An election without a vision

As we go to legislative elections, one wonders who to vote for. The political question is being relegated to alternative short term strategies, without a careful consideration of a long term vision. Perhaps the greens have one. Perhaps. Yes, I want to minimize energy use, but do I want to live without heating? What about air-conditioning? Do I want Gandhism and go back a century? These are trade-offs which need to be debated. They cannot be debated if one political party offers only one set and not the other. The question is what proportion of each? For this, a vision of a future world is required even before a mission or a route plan.

The problem is that any vision requires a world vision and not a domestic one-country vision nor an EU-only vision. And most politicians are offering domestic electors what is economically and socially interesting to them today.

A world vision requires participating in the world and permitting all our people to participate in the world and all the people of the world to participate in our country: visiting it, studying in it, living in it.

It also means that any security and fraternity we provide to our geographically close neighbor, we also provide to more distant people. To some of these distant people, we may be closer virtually.

In a world where human productivity is rising faster than population increases, especially if it is rising in poorer countries, evidently we don’t need to work so much. So, much of the solidarity is about sharing limited jobs. We take unemployment here to boost employment there. We share unemployment here, so that everyone has the bare necessities.

These bare necessities include opportunities not only for food, clothing and shelter, but alos for education, transport and communication. Why shouldn't wifi be free and available all over the world?

Unless we can think of new services to offer, why should we work so much? And if these services are required by people who don’t have them, we need to go out and find the poor people in whose service we can find our joy and, perhaps, salvation. Otherwise, we need to find new objectives in life!

It is the search of these future objectives that need to be defined. Just like the mantra of economic growth has exhausted itself, the mantra of happiness will also reach its plateau as we search for more emotions in life than one.

So, what is this vision? Share your views.