We need this.

But if we had it, how many would use it? And what would that say?

… and what exactly am I talking about anyway?

We need a way to die.

We need a way to die, and, when we are ready – if ever – we need a way to be reborn.

Reborn. Transformed. No ties to the past. A new name. A new person.

… and no return.

Does college do this? If a struggling family can send a child off for four years, leaving home, acquiring new knowledge, mingling in different social circles, making new connections, and then departing, will the child emerge better off? An adult? A job? New connections to help him or her through life? Does college still provide this as the norm? If so, then why would it result in a debt protected against discharge?

How about the military? Will the skills you learn really be marketable? Is the cachet of being labeled a veteran one day worth it? Will you have the honor and respect of your government and the rest of society on your return? Predatory recruiting tactics on one end and the Senate rejecting your health benefits on the other. PTSD. Homelessness. Suicide. Maybe a coupon at Denny’s – “Thank you for your service.”

How about jail. Did your time? Learned some new skills? Paid your debt to society? Walk out the gate a new man, yes? Acceptance and new opportunities await, yes?

Even the church… People will attack and destroy the last refuges of people hoping for spiritual reprieve if nothing else in their miserable lives.

How about suicide? When this life is unbearable and all hope is lost. A conscious choice to depart rather than continue. Will you be free then? Or will society remind you how much worse off those around you will be for having made the choice to take “the coward’s way out?” No financial payout. Transfer your debts to your loved ones.

No way out. You’d think this society benefits from systematically squeezing the life out of most of its members, dangling hopes and dreams of a better life above them…

We need a way to die.

We need a way to die, and, when we are ready – if ever – we need a way to be reborn.

Reborn. Transformed. No ties to the past. A new name. A new person.

… and no return.

But if we had it, how many would use it? And what would that say?