Gene Roddenberry's insights keep on....
Star Trek DS9 Sanctuary District, 2 part, 1995. Set in 2024
Is today 4 years early or more of the decay to come?
"Sometime prior to 2024, the Federal Employment Act of 1946 was repealed, which had stated, at least in theory, that the United States government bore the responsibility for ensuring economic stability in the country. Symbolically, this meant that society had washed its hands of responsibility for combating the endemic poverty resulting from a global economic depression.
Sanctuary districts were originally established as places of sanctuary for those without jobs or homes. People with a criminal record were not allowed. In the beginning many people entered the districts voluntarily because of the promise that the administration would help them get jobs so they can find a way out of their destitution. Despite the benevolent intent, however, conditions inside the camps quickly degenerated to the point where by 2024 overcrowding was a pervasive problem throughout the Districts. More people were taken to Sanctuaries than buildings could accommodate, so many of them were sleeping on the streets, often on sidewalks or in tents or cardboard boxes. The government had also begun to forcefully locate people there, including people with mental health problems, or "dims", who could not afford health care services as well as the financially destitute. Laws prohibiting sleeping on the streets were further used to justify the forceful relocation of residents to the Sanctuaries. "
Is today 4 years early or more of the decay to come?
"Sometime prior to 2024, the Federal Employment Act of 1946 was repealed, which had stated, at least in theory, that the United States government bore the responsibility for ensuring economic stability in the country. Symbolically, this meant that society had washed its hands of responsibility for combating the endemic poverty resulting from a global economic depression.
Sanctuary districts were originally established as places of sanctuary for those without jobs or homes. People with a criminal record were not allowed. In the beginning many people entered the districts voluntarily because of the promise that the administration would help them get jobs so they can find a way out of their destitution. Despite the benevolent intent, however, conditions inside the camps quickly degenerated to the point where by 2024 overcrowding was a pervasive problem throughout the Districts. More people were taken to Sanctuaries than buildings could accommodate, so many of them were sleeping on the streets, often on sidewalks or in tents or cardboard boxes. The government had also begun to forcefully locate people there, including people with mental health problems, or "dims", who could not afford health care services as well as the financially destitute. Laws prohibiting sleeping on the streets were further used to justify the forceful relocation of residents to the Sanctuaries. "
