the most part) citizens from around the world, why did we not take the best of those societies and create a Utopian Society? I was thinking about that this morning because of a number different things that I have come across lately.  First there was the “Everybody Loves Raymond” episodes where everyone goes to Italy on a family trip.  I saw these episodes the other day and it was mentioned how everything just shuts down at lunchtime so people can relax, eat and refresh themselves before finishing up their work for the day.

Then I was thinking about places where people make each meal a genuine social experience.  They sit together and dine for a long time, slowly savoring their food and enjoying each other’s company.

This led me to think about areas of the world where an education is an extremely prized possession.  Where children are incredibly eager to learn and just want to absorb knowledge like it is the air that they breath or something sweet to eat.

It seems like here, in the United States, we tend to rush and rush and rush through life. We barely have time to eat breakfast and even have advertisers trying to get us to live on breakfast “shakes”, pop tarts or other quick and easy items we can grab and eat as we rush out the door. Lunchtime is barely a break but is another opportunity to cram food down our throats before we get back to work.  After work, there is the rushing around with activities and errands before heading home to eat something that is quick and easy before settling in front of the TV for a night of mindless entertainment.  Families sitting together but staring straight ahead instead of communicating with each other.

It is not just our meal times that are rushed but it is how we live out lives on a daily basis.  We have developed ways to communicate that require no human interaction at all.  Doonsbury, the comic strip, ran a recent series that showed two people sitting opposite each other and texting rather than talking.  They didn’t even notice that they had eaten lunch together. I know people like that.  Couples who have computers set up in their home office and they sit at those computers with their backs to each other and e-mail or play with Facebook every evening. They don’t even talk.  If they want to say something, they e-mail the other person. And they are in the same room!!

Then there is our excessive use of caffeine. We drink coffee, tea and soda in an effort of staying awake and energized all day.  Then, we stay up at night because we can’t sleep due to all the stimulants running through our veins. Upon waking in the morning, we load up on caffeine again to get through the next day.  Instead, why don’t we get rid of the artificial stimulants and just get a proper night’s sleep?  We know that is the healthier thing to do but we don’t do it.

We like to brag that we are the greatest country on earth.  A country made up of people from around the world and created that all people could be free. But instead of choosing the best qualities of where we came from and incorporating them into this country, we abandon those qualities and embraced new habits in order to “fit in” to the new country.

We are a bright and capable people.  We say we want everyone to live in freedom and peace and have good health. Yet we do everything we can to encourage people to eat the wrong foods and in the wrong manner (quickly) and to not sleep, not communicate and basically develop really bad habits that lead to all kinds of health problems and an early grave.

What would it take to truly develop a Utopian Society? To have everyone eat only healthy food, fresh vegetables, properly raised meat, and drink fresh, clean water? To have everyone get a full eight hours of sleep at night by helping them kick the caffeine habit and to actually spend eight hours in bed with no TV, computers or music to distract them from rest and relaxation? To encourage people, even if they are single, to eat three meals a day with family and friends so that we can communicate and support each other and lift one another’s spirits?

It would take all of us making a commitment to do it. To strive to live in the most ideal way possible.

Would this be a terrible thing to do? Would this ideal society, which would lead to better health and longer lives for its inhabitants really be such a bad thing?  Isn’t it what is best for everyone?

For those who have had children or have children in their lives, don’t you look at them and want the absolute ideal life for them? Don’t you want them to be safe and strong and healthy and living to their full potential?  So why is we raise them to develop such bad habits and to live a life of stress and anxiety?

There are those who might say that this is impossible.  That to create such a society would take away people’s freedoms or it is socialism or it just simply would be impossible to maintain. But we spend so much time influencing people through our own behaviors or through the advertisements that are being blasted at us to behave in ways that are unhealthy and the opposite of living a good life.  Why can’t we change the message?  Instead of encourage people to have bad habits, why can’t we just encourage people to have good habits?  Instead of giving lip service to eating well, getting enough sleep and developing strong relationships, why don’t we set good examples and do it ourselves? Get rid of the cups of coffee sitting on the morning news anchors desks and instead put out glasses of water. Encourage employers to let their employees rest in the afternoon instead of rushing through lunch in order to get back to work. Encourage families to spend time together by not scheduling activities during the dinner hour or on Sunday mornings. Stop advertising drinks laden with caffeine as the way to get through the day but instead inundate the airwaves with ads for healthy food and drink. Stop selling sleep aids to counter the effects of so much caffeine and instead encourage people to just go to bed and get some sleep, which they can do if they don’t drink so much caffeine.

I would think that since we want the best for ourselves and those we love, we would want to strive to live the best lives possible. To live in a Utopian Society. We ARE a strong country. If we really wanted this, we could do it. We just have to truly want it.

So do you?  Do YOU want it? I know I do.