Ten Possibilities

One of the great people I’ve been privileged to know is Chester Bowles. I can’t imagine a better mentor, role model and friend. For a summary of his life check him out on Wikipedia.

Chet never became cynical. On the contrary, he would look into the future and see positive possibilities – even with seemingly impossible and intractable situations. “Look at ten things that seem hopeless,” he’d say, “and it’s likely that over the next ten years one or two of them will be solved.” Often as not he’d be right.

So here’s a list of 10 things that look hopeless. Come back in 10 years and we’ll see if Chet was right again.

1. The Israelis and Palestinians/Arabs will reach an acceptable compromise and begin living in peace.

2. Iran will no longer be a nuclear threat.

3. Partisan gridlock will no longer make the United States virtually ungovernable.

4. The Cubs will win a World Series.

5. California will have a balanced budget.

6. India and Pakistan will settle the Kashmir dispute.

7. The U.S. will have an immigration policy that is fair and non-punitive.

8. The income and educational gap between the haves and have-nots in the U.S. will be reduced.

9. England will win the World Cup.

10. The Supreme Court will not be a forum for ideology-based decisions.

Good luck to all of us.