I believe this is a good point to speak of my full desire for this world and how I think things should go from now on.
As I said before, I desire the world to have every type of society. This way, people can move between those societies to find the ones they feel as if they better belong to. A peasant in a Monarchy may like the monarch to handle all of their problems, a right-wing conservative would love any society that operated under a proper level of tradition, an anarchic society would allow self-rule and operate under poetic justice where the only crime is going against another's liberty, etc. We could even have a larger Catholic State - that is to say, an expanded Rome.
^ All of these societies would exist and more... And in that world, if a society does not exist to someone's standards, another one could be created - with Virtual Reality and Terraforming, territory and resources would no longer be an issue.
We are not there yet. But we ARE close, and as a futurist, I have to decide on which path the world should take in order to get there. I have found this solution:
Destruction of representative democracy, creation and application of E-Democracy, and the allowance of world citizenship and other globalized actions such as the sponsoring of adventurers to go and handle problems throughout the world.
Rep. Dem.
Representative Democracy was a great idea - one of the best ideas ever conceived in human history, for it allowed the common (wo)man to have his/her say without having to interrupt their own lives. They could elect someone who represented their interests and the nation would go they way the elector wanted, while allowing the elector to continue living as they desire.
Unfortunately, as time has gone on, population has come to destroy the effectiveness of this system. The minority may look the same in percentage, but 5:150 turning into 5,000:150,000 shows a greater level of disrest. And because of the population increase, issues are rising far quicker than before - so fast, in fact, that representatives can't keep up with the changes.
E-Democracy
E-Democracy allows for direct democracy to its fullest extent - everyone can not only vote on issues directly, and re-vote on those same issues, but also get things done FASTER than they are done with representative democracy.
This allows further liberty on the part of the people with easier and more active participation in all affairs - from local to global. In terms of global affairs, everyone in the world can vote to make world decisions without needing a Rep. force like the U.N. Rather, another organization will do as the world votes, and handle global citizenship.
Global Citizenship
This has been a popular concept for some years - frustrated with their nations or wanting to be part of a more global perspective, many people have wanted to attain global citizenship on top of or instead of national citizenship. Wanderers, like gypsies, would be great examples of world citizens while those who operate in multiple nations throughout the world would benefit from it as well. This citizenship shows the nations you go to that your loyalty is to the world - which shows that you mean them no harm; that is, unless it's an addendum to a national citizenship which is at war with the nation you go to. But even then, those of the enemy nation know you are from their enemy's land, so they will respect your openness and watch you - knowing you aren't a spy, and making sure you don't go in areas they don't want you to. This is an act of trust. And trust is something people need amongst one another now more than ever.
Adventuring
The concept of adventuring has grown to astounding heights in recent years, with the influence of video games - especially MMOs. It is seen as exploring, where the adventurer is able to find challenges and enjoyment, which aids themself and those they help.
There are generally 3 types of adventurers: Military, Mercenary, and Hero.
Military Adventurers are like mercenaries but operate under the standards of the military they are working with, which pays them easily as the adventurer goes along, completing missions (aka quests). Military adventurers are allowed leave, but not in times of extreme conflict. Militaries would hire adventurers to complete things they can't do - such as scouting certain areas, killing the enemy when it goes against the soldiers' ability, or doing extra tasks the soldiers are too busy to handle. This is a very effective manner of adventuring and requires the least amount of risk - not as much physical but monetary and political. Military adventurers are currently the most popular in MMOs. TERA and Neverwinter are great examples of military adventuring.
The second type, mercenary adventurers, would rely on guilds. Like in Fairy Tail, they would need to find "jobs" (which act as quests, just as missions do). The guild system would help them get these jobs easier. They will get paid their rewards at the end of the job, rather than at different points during it, and don't have to operate under standards like military adventurers. Merc adventuring is represented in Vindictus in two different ways so far - a town militia and a merc guild, which each aid the areas they are in in different ways.
The last type, the heroic adventurer, is the type heard of in legends. They often do not ask for rewards for their actions, though it is seen as rude to deny a reward offered. These adventurers are the ones that would require world citizenship and would be most respected, as they exist to further the good of all peoples rather than simply aid a specific military or serve their own interests. They desire fame more than fortune and want stories of valor rather than large mansions. These adventurers operate under their own personal codes and are often offered a nice place to retire by different lands they helped, where they can teach others about heroics as a good role model.
Why adventuring?
Many people may not notice this - but our world is in dire need of adventurers. We have an absurd amount of bounties and little to no bounty hunters. Issues like Kony require a much more adventurous hand than a soldier's or a peacemaker's. Issues like the ones in Somalia require heroes to help quell the people and help those that need aid, during the conflict - after all, the issue there is much more situational that many think and the focus on that issue keeps people from looking at the suffering of the innocents affected by the conflict. Lastly, countries like the UAE have a desire for peaceful action, so they don't want to go to war with other nations. Adventurers would benefit them since they can handle issues the UAE can't politically.
Adventuring would help calm down the problems of the world, allowing world citizenship to flourish, people to be able to use their liberties more, and would generate a clean slate for turning the world into a community of utopias. Adventuring would also decrease the disastrous effects of World War III, if it were to occur. And since many in the current generation have learned what adventuring is, means, and how to do it properly, it won't be a hard thing to implement.
How these lead to...
By destroying Rep. Dem. and allowing E-Democracy, politics are affected by more liberty. This then affects the societies of the world. By having world citizenship, adventuring etc, the world becomes even more globalized which opens everyone up to one another. This then makes it easier for people to shift into proper types of societies later on, and the societies themselves are anarchic.* That is to say - politically and economically, it may not be anarchic, but socially, all societies would be anarchic to the extent where globalization would still be in effect and people moving between societies would not be an odd thing at all. And because the adventuring system would already be in place, various peoples could get issues handled no matter if they are nationally affiliated, have military power or not, regardless of status, etc.
*A good example of this is MLP:FIM. My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic's main nation, Equestria, is politically Monarchic, economically Capitalist, and socially Anarchic. It also ended up being egalitarian, as is ideal in an anarchic society.
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#perfectworld