The Regreening of America

I have been an astrologer for nearly 30 years now, and an intuitive all my life. Sometimes I have strong intuitions (unfortunately negative ones at times). There has been a vision of sorts that has been nagging at me for quite some time-but it's a good one. Despite at least 2 generations of gloom and doom regarding America's future, my intitution seems to be much more positive. Whenever I think of the year 2050, I see America as a vast sea of green-"the world's forest", so to speak. Given the unprecedented forest loss here, I find such a vision intriguing. When I grew up, the future was conceived in terms of stone, glass, metal. I watched the Jetsons as a kid, and all the futuristic books had similar themes. So why does my vision of a future America differ from this vision? Maybe it's a revulsion to a world that looks like the glass top of a conference room coffee table, but I think it's more than that.

Time has allowed me to fill in some of this stuff. There will be an explosion of individual gardening like nobody's business. People will be growing crops and everything else on top of rooftops, on patios, everywhere. One reason will be food self-sufficiency, another cooling effects of the plants will be considered quite valuable in and of themselves, for plants help keep the temperature down during hot weather, saving energy used for cooling. While air conditioners will still exist, plants will be used to supplement their cooling power. Urban gardening, suburban gardening, Victory gardens, McMansions now used to grow exotica such as winter oranges, flowers, and previously imported tropical foods. Several agribusinesses, depening on massive financial subsidies from the Government and stockholders will fold, While there are survivors, some even given massive federal subsidies, the price will still go up for some things, since they are dependent on the same borrowed money as the rest of business in America, and the same prices for fuel and the costs of long-distance delivery. Needless to say, this causes a scramble for additional sources of foodstuffs. Coops, who have never played the stock market, become quite prominent and numerous. Many of the organic people will not only grow the food, but increasingly can the food too, providing prepared foodstuffs.

The now huge, stinking, pools of pollution called feedlots are now abandoned, begin to become lush, algae-ridden pools of vegetation, becoming the American equivalent of peat moss and bogs, attracting the now exp;oding animal population. New forests begin to grow around them. People now eat local meat, some even from their backyards, so except for the few remaining that are for the out-of-town markets, there is less and less demand. The towns nearby also seem to dry up as both the farm and farm activities move closer to town to save gas and to participate in the benefits of urban living. People want to farm and go to a play once in a while, and the reclaimed suburbs allow for both activities.

One reason that these particular towns were abandoned occurred to me: it was the cost of gasoline was too high, and with the lack of a farm or tax base, many of these small towns simply were too far out to support a commuter population anymore. The resulting downscaling of industrial agriculture will force it closer to town-many suburbs will revert to farms-watch for McMansions becoming barns as few could afford to live there without having several generations under the same roof, and energy costs soar beyond belief. I also see solar panels, some several acres wide, also triggering much accelerated plant growth as well around them. Not that these areas will be totally uninhabited, like I said earlier. With self-generated electricity, some water power, and alternative sources of petroleum, there will be homes among the greenery. But for more reasonably priced and maintainable property, one way to solve the homeless problem, and relieve the government and banks of the burden of managing and handling foreclosed property will be the revival of the Homestead Act. Homes will once again be sold by banks and the Goverment for literally pennies in order to prevent gangs and other undesirables from gaining a foothold in those areas. With bus and train service back into town provided, people will finally have real homes to live in and work from. Part of the regreening process was people moving back in where they could at least walk to or bus/train to whatever work was available in the city or town. Flashes of where: some parts of Arkansas, North Texas, Wyoming,the Plains States (I think will be depopulated except for a few Canadians and possibly Native American who will fill the remaining area).Another part of the regreening will be a belt that extends from Vermont and New Hampshire all the way to Cleveland. Another forest, though not abandoned. People will get to see what the Green Mountain boys saw in all its splendor. An Erie canal covered in greenery, a Love Canal that's now completely forest. There will be towns and farms, but they will be absorbed in the green belt too.

The return of the River... The waterways become once again a great transportation hub. People float to work, to travel, wherever. Sailors now have more work to do than ever before. And BTW, the green areas will become a tourist attraction along the borders of it. People will come to camp and leave the area when done. Needless to say, the regreening also means that we will have an unprecedented number of birds-but also herds of abandoned livestock because agribusiness would rather save the bullets and the cost of getting rid of them. Flashes of governmental reorgs: Some nearby states will practically police these areas because the states that contain them can no longer support the local services. Picture Ohio policing parts of Western West Virginia, Utah, both Dakotas. Vermont, as practically suburb and refuge from Boston and New York, will survive, but I see increasing local autonomy and cross-agreements with Canada and New York State.

Still more: a person will be driving along the expressway, see something that looks like a McDonalds or a strip mall, and will be startled that it's actually a private home. After the economic meltdown, businesses that are simply too far out to sustain become people's homes as businesses scramble to unload now useless commercial inventory. There is actually an excess of commercial property right now barely being rented.

No flashes yet on Government structure, but I suspect deevolution will be a factor. State Governors will take greater power due to the need to handle the immediate crisis, and several great ones rise to the challenge. Indeed, one of the changes may well be that a Council of Governors becomes part of the Federal Legislative Process somehow and can counter a President who is too arrogant for words. They may even have a seat in Congress to represent their interests-an overall Senator and an overall Congressperson, or they may designate one.

The Church: One surprising development will be home churches. With the internet making it possible to get advanced theological knowledge, religious meetups will flourish. Many people used to this sort of structure will take it a step further and simply study on their own, getting together in a coffee shop or home to pray. Such a development will be seen as cheaper, less politicized, more casual and flexible. (You don't have to dress up or come on Sunday).These orgs will just rent a facility for larger ritual purposes such as weddings and funerals. Indeed, I suddenly see a whole host of churches and Cathedrals become rent-a-churches, renting out available space to whatever group needs it for the day or

This ties into another prediction I have made: the revival of handcrafts, canning, home sewing, and other such arts. For a long time there has been a thrifting movement=but It has only gone in fits and starts. But when old hippies with a sense of artistry start up again, it will take off. A lot of people will remember those old crocheting and macrame lessons from the seventies, quilting will revive, and so will canning

Will Congress recognize these formal or informal new arrangements? Stay Tuned. (Referring to an online discussion board talking about "The End of the American Dream") The previous part of my prediction didn't happen, thank God, but the devolutionary trend continues in initiatives regarding medical marijuana, through self-funded initiatives in everything from infrastructure to taxes.

The crisis I envision is gas going as high as $5 a gallon and greater, with a stock market "crash" to boot(font color="blue">At the time I wrote this, the stock market was above 10,000. Who knew then it would now be flirting at 6,000. This was before Bear Sterns and Lehman Brothers, and the zillion ponzi schemes that have come out since. Folks in the stock market should have invested in a casino. It would have gotten them a better return.). In such a scenario, few can afford to commute very far anymore without a bus or a train or a boat. A small town with no jobs and mostly elderly people will be completely out of the question unless those people are willing to live totally off the land and grid.

Many of the new developments are very encouraging-urban agriculture, the renewed interest in high speed trains and alternative energy, the growing interest in medical marijuana, the new-old interest in updating, renewing, remaking what we already have. I think you now see a theme:

The America/World/Canada of the future is going to greener, technologically advanced, and more frugal and communal. Indeed, given the Chinese Government's tendency to stick to both the outdated Communist/Capitalist mode of heedless pollution and consumption, the rest of the world, and especially America, needs to be that example. America the healer. America won't starve, in fact, it will help the rest of the world keep from starving as it figures out how to make the transition from exclusively fossil fuel to a new future of cleaner, and even more powerful energy. Indeed this is very Aquarian-the blend of tradition and innovation, of individualism and a need to belong to something greater-that's us, Cancer Sun, Aquarius Moon. Tradition and innovation, the nation as a family with the freedom to spread its wings, that looks outward. We brought technology into daily living and upgraded the living standards of billions through both example and commerce, opened up old family relations to allow for freedom and innovation. That's what the world needs, and will get more of.

Click on the Picture to go to the rest of my pages.....

Copyright © 2010, Aquariusmoon's Bistro, All Rights Reserved.