Do not think about the meaning of life, universe and everything else when you are suffering.
Refuse. Forcefully stop yourself. Postpone it. Deflect. Evade. Avoid it like a plague.
Because, what do you think you will come up with when you are suffering?
***
Equally, It is not right or correct to think about the meaning of life while you are in your best moments either.
Both extremes distort the truth and provide only extreme opposite binary answers.
I see these near future technologies as the few examples with potential extraordinary positive benefits for individual humans and the whole race in the short and long term.
Artificial Meat
Artificial meat will enable us to become the first species in the history of this planet to become independent of the world food chain for our immediate nutrition. The significance of that is hard to grasp at first thought, but the potential benefits of lab grown meat are extraordinary, manifold and multifaceted, both for human health and general well being. Both in short and long term. Both for our our individual health and environment we exist in.
The immediate effects will substantially positively affect prevention of pandemics and many diseases caused by and proliferated through industrial animal agriculture and wild unregulated slaughter of animals for food.
The same industry greatly contributes to climate issues and drastically increases destruction of the environment on Earth.
This technology will be equally beneficial for health and well being of Martians too. Because Martians will obviously need the best possible nutrition in new and harsh environment of Mars, especially early on.
Additionally, it should be understood as THE solution for all people who would like to see humanity stop to slaughter animals for our food. I'm sure some of the vegans or vegetarians would complain and criticize this type of food simply for being based on animal cells, but really... this is the only actually feasible way to drastically reduce and in time completely remove the killing of animals for food on a global level. Plant based artificial meat should be equally supported for all these reasons too.
And Grimes will like it.
recent article with some good starting info:
https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/hello-cultured-meat-good-bye-to-the-cruelty-of-industrial-animal-farming/
3D Bio-printing
The same multifaceted and far reaching benefits apply to 3D bio-printing of human organs and tissues. Equally important and crucial for humans on Earth and Mars with massive beneficial effects on our health and medicine in general and the overall quality of life.
Skin for burn victims, whole hands and legs for amputees, any internal organ, as well as any specific smaller parts of our bodies. Hearts, kidneys and livers, lungs, stomachs and intestines. Even nerves to connect the paralyzed limbs more easily and patch any damage to them. We can build functional eyes for the blind -
Their own eyes, that work.
People with malignant cancers will be able to get their own completely new organs to replace the sick and cancerous ones - to help with the other procedures and therapies needed. Any damage to organs caused by violence, diseases or disasters will be much more easily repaired, rebuilt or replaced.
This will be an invaluable technology for Martian colonists, because obviously the early Martians will need to live far from abundance of Earth medical specialized options.
Additionally, it is very probable this kind of ease of replacing old, damaged or otherwise malfunctioning organs with brand new, healthy and practically young ones would benefit the longevity of each individual.
starting info:
https://school.wakehealth.edu/Faculty/A/Anthony-Atala
https://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_atala_growing_new_organs
https://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_atala_printing_a_human_kidney
Asteroid, Comets and Centaurs defense
Because it seems a part of me still hasn't gone completely evil... we need space based infrared telescope for asteroids, comets and Centaurs hunting.
The bottom line is : We need at least a decade in advance warning to be able to theoretically deflect an incoming one in the best case scenario. The more massive it is the more in advance warning we need. Much more if its a comet or a centaur. The assets we have now are not enough to give us that. James Webb will only be able to allocate a small portion of its time for our solar system. Its not enough. we need a dedicated eye (eyes) in the sky made specifically for this purpose - yesterday. In addition to all terrestrial resources already on the job or being built.
We currently miss (official approximates) 10% of global killer 1km+ size NEOs, 70% of NEOs between 1 km and 140 meters size, 99,99% of those bellow 140 meters. For comparison Tunguska impactor was about 30-50 meters in size, Chelyabinsk about 20. Another completely unrelated asteroid 2012DA14 Duende flew under our geostationary sats at the same time Chelyabinsk hit us. And the NEOs are not the only ones we need to see and know about.
Point being, highly improbable events happen all the time. Probabilities are not a magical cure. Science and technology can be.
Fact: None of the deflecting and defensive methods we may theoretically employ can work if we don't have enough time to deploy them. The exact same problem works exactly the same for Mars.
The cost of such dedicated satellite telescope i`ve seen around say something in a ballpark of 500 million USD. I know it can be done for less and the cost does not have to be covered by a single person or government. I am sure many individuals and governments will be happy to support the project.
Info:
https://www.llnl.gov/news/scientists-design-conceptual-asteroid-deflector-and-evaluate-it-against-massive-potential
https://www.space.com/40239-near-earth-asteroid-detection-space-telescope.html
https://b612foundation.org/
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/neowise/main/index.html
Self Improving socio-political constitution
Work in progress title: Maramatanga system
(clarity, perspective, illumination; in Maori)
I just want to throw this out into the wild to see if it will survive and take hold in any way, and hopefully evolve. And because i want the public to see and become aware there is this option available.
I release this set of constitutional rules and measures as an open source project based on two main ideas. Removal of privileges from any ruling and governing positions that nobody else has or enjoys - therefore establishment of complete and absolute equality under the law for absolutely everyone.
And complete and absolute removal of lying in elections.
That means this system not only requires, but needs your input and improvements which will be accepted as long as they follow these core principles and strengthen and improve them.
First rule of this system is that it must be written in simple everyday language understandable to the majority of people, as short, precise and clear as possible.
If you want incomprehensible vacuous rhetoric stick to the current systems and listen to politicians some more.
There can never be a perfect and unchangeable system.
All socio-political and economical systems humankind ever used or have now change, adjust and adapt to ever changing conditions, circumstances and technologies. They evolve as anything else evolves. This is an irrefutable and obvious fact proven by our whole history.
Therefore the current systems will evolve and change too. They are already in a state of changing in smaller and larger amounts, which is a continuous process, and the same will happen to any future systems. You could say, as many have, that the constant change is one of the fundamental features of this whole Universe. Nothing in this Universe is static, nothing remains the same forever. Not stars, nor galaxies, not the light and time itself. Not even singularities remain the same forever.
Therefore the issue is whether such changes – which are unstoppable and inescapable – should be uncontrolled and often extremely negative in the short and long term as often happens when we try to suppress any changes at all even though that is literally impossible. Or, we can accept them and try to manage and steer them gradually in order to avid and minimize the negative consequences.
If the changes are accepted as unavoidable and planned for, it is possible to align with them and shape their course to avoid extreme negative consequences and increase the benefits for all. Just the same as swimming against the river or a tide will drown and kill you, while swimming with it is a different story altogether.
Unlike many others my system embraces this natural process and uses it in all the rules and regulations that follow from that foundation. This system is made to evolve from the past systems and improve itself. It is designed to take the best features of any past system, improve them if possible and remove the bad and worst features from the past iterations. In this first draft it is designed as crucial update to the current democracy, which for all its faults, is the best system humanity developed so far.
As there are already several slightly different versions of democratic systems around my system aims to take the best from any of those and discard any lousy versions, rules, laws and measures.
We need an update, a specific set of targeted changes that improve the current system, not its complete replacement with some other idea. Evolution, not another worthless violent revolution that self destructs and changes nothing fundamental.
Privileged ruling castes
If we observe the whole history of human civilization and even all earlier societal organizations, whether tribal or any other we ever invented, we can notice a single feature that was present in all those systems and organizations across the whole human history and in every culture, that has survived to this day and is blatantly present in the current systems. It is a fundamental fault numerous generations fought against, each in their own way specific for their circumstances and cultures, but never managed to completely remove it.
That feature is a fact that every social and political system that ever existed creates a privileged caste that lives in privileged extra-economic and extra-legal conditions the rest of the society does not have.
Even in the current so-called democratic nations we can see that there is a caste of privileged individuals who live in effectively different economic and legal reality then the rest of the population. It is these extra economic and extra legal privileges that create a specific caste. A caste that corrupted the democratic ideals and processes of elections in order to maintain their privileges. I'm not talking about the rich people. I'm talking about the caste of "politicians" and the whole system of "politics'' which is a parasitic, ineffective, incapable, inefficient system of parasitic middlemen that are only effective in inventing false excuses for the necessity of that system and privileges they enjoy.
This corrupted caste IS what allows the distortion of economy and creation and maintenance of further privileged castes and individuals, the 1% that is now in possession of the vast majority of global capital, resources and land itself. Similarly how the aristocracy 1% owned the majority of capital in 17, 18 and 19th century (check Thomas Piketty Capital in 21st century for that). This is a caste that is currently trying to slow down or prevent various changes, improvements and adjustments our civilization needs. We all know the biggest example of this distorted system, the United states of America. But the situation is not much better in the majority of other nations in the world. Not in my country, not in yours.
There are some examples where society and the systems that govern them are in more balanced equilibrium. I would say some Scandinavian countries in Europe are like that, Portugal too. Or some countries in South America, like Costa Rica, Uruguay and Paraguay. Naturally, citizens of any of those countries will be able to point out many things that are not good, or bad and need improving yet. Still, they are live realistic examples of how things can be made better. Gradually. Continuously. Every day.
We can achieve that without yet another bloody revolution which will only result in the same old mistake of creating another privileged caste again. We need to break that cycle.
This is how: A new constitution must be made containing specific measures and rules that will permanently remove any extra-economic and extra-legal privileges from the ruling caste. And make a crucial long overdue significant change to the election systems based on the same principles.
Based on the very simple idea that is the core of modern civilization already. Living under the exact same legal rules and general economic rules for everyone.
If we want our societies to have this kind of fundamental equality and justice it must flow from the top of the pyramid.
Economy
I won't be discussing or suggesting any specific or drastic changes for the economic system. I'm afraid we are all stuck with the current capitalist economy based on money and profit for the foreseeable future. Even communist states have realized they cannot exist without it.
It will change and evolve on its own. Because it cannot - not to. It is already changing in small steps and some seemingly larger amounts. These changes and adjustments will increase as various new technologies become widely available. The renewable sources of energy, cryptocurrencies, CRISPR genetic enhancements, human colonization of the Moon and Mars, and many other developments such as climate change and pandemics such as currently ongoing Sars-Cov-2 will shape the evolution of the economy in the next decade or two.
There is a significant possibility that some of those developments will be extremely negative and that we will see larger semi-global wars and even nuclear exchanges in our lifetime. That is one of the bigger reasons why we need to update our socio-political systems.
The current parasitic and definitely, blatantly behind the times systems of "politics" rapidly increase the negative consequences and create their own that negatively affect individual lives and national relations on a geopolitical level. Most of you already know about rising inequality, most of you felt the 2008 crash, most of you see and know multinational companies and banks that hide their profits through shell offshore companies, most of you are living through very tough times caused by an effect of a pandemic on your country and global economy.
Some people think that money and economy are the root cause of all evil, but that is not true. We live in interlocked mutually influencing systems that are largely motivated, fueled and influenced by our human nature and our Fundamental Faults and Fundamental Qualities ... which is a subject for a different paper.
While there is no way to completely change the economic system in short term and any such attempt would amount to yet another crackpot nonsense with no effect at all, or extreme negative effects – we are in a position in history where we can update our socio-political systems – which will enable us to steer and shape the economy in better and more positive directions of its evolution in the coming decades.
If you want the economy to become better, more balanced, less unfair, less divisive or polarizing and to create more equality then inequality – you must first change the political system for the better to enable you to influence the economy.
Equality
I won't be advocating any absurd form of total absolute equality of outcome or rewards for everyone as many did in the past. That ship has sailed and crashed, burned and sank dragging hundreds of millions people with it. As did its opposite extreme of Fascism.
I will argue for a system that is better balanced than the current one – nothing more than better then the current one – more just than the current one - and one that will improve itself continuously by seeking, supporting and accepting any changes that improve it in turn.
My suggestions and ideas are intentionally simple and precise, made with the purpose of establishing the exact same legal and economic conditions of living for every individual. For the ruling elected officials and for the citizens.
This is the biggest point: Whoever is in a ruling position MUST live in the exact same legal and economic circumstances and conditions as the rest of the population. In the exact same everyday reality. After all, that is what a democratic and just society must be.
This does not mean that some people are not more skilled than others in specific areas or that one person should not be able to earn more then another. It means that the ruling caste of politicians does not earn their privileges and that must be removed. Not just from that current ruling caste but permanently, for any future one too.
1. Removing the privileged ruling caste
The caste of "politicians" needs to be erased along with the whole system of "politics". Although this may seem like a crazy idea at first, ask yourself: do you need a "politician" to build you a car, a house, to negotiate between different sections in your workplace? Do they build roads, airplanes, wind turbines? Do they? Do they create music, art, technology of any kind? Do they really?
Or do they just claim none of that would be possible without their crucial "management"? Gee, doesn't that remind you of a similar caste or two in the past, eh?
The goal however is not just to remove one single extra privileged ruling caste but to prevent any new ones from ever accumulating again. This can be done ONLY by removing any extra economic and extra legal privileges from ruling positions of governance which would then become: a job.
If we do that then the people working in the government become simple employees, just like the rest of the population. That's all the government job should be – a job. Performed under exactly the same rules, regulations and circumstances like any other job.
All privileges that the rest of the population does not have must be removed from all of the ruling positions of government.
8 hour work day, five days a week. Same amounts of vacation days, benefits, and same requirements and punishments for not appearing on the job as the rest of employees in the nation have.
The amount of hours and days any elected official actually works during his service will be publicly displayed on a giant score board in front of the relevant government building, recorded and available on government website 24/7 for the entire duration of any individual elected official term.
Do people of the country have diplomatic immunity? No? Well then, it should not be available to anyone else.
No official cars, airplanes, paid lunches, dinners, hotels, trips, drivers, bodyguards, suits, shoes, or any other covered expenses that the rest of the population does not have.
The payment for the work must be equalized with the nation average salary – and calculated monthly. So when the national average goes up, the salary of the government officials go up. If it goes down their payment goes down. (the extreme monthly earnings of various super rich will not be calculated into this average)
All newly elected officials will have their financial records freely available to public for the entirety of their service. Updated 24/7.
(Their financial records will be tracked for several years after their service stops and available on official request). Sacrifice for the country and good of all people, right? Now they will have a chance to prove it every day.
Two (or three) separate independent Civil service councils for tracking of financial records of officials and each other will be established, formed only from people unrelated to government, with mandatory high school and or university degrees, preferably by random ballot – similar to how juries are selected in US. The records of these councils will be publicly available to anyone 24/7.
Any corruption and foul play by any government official will result in immediate suspension, arrest and trial for breaking the "contract with the people of the nation" (*see explanation bellow) – and or treason of the people of the nation.
Any elected officials that are found guilty of corruption by the court of law will be permanently banned from doing any work in the government and applying for any kind of elections forever. Their crime will be publicly available to anyone for the rest of their lives and clearly visible in all of their official records including the passport. In addition to any other punishment prescribed by the law.
2. Election system improvements
In the current state of affairs it is literally allowed to lie during elections and to make promises that do not get fulfilled or honored – without any penalty.
Why exactly?
Every party, movement or individual who wants to apply for elections must make a written bullet point list of their promises and main ideas with any needed conditions and clear dates by which any of the promises will be fulfilled. This document will be considered a contract with the people of the nation.
This contract of promises must be officially applied for elections and publicly available to anyone without any restrictions of any kind.
No additional promises during the campaign or elections are allowed. With penalty of immediate disqualification from elections.
Any break of a promise, a lie, or unfulfillment of any promise regardless if the reasons for that failure are intentional or not, i.e. caused by factors outside of elected officials control or influence, will have severe and immediate consequences, such as: Immediate automatic loss of position in government and replacement by the person or party who got the next closest amount of votes. Permanent ban from applying for elections any time in the future. Arrest and trial for breaking the contract with the people of the nation. There wont be any additional trials, processes or negotiations about this process. It will be automatic and immediate.
Parties or individuals are free to write down any promise or a plan as they wish, and to list under which conditions and by which date they swear to uphold those promises - as long as its clearly represented in everyday language and understandable to any ordinary person.
The elections will be held every two years.
Duration of the voting process will be one month.
During that month all election propaganda will be banned. (Any cars will blaring loudspeakers spewing political messages will be banned forever or destroyed with smart targeting missiles or bazookas (this could be applied only to my country though)
Voting will be mandatory for every citizen of age.
In every voting list a new category of "I don't want to give my vote to anyone" or "None of the individuals and parties and their contracts of promises get my vote", or similarly worded option will be added and counted as a vote against everyone.
Not voting at all will result in penalties as follows: Not voting at all for the first time will get a monetary penalty of 10% of personal monthly income and be recorded, Second abstention will get 30% of personal monthly income penalty and be recorded, third abstention will get a 50% of personal monthly income monetary penalty and a ban from voting forever. The monetary penalties for abstaining from voting will be counted regardless of time and number of elections passed in between them.
Individuals will be able to apply for permanent abstention from voting which will not incur any monetary penalties. And apply for reverting that back any time they wish.
Specific extreme crimes will result in permanent ban from voting.
To make any switch to a new government faster every elected government and all elected officials will be required to make a transition for the new government as easy and quick as possible under the threat of same automatic penalties as noted above.
(There needs to be some kind of limitation on financing of perties and individuals that apply for elections. This is one of the measures that needs your input and ideas - under general conditions of this new constitution as listed above)
Various newer and less corrupt voting systems like Irish single transferable vote / proportional representational system, or Approval voting system or Score or Range voting systems are agnostic to this system of measures i propose. One can be used with another.
How can this be achieved?
The Hard way.
By voting for it.
These new constitutional changes to current democracies, in effect a different constitution and a different kind of democracy, can be ans should be achieved in the best way – the way that will give it legitimacy in the eyes of the large majority of people of any nation – through elections and referendums.
You may notice that the rules I wrote don't really align with any of the current binary opposing political parties, or any past ideology or movement.
That is intentional.
First, because such opposition and binary dualities are stupid. As in fundamentally utterly bleedingly stupid.
Second, because the majority of people don't like or want such duplicity but simply have nothing else to vote for. And because any so called middle option just becomes another extreme that doesn't change anything.
Third, because we humans are especially susceptible to binary extremes by our very nature as living beings. They blind us, force us to tribalize, to think in binary extremes of good vs bad, black and white, either - or, which always result in further extreme negative consequences. Which then cause more of such schizophrenic duplicity and binary opposites extremes thinking. That can be exceptionally dangerous these days.
In actual reality there is no real need for that kind of extreme bifurcation, along any line you can imagine. In actual reality majority of people are not extremists in any way, although we can all do some stupid shit now and again.
This proposal of mine must not be achieved by any kind of revolution.
They do not work. History shows you that. All they achieve is an illusion of a short term benefit and satisfaction through extreme violence, casualties and suffering – which does have long term effects. And always results in creation of yet another privileged caste.
It's time to try something else.
For this system to really work, both in short term and long term, it needs to be voted in by a large majority of people in any nation. And then establish the same requirement for any future possible drastic changes. Something close to at least 90% of people in any nation should vote to make this kind of constitutional change. That is exactly why it is worded as it is and designed like it is.
So you tell me, if it was possible, if this was an option in the next elections wherever you are, would you vote for it?
And tell me what should be improved, adjusted, made better to strengthen the main principles and goals of this new type of constitution.
Be aware though, that the price for suggesting improvements and changes is – not resenting if your suggestion is not taken. It's just the way it has to be. Some ideas will be good and add an improvement to this system, some won't be applicable for many reasons and I can't take any and all ideas anyone sends to me. If you can't deal with that, best not to even try.
Read all of the measures I proposed. See how they support and strengthen each other – then try to figure out how to make it better and stronger.
The obvious criticisms, objections and questions
Q: If high salaries and privileges are removed from the ruling positions wont that result in capable people and experts avoiding such positions? Who will then work in those positions!!??
A: How's that system been working so far for you? See any capable people or experts working in government and politics now? I don't. All I see are some rare capable and expert people being abused as token figures and excuses, while not being able to contribute or change anything in any meaningful way. How about people that don't need any extra privileges?
Enthusiasts? Idealists? Actual capable experts? Vote for some.
If you build it they will come. The same as they avoid the current system as a plague.
Besides, if the new elected officials want to increase their salaries they can – by working hard to increase the nations average salary (calculated by independent experts, unions and other similar organizations of course)
This measure also makes sure that elected officials don't become another privileged caste and that they live in exact same economic conditions as the majority of the country's citizens.
Q: If you don't give them enough money won't the new officials just become more corrupt?
A: How has that been working so far? How about we go and ask every elected official or any individual applying for elections will they become more corrupt unless we pay them more?
Additionally, that's why elections will be held every two years.
And that's why financial records of elected officials will be monitored and available publicly for the duration of the term and for several years after their term ends – although not openly public to protect their privacy after their term ends.
That's also why some additional measures need to be added. Tell me which ones. I have some ideas but I want input and ideas from others first.
Help me make this better.
Q: But no matter what you do your system will not be completely corruption free!
A: No, but it will be less corrupt then the current ones. That's the point. And because it will seek to improve itself and adapt to the changes in society, technologies and culture – it will become less and less corrupt in the future.
Q: Removing diplomatic immunity??' But how would the politicians then be able to do their job???
A: Same as everyone else? Maybe by being careful not to break any laws?
Do you need a "diplomatic immunity" to do your job? Do you know anyone else (except politicians) that cannot do theirs without it?
This is also one of the measures that strengthens the anti-corruption quality of the system.
Q: All elected officials' financial records will be completely transparent to anyone during their term? Want that push many away?
A: Sure will.
Additionally, don't politicians say they do their job for high ideals, to improve their country, to sacrifice for the betterment of fellow citizens? Well then, what's the problem there?
Q: If security protection is removed from officials wont that mean someone might kill them!?
A: What would you achieve if you went and killed an employee of any company? Do people kill employees of companies to stop the company? Isn't the police enough to handle such cases? How about we introduce mandatory life sentence without parole for any such murder? What? Nobody else gets that kind of punishment for murder? Why not? Should we consider that a bit more?
Q: There still would be police, right?
A: The police and the army and anything else that works, Of course. No crazy changes here. Improvements – yes. Crazy changes – No.
Q: If elections would require a bullet point contract of promises and if any failure to fulfill those promises regardless of reasons would result in immediate loss of that position (or seats in the parliament, etc) wouldn't that make it extremely hard to make any promises?
A: It sure would!
It would also make it impossible to lie during elections. And that's also why elections would be held every two years.
Q:Wont holding elections every two years be too fast and too draining on everyone? Majority of people already dont vote.
A: The modern world is moving too fast for elections to be held every four years. The system needs to be quicker to follow new developments.
Majority of people don't vote and have lost interest in politics because it's obvious it's a corrupt system that needs to be dismantled and terminated.
This is also why the new election voting period would last one month. So everyone can take their time and vote easily when they have some time for it.
And because election agendas and programs will be presented in a simple easy to understand bullet points list – and because consequences for lying will be drastic and immediate – people will be able to tell who is arguing for what much more easily.
And that is also why voting will become mandatory.
Q: Will changing government every two years be too fast and cause various slowdowns?
Nope. Not in the modern world with modern technology. Or have we all become so incompetent?
Besides, maybe the same people or parties will win the elections again based on how well they did in the first two years?
To make any switch to a new government faster every government and all elected officials will be required to make a transition to a new government as easy and quick as possible. This can be made easier for everyone by adoption of blockchain technologies and systems.
Anything else?
