Words
Words. So many words. In posting two hundred essays to Fifty Year Perspective, I have written over 125,000 words. I’m running out of words.
From the outset in 2014, my objective was to write about trends in the economy, technology, education, politics, environment, and international relations, both worrisome trends and positive directions. There is no better example than existential threats to our one and only planet from increasingly frequent and severe extreme weather events, and the drought and fires that follow.
Other crucial issues have been reported in Fifty Year Perspective:
Lack of trust in health experts threatens our ability to contain pandemics through vaccinations and health practices. See Feb/2022 Apr/2021 Aug/2020
Inadequate access to education and healthcare for low-income families shortens lives and denies the economy the benefits of their participation. See Feb/2020 Feb/2016
Millions of the world’s poorest populations, faced with limited capacity to employ and feed themselves, may be destined to overwhelm wealthier countries as refugees. See Sep/2021
Advances in technology are changing how food and consumer products are produced, with unknown consequences for the future of employment in agriculture and food production. See Dec/2021 Oct/2018 Jan/2017 Jun/2014
Massive collection of personal information by governments and corporations threatens privacy and personal freedom. See Jan/2022 Apr/2016
The growing concentration of economic power of corporations challenges the role of government to enacting and enforcing social and economic policy. See Feb/2022 Sep/2018
Far-right populism poses a threat to liberal democracy in countries around the world, as well as the U.S. See Jan/2022 May/2020 Aug/2020 May/2016 Feb/2016
While many issues like these have been ineffectively addressed or altogether ignored, remarkable improvements have been achieved in communications, transportation, trade, healthcare, agriculture, and job creation, among others.
As I write this, a ray of hope appears as negotiations, both intra-party and inter-party, find some common ground on gun control, subsidies for semi-conductor chip production, prescription drug pricing, infrastructure, and renewable energy.
I feel safe in saying that solutions to our most serious problems are accessible if words – written words, spoken words – are exchanged in good faith by government leaders in direct negotiations, with guidance from professionals in fields of science, academia and business. I look forward to writing about these solutions in future essays, and invite you, my readers, to share your insights as to encouraging social, economic and political trends.