It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

September 01, 2010

We seem overloaded with problems and headed in negative directions on many fronts. (Environment, society, politics, business, poverty, food, health care, animal & human rights, etc.) On top of that, our governments seem neither inclined to pursue, nor capable of, corrective action. Fortunately, a growing movement of citizen activists is working feverishly to right wrongs and set us on a path for a sustainable future. The Dystopian Present blog will cast a light on our ills while simultaneously sharing reasons to remain optimistic for the future. I'll offer my wildly biased opinions along the way and will welcome all to join the conversation. Hopefully, we'll all learn something while collectively moving things in a positive direction.

Dystopia: (from Ancient Greek: δυσ-: bad-, ill- and Ancient Greek: τόπος: place, landscape) (alternatively, cacotopia,[1] or anti-utopia) is, in literature, an often futuristic society that has degraded into a repressive and controlled state, though under the guise of being utopian. Dystopian literature has underlying cautionary tones, warning society that if we continue to live how we do, this will be the consequence. A dystopia is, thus, regarded as a sort of negative utopia and is often characterized by an authoritarian or totalitarian form of government. Dystopias usually feature different kinds of repressive social control systems, a lack or total absence of individual freedoms and expressions and constant states of warfare or violence. Dystopias often explore the concept of technology going "too far" and how humans individually and en masse use technology. A dystopian society is also often characterized by mass poverty for most of its inhabitants and a large military-like police force. (Source: Wikipedia)