OUR UTOPIA: ALL OF THIS -- PLUS HEAVEN?

On the radio the other day I heard an economist say that we are living in Utopia. I wondered if he thought that we might change our name from "United" to "Utopian States of America." He cited all of the technological advances and scientific improvements that have made our lives more comfortable and enjoyable. I had to admit that I enjoy all these creature comforts, the sensory pleasures which make life pleasant. I appreciate the advances through television which make news available almost immediately. Most medical discoveries seem to help prolong a wonderful quality of life. Most people seem to have adequate food, clothing and shelter. Computerization makes some of us feel quite outdated, but others wonder how we ever got along without it. But there are problems. Some movies and TV soaps may seem to promote promiscuity. Then there is sex education for the young so they can enjoy that ecstasy much earlier in life and reproduction and child care with financial aid for nurture.

Maybe I was born too soon since I seemed to have lived in a more ancient time. Many of us among the somewhat elderly went to school in a less Utopian society. We played with kids of our neighborhood without thinking of ourselves as gangs. Few thought of burglarizing convenience stores, since they didn't exist. We didn't have high-powered, comfortable automobiles (and how they have improved), but somehow we managed to get around and survive. A car was a symbol of prestige and popularity. We traveled by bus or what we thought were streamlined trains. I recall the Chicago and Northwestern special, which covered the 400 miles from Chicago to Minneapolis in 400 minutes. Evidently we were outdated since planes have replaced it for speed, and we just thought we were in a hurry. I admit that I miss the train service of yesteryear, which may be a sign of senility. We managed to face our problems without resorting to drugs. An occasional beer didn't seem to "hook" very many. It was enjoyed as relaxation and not as an escape from reality. We didn't carry handguns to settle our differences with that kind of violence.

We met and dated lovely young ladies and managed to marry and raise families without the benefit of special classes. We learned together about love, and it wasn't usually just a week end frolic.

Cheating seemed a little less common. Personal differences were solved either with strong arguments or possibly with fisticuffs. Now we spend billions trying to teach values which should have been learned earlier to convicts in our penitentiaries. It used to be said that "teach a child in the way he should go and he will not depart therefrom." This is only partially true, but it is always better to get an early start than to pay the consequences in Utopia.

The veneer of so-called civilization can be very thin and regardless of how much we try to polish it, the luster may be too thin to last and we will only deceive ourselves. Honesty, fairness and integrity and many such values should be a part of a Utopian society.

It is nice to be able to punch buttons or move a switch and have electric power readily available and telephones which have a dial tone. In some areas of the world that is not possible.

These aspects of Utopia are wonderful, but there are still some problems to be solved in personal and community relationships. I have no desire to leave our Utopian States of America, only to try to make some improvements in areas which are still not quite perfect.

Ivan H. Nothdurft of Cape Girardeau is a retired clergyman who retired in 1982 after 20 years with the American Bible Society.