Funding Visions – Solving the World’s Problems
America, like all countries, has many problems. But homelessness, hunger, poverty, affordable healthcare, affordable housing, deteriorating neighborhoods, and poor educational outcomes should not be on this list. We have the economic and technological ability to mitigate these problems but lack an understanding of how to do this in ways that are socially, economically, and politically acceptable. But we can overcome these challenges. This website bridely explains how this can be done.
Why our social problems are hard to solve?
One reason is because proposed solutions often address only one area of concern. Most of our economic, social, or political problems are highly inter-related with other problems. A solution proposed in one area will often create issues (both positive and negative) in other areas. If these other issues negatively affect a powerful group, this group may oppose a solution regardless of the benefits this solution may have.
Another reason is that solutions often only focus on immediate concerns such as food for the hungry or housing for the poor. These solutions have always helped to alleviate suffering but seldom address the forces that are causing our problems. This is understandable since mitigating underlying forces that are causing problems often seem impossible to do.
How can we find acceptable solutions to complex social problems?
Introducing CPAS – Coordinate Problems and Solutions
Our social problems are very inter-related. CPAS is a methodology to find solutions that can mitigate inter-related problems. It creates solutions for each of the inter-related problem areas that focus on the underlying forces creating problems in that area regardless of feasibility. When all these solutions are implemented together, the positive effects created by some of these solutions may offset the negative effects created by others. Thus, powerful groups that would normally oppose a solution may be willing to accept this solution as part of a set of solutions that give them other benefits.
The CPAS methodology can be used to engineer a set of solutions that can mitigate our problems with healthcare, income, education, and housing.
Introducing CSS – The Community Support System
CSS is a set of proposed policy changes designed to provide universal healthcare while ending homelessness, hunger, and poverty in America without significantly raising taxes or demonizing anyone. This goal would seem extremely unrealistic, but it is not. We can do this in ways that respect traditional values. We can do this in ways that both conservatives and liberals can support. We can do this in ways that cost less money. We do this in ways that provide all Americans with a solid economic and social foundation.
The CSS plan, as listed below, is a brief introduction to each of the policy changes being proposed. These policy changes are only meant to be starting points for discussions, refinements, and pilot projects. To be economically and politically acceptable they need to be implemented together.
The Next Step
Developing the CSS plan will require intensive discussions, refinements and pilot projects with experts from each area effected. These discussions will generate a long list of reasons why the CSS plan will not work. However, by using this list, we can engineer a set of policy changes that will be more workable. This process needs to be repeated until an acceptable set of policy changes is found.
To be politically acceptable, the final set of policy changes will need to be compatible with conservative and liberal values. For conservatives this means less government, lower taxes, balanced budgets and more individual responsibility. For liberals this means less poverty, more equal resource allocations, and more equal opportunities.
Ideally, the plan should be refined, tested, and implemented in an individual state to verify its feasibility and benefits. Doing this will require implementing simultaneous policy changes relative to income, healthcare, education, and housing issues briefly described above. Determining the impact these changes will have may be difficult. Academics usually focus on one area of study. This project requires evaluating impacts from many different the points of view (economically, politically, and socially). There is no department of holistic studies.
We are looking for a group that is qualified and interested in coordinating these efforts. If you know of such a group, please email david@fundingvisions.org
A more detailed but still general description of the CSS plan with some supporting documentation can be found in the book Redesigning America for the 21st Century: Solving our Healthcare, Income, Education, and Housing Problems. Please note: Funding Visions does not solicit, nor does it accept, donations.
For more information email David@fundingvisions.org