Our happiness depends on the poverty of others
Oddly enough, I found this bumpersticker slapped onto the wall at a walk-in ATM station right next to California Bank & Trust on Solano ave. It definitely got to me. And the more I think about it, the more I realize it’s true. Happiness in America, currently, is dependant on sadness in [insert 3rd world country here]. We take it for granted because we’ve never seen it or experienced it.
In my excellent world problems class, our next big project for the 3rd quarter is going to be to design a Utopia. This is going to be one hard project. Making it even harder, we’ve got to develop it in groups of 3 people or so. You can only imagine the arguing that will ensue. So, in the perfect world, everyone would be happy? NOT BLOODY LIKELY. Everytime something like that has been tried, its failed miserably. Take communism for example. That was designed to make everyone equal. Does Equal = Happy? Maybe, probably depending on who you ask. There always has got to be a power struggle.
Last night, I brought the topic up, and it consumed the entire dinner conversation. Lisa (friend’s mom) pointed out that often the happiest people are incredibly religious and strictly devout. And everyone agreed (including me). But doesn’t that just %$@! us over even more? For more, read the past hot topic “The Human Psyche”
So for my utopia, its not going to make everyone happy. Maybe it’ll get everyone satisfied at one point, but i happiness will be elusive. When I’ve walked by villages in poorer countries, I see the kids having fun. I see them using the few resources they have, and making do with them, and being happy. And yet sometimes, I get bored, even though I have so many things around me that are able to amuse me, such as this computer i’m typing into. Happiness doesn’t rely on technology or material comfort, not at all. The rich CEO of Company A is often less happy than middle class average joe with a fun job. So in my utopia, everyone has to enjoy what they’re doing, at their level. Go ahead and comment, I’ve got a feeling this is going to be a hot topic.
∼ Andrew
P.S. I’d like to develop a list of utopian references…books, articles, etc. The Giver is a good one to start with, I’m sure this list is soo long, so only give me the best ones 
There've been 10 whole comments
8:34 pm on 1/22/2005 1. tsguitar
Who says anything about happiness in a utopia? People don’t have to be happy in a utopia. *My* version of utopia wouldn’t be people running around, happy all the time. Think of how much wouldn’t get done that way. I’m an artist and am really cranking out good stuff when my life sucks (or when I think back to a time my life sucked). The downs are so much of what make the ups fun. The vicissitudes of life, as my prof. used to say. That is part of the human experience.
Of course, at the top of your utopian references has to be the original:
Thomas More’s “Utopia.” You can pick it up quite cheap and it’s a good read, especially based on what you’ll be working for school. The social commentary of the book is fascinating and More’s writing is interesting (it’s written as a travel journal to a real place).
8:50 pm on 1/22/2005 2. Andrew
My utopia will be anything but all happy. I thought I had said that in the original post, but i guess not. I’ll check that book out, it sounds interesting. You say what your version of utopia wouldn’t be, but what would it be? The downs make ups fun…ya I can see that…
P.S. In other news, my site seems to have landed itself the #2 spot on MSN search for the query “pretty womens legs” and the #4 spot for “womens legs”…lol!! heres the proof:
http://search.msn.com/results.aspx?q=pretty+womens+legs&FORM=QBRE
http://search.msn.com/results.aspx?q=womens+legs&FORM=QBHP
I know by posting this, I’ll just improve my rating…lol whatever. Stupid Microsoft Beta software!!
1:14 pm on 1/23/2005 3. Ollie
Dang Microsoft…
Tell me though Andrew, why were you searching for “pretty womens legs”?
1:38 pm on 1/23/2005 4. Andrew
No..i just found it in my shortstats and tested it for myself…lol
10:27 pm on 1/23/2005 5. microman
Here’s a good dark utopian ideal movie: Gataca. Basically all this stuff on DNA perfection.
3:24 pm on 1/25/2005 6. Hizzle forshizzle
Your utopia theory is an interesting project, but i would concer that a utopia is not fully possible and has never been realized by man as a speicies. I wish you the best of luck on your utopia adventure.
7:31 pm on 1/26/2005 7. tsguitar
A discussion about utopia and the phrase “pretty women’s legs” is mentioned. Coincidence? I think not…
P.S. I think a term like utopia may have to be relegated to defining what it’s not. I don’t tend to think in ideals about the world, so I can’t really say what an ideal world is. I’m fairly certain that religion would not exist, though. Oh! And neither would Wal-Mart. Or Starbucks. Or McDonald’s, Taco Bell, or any other fast-food chain. Cigarettes wouldn’t be harmful to your health and the word “cancer” would only carry an astrological importance. There *would* be fights, because people would still passionately believe in what they believe in. But all would be resolved by a healthy game of Scrabble.
8:37 pm on 1/26/2005 8. Arty
i’m hearing you tsguitar, but along with no fast food chains and Walmart (gag) there would be more equality in the legal system whatever sysytem that would be. I’m thinking everyone gets paid the same for the same job, instead of unequal pay for minorities, and women like we have now. And the government wouldn’t be “a cut above” the rest of us. There’d a fresh start on the world where we haven’t depleted the ozone layer or crushed the middle east under our imperialist boot….in fact the united states wouldn’t even exist, it’d be split into smaller less powerful countires so we’d be on the same level as everybody else…yeah that’d be nice…
8:44 pm on 1/30/2005 9. erin ow
utopia book-
A Day No Pigs Would Die
2:27 pm on 2/27/2007 10. davo
well, since i was trying to write an essay on utopianism, i beleive that a utopia is a collective the ideas of how a society should run. it just so happens that it also goes for an individual. for an individual, a utopia may be, for example, everyone having equality within politics and the economy, however, another might say that the ideal utopia is rather a selfcentered one, such that the person speaking shall have true happiness along with everyone else (although through means of selfsatisfaction).
dang. im confusing myself again..