QUOTATIONS, EXCERPTS AND MORE
Quotations
"(They) are getting paid by the people to run the country well, but the officials are actually working for big corporations..." “If Washington is the brain of the nation, then our country is mentally ill.” "Society is like a human body. When one part hurts, the rest suffers.The body uses resources to heal the ailing part." “Unless all parts work together, the whole cannot be healthy.” "We haven’t expected a cure. We spend millions on incarcerating criminals, never expecting them to come out better." “You can’t put people in small cells for years and expect them to somehow come out cured. It must turn them into responsible members of the whole…” "We have generations of dependent families." “For all our caring, we can’t get people out of their downward spirals.” |
Excerpts.
Read sections of the book here.
(Click on the title to read each entire section.)
The September Speech (Legal Corruption): The section in which Senator Barspool discusses Congress. "The people of this country are not number one in the minds of our legislators. Something else is, and that thing is money. The obstructionism and unwillingness to work together that we always see has nothing to do with ideology. It has everything to do with money." (This is how he'd solve the problem.)
The September Speech (Incarceration): Senator Barspool gives his new, compassionate approach to incarceration. "You can't put people in small cells for years and expect them to somehow come out cured." (This is how he'd solve the problem.)
The Civil Society (Brad's Story): Brad Graff is sentenced to two years for robbing a Burger King of a Whopper. This is how the Civil Society deals with him.
The Acceptance Speech: After four years of the Civil Society, the President is re-elected and gives this acceptance speech.
(Click on the title to read each entire section.)
The September Speech (Legal Corruption): The section in which Senator Barspool discusses Congress. "The people of this country are not number one in the minds of our legislators. Something else is, and that thing is money. The obstructionism and unwillingness to work together that we always see has nothing to do with ideology. It has everything to do with money." (This is how he'd solve the problem.)
The September Speech (Incarceration): Senator Barspool gives his new, compassionate approach to incarceration. "You can't put people in small cells for years and expect them to somehow come out cured." (This is how he'd solve the problem.)
The Civil Society (Brad's Story): Brad Graff is sentenced to two years for robbing a Burger King of a Whopper. This is how the Civil Society deals with him.
The Acceptance Speech: After four years of the Civil Society, the President is re-elected and gives this acceptance speech.
How the Author(s) Created the Civil Society
The idea started in February 2016 when I went to Taiwan to visit my son, Joey, who attends university there. I impressed myself by being able to read a lot of Chinese. This has nothing to do with the story, but because I lived in Japan for 27 years, I already knew many Chinese characters. I embarrassed Joey because I always used the Japanese pronunciation. When I ordered coffee, I ordered "chuu" (中) for medium instead of "zhong" (which is also the character 中.) The cashiers at Family Mart weren't used to reading an invisible 中 on my hand, which I drew with my finger. Finally, Joey was able to teach me enough Chinese so I could say hello, order coffee and the size, and say thank you.
Getting back to the story. Joey and I went on a trip together and talked from morning until night about the news, history, politics and Taiwan. As a break, we'd sing Bob Crosby's hit, "Dear Hearts and Gentle People," which coincidentally set us up for the Civil Society.
I love those dear hearts and gentle people
Who live in my hometown,
Because those dear hearts and gentle people
Will never ever let you down.
They read the Good Book from Fri 'til Monday.
That's how the weekend goes.
I've got a dream house I'll build there one day
With picket fence and ramblin' rose.
That got us talking about what it was like when I was a kid in the suburbs in California. In those days, I told him, we kids went out to play all day long, and after dinner we'd go out again with the understanding we'd be home by eight. We had a lot of freedom and got a lot of exercise.
What happened to people since that time? Culture has certainly changed. Freedom has often been replaced by fear. I visited a friend about 15 years ago in the suburbs. He wouldn't let me out after dark to walk to the nearby Dunkin' Donuts. Everyone in his neighborhood had security systems in their homes. When I looked out the window, I never saw anyone walking on the sidewalk after dark.
And that's basically how Joey and I created the Civil Society. We wanted to find some way to reduce fear in our new culture. I just wrote down the ideas in the book.
Getting back to the story. Joey and I went on a trip together and talked from morning until night about the news, history, politics and Taiwan. As a break, we'd sing Bob Crosby's hit, "Dear Hearts and Gentle People," which coincidentally set us up for the Civil Society.
I love those dear hearts and gentle people
Who live in my hometown,
Because those dear hearts and gentle people
Will never ever let you down.
They read the Good Book from Fri 'til Monday.
That's how the weekend goes.
I've got a dream house I'll build there one day
With picket fence and ramblin' rose.
That got us talking about what it was like when I was a kid in the suburbs in California. In those days, I told him, we kids went out to play all day long, and after dinner we'd go out again with the understanding we'd be home by eight. We had a lot of freedom and got a lot of exercise.
What happened to people since that time? Culture has certainly changed. Freedom has often been replaced by fear. I visited a friend about 15 years ago in the suburbs. He wouldn't let me out after dark to walk to the nearby Dunkin' Donuts. Everyone in his neighborhood had security systems in their homes. When I looked out the window, I never saw anyone walking on the sidewalk after dark.
And that's basically how Joey and I created the Civil Society. We wanted to find some way to reduce fear in our new culture. I just wrote down the ideas in the book.