Everything is Solvable, So Why Haven't We Solved It?

As I scanned the news networks yesterday, trying to find news about anything, anything other than HCR, I noticed that almost everything in this world is bad news. Earthquakes in Central and South America, volcanoes in Iceland, flooding in North Dakota, starvation in Africa, droughts in Australia, conflict in the West Bank, insurgency in the Middle East. Domestically, we've got unemployment soaring, health care costs soaring, deficits soaring, pollution soaring, obesity soaring, unplanned pregnancy soaring, the standard of living difference between our rich and poor is growing, our bellies are growing, the number of people with heart issues is growing and depending on who you ask, this is the most dangerous time in American history to be an American!

So it would be natural to assume, given all these local and international ailments of humanity that all is hopeless, and the best we can do is try to improve our lot a little, and hope the next generation does the same, on and on and on in some intricate but endless dance down a logarithmic curve that grows infinitely close to utopia, but after an infinite amount of time is yet never quite there.

And yet, I remain optimistic. For there is not a single thing I have listed above that we do not currently have the technology to defeat. Disease, hunger, drought, and war are not things that are unconquerable. 60% of HIV transmission in Africa can be remedied using simple hygiene tricks. Some estimate that HIV will be extinct in our lifetimes, as the rate of transmission is plummeting. Obesity and all its related maladies could be instantly remedied if people adjusted their diet by a mere 500 calories a day. Not to mention one third of all cancers are preventable simply by being healthy. The global food production stands at a level where, given the right distribution networks, every human being could eat a nutritious, though simple, diet. Certainly beluga caviar might be less attainable. But in exchange for healthy, bright minds developing all over this planet, that is a small price to pay.
Though dry weather is unavoidable (or is it), what is possible is to rearrange humanity into a less sporadic arrangement that allows us to be shielded from nature's ebb and flow.

As it is, we (humans) clearly possess all the technology necessary to solve all our problems - today. We could build solar energy plants and electric cars and end our use of coal and petroleum-based gasoline completely. We could all start exercising a little more. We could build better transportation systems, and rezone our cities to increase their density and decrease sprawl. We could scrap our SUVs and buy plug-in cars. We could give a little more of our income to set up organizations that built schools and internet infrastructure in developing nations. We could pay teachers more.
I am not a techno-utopian because the implication there is that future technology will lead to future utopia. Instead, I am an extreme cynic because I believe that current technology could give us instant utopia...only our species is so selfish and lazy that it will never happen.

Because really, why am I drinking a Pepsi while I write this? Because I prefer dying a slow death from caffeine poisoning to not having my Pepsi. I prefer my pickup to my old Honda. I prefer living 13 miles from work to living in the city. I prefer not working out every day. I prefer Chipotle burritos with sour cream to grilled chicken salads.
And we are all like that. We all do so many things out of convenience, not accepting, or not knowing, that the repercussions help maintain the status quo of non-utopia on this planet.

Utopia will not come because of technological breakthroughs, this much is clear. Otherwise it would have happened already. Utopia will come because of cultural breakthroughs.


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