Progress

By Tom Kando

It is October 17, 2301: I am commuting to work across the Oakland Bay Bridge, driving on the temporary structure used for traffic while the real Oakland Bay Bridge is being fixed. It was damaged by the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. Repairs are approaching completion.

A short while later, I come by the site where they are planning to start America’s first high-speed rail. They haven’t begun building it yet, but the news said recently that a commission is studying the proposal. The first line will be experimental. It will run from San Francisco to Concord, at a cost of $30 billion. It is predicted to be completed by 2353.


I stop at a Starbucks and check the headlines on my I-Like while drinking my $58 tall decaf Americano. Here are some of today’s major stories:

● Negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians have resumed. Prospects for a peaceful settlement and a two-state solution have improved.

● The European Union is developing plans for a more unified and integrated economic policy, reducing the autonomy of member states.

● The Federal Government has announced plans to develop new fuel and energy alternatives, and to reduce the country’s dependency on foreign sources.

● In Sacramento, California, prospects for building and financing a sports arena have improved.

● The unemployment rate is down to 9.5 % and the Dow Jones Index has climbed over 12,000, indicating that an economic recovery is at hand.

● The US Supreme Court will soon rule about the constitutionality of Obamacare.

● A new sociological study shows that the children of two-parent families fare better than those raised by a single parent, suggesting that it is important to strengthen the family.

● The European Community is considering admitting Turkey as a member state.

● The US Supreme Court will soon rule about the constitutionality of the death penalty.

● The lawsuit filed by the victims of Bernie Madoff is nearing settlement.

● The US is considering closing some of its military bases in Germany and Korea.
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