The Best Thanksgiving Ever

Thanksgiving means food, family and friends, an American tradition which has successfully resisted commercialization - or at least put it off until Black Friday. Today I could look back on some of my previous 64 turkey day feasts, but I choose instead to look ahead and visualize what would be the best world wide Thanksgiving ever. Drawing on some topics from the Sense index, here is my vision for a world where all humanity could give thanks.

Abortion would be virtually non-existent, due to a combination of medical progress, sexual education, respect for women, economic gains for the impoverished and significant development in religious thought.

Artistic expression would be fostered with government and private funding and with minimal censorship.

Capital punishment would be abolished world wide as beneath the dignity of humanity.

Charity would be practiced at the level of the individual, since the basic human needs would be met by individual accomplishment and by the support of government and non-governmental organizations supported through progressive taxation.

Children would be given the highest priority for protection from harm and provided encouragement to realize their full human potential as world citizens.

Corporations would be severely restricted and recognized as the artificial entities they are, merely a means for efficient administration and nothing more.

Democracy would be recognized as the form of government to which all are entitled, though with a range of diverse standards appropriate for each nation in its own time.

Economics would be monitored and managed on a world wide basis for the good of the people and the planet, rather than for the primary benefit of corporations and capitalists.

Education would be a sacred lifetime human right for all people, encouarged by government.

Environmental respect would receive top priority in everything we do, and natural resources would be recognized as belonging to the people, with limited licensing possible to private entities.

Health care would be a universal right and medical research and development would belong to the people.

Immigration and travel would be fostered, though relocation for economic reasons would no longer be necessary.

Labor would be recognized and celebrated as of equal importance to capital and natural resources.

Legal rights and processes would be guaranteed to protect individual and national rights, and legitimate courts would be the only acceptable forum for contested resolution of disputes.

Legislative bodies would operate openly and democratically, with majority rule tempered with respect for minority positions, free from influence by anyone other than the people they represent, with the United Nations setting the example for all nations to emulate.

Media would belong to the people, with limited communication channels being licensed for the good of the public and with protections against media domination.

Non-governmental organizations would be encouraged by governments, providing a variety of examples of ways governments might choose to meet ends and then being able to appropriately serve governments in administering chosen governmental programs.

Nuclear technology would belong to the people, including the rights of development and regulation, and nuclear weaponry would be banned.

Racial differences would be celebrated and racial discrimination barred.

Religious beliefs and non-beliefs would be entitled to protection but barred from being incorporated into governmental practice.

Sexual orientation differences would be recognized and protected, with only sexual exploitation of persons not consenting or not capable of consenting (minors and the mentally deficient) being prohibited.

Social security would be recognized as a basic human right, governments guaranteeing minimal living standards for everyone.

Sports would be recognized and promoted by governments and the private sector, with primary emphasis on youth programs and secondary on amateurs, and with professional sports being highly regulated.

War would be non-existent, replaced by UN police actions and peace keeping missions, enabling the disbanding of national programs for military defense and aggression.

Women would have equal rights to men, while recognizing legitimate gender differences in fashioning particular programs as needed.