How to Solve the Financial Crisis
Solving the financial crisis is not going to be easy no matter how we do it. Our politicians are clearly incapable of fixing it, so we must step up and do it ourselves. First we must look at what is going on and how we can prevent it in the future.
Essentially what we've done is created a new fitness test for the evolution of our society. In our world, money is the new skill to determine success. Those that are good at making money are the ones that can afford to have the most children. Is that really what we want? A society that is good at making money, despite the real costs?
Money blinds us from the real cost of things. You think your bottle of Coca-Cola costs $1.25 in the vending machine downstairs. What it really costs is the depletion of a part of India's water table, causing many villages to endure water shortages. How much carbon does it cost to ship your soda to the other side of the world for you to drink? Also, what are the chances that your bottle will become a part of the Great Garbage Islands in our oceans?
You see, Coca-cola doesn't give a shit about our planet, or about Americans and their jobs, nor do they care about Indians and their living and working conditions. All they care about is keeping their checkbook in the black. This is the real cost of money.
So you ask me, "Then what? How do you do it without money?"
If you didn't go to your job everyday (that you probably hate), what would you do with your time? Off the bat, I'm sure many of you would describe a perfectly wonderful day of doing absolutely nothing but relaxing. Which is fine, because I would do that too, but let's admit that eventually we would get bored and want to do something more constructive. So what do we do?
You can do one of two things. You can pick up a hobby or you can get a job. "But why would I get a job if I don't make any money?" Excellent question. Why would you?
Why does anyone start a company? Some people do it to get rich, of course, but a lot of them do it with the intention of making the world a better place. The inventor of Coca-cola enjoyed the drink they had come up with and by selling it, made the world a better place. Or, more generally, "Hey I have a great idea that would help solve a certain problem for a lot of people!"
So, let me ask again. Why would you get a job if you're not getting paid? How would companies exist if they're not making any money? What would be their purpose if not to make the owner a bunch of money?
If not for money, a company only has a single reason for existence. Unfortunately, a company's ability to make a profit is currently the only requisite necessary to ensure its survival. Making the world a better place has nothing to do with the way the company operates.
So now, instead of showing your support for a company by buying their product, you can go work for them instead and do away with the middleman that money has become. Since you're not being paid, you are not obligated in any way to stay with a company whose business practices you do not agree with.
"But wouldn't it be a huge pain in the ass to go back to a bartering system, or even some other type of system?"
Indeed it would. But it's also a huge pain in the ass to deal with money. Banks and stock markets had to be invented to be able to properly handle money. I assume that similar organizations would be needed to deal with bartering, but this is a small matter compared to all the good it would do.
At no point should you ever be so invested in something that you have to say "Well we can't quit now, we have too much invested in this."
It is never too late to scrap everything and start over. What are we going to do otherwise; continue letting bankers and politicians swindle us?
By getting rid of the currency-based system, we would be creating a new fitness selection test for businesses. Not only would there need to be a demand for the company's product, there would also need to be enough people willing to work for free to keep the company afloat. It is much more difficult to earn employees than to earn money.
There are more benefits than just having really excellent companies around. I imagine there would be a much higher personal turnover rate in the country that adopts this system. You'd get to try out many different jobs until you found one you absolutely love. Also, advertising would probably all but disappear.
While trying out many jobs, you also become more adept at learning new skills. You sit at your job every day doing the same shit over and over and over and over, day after day after day after day. All learning and creative thought goes out the window once you learn the routine. We should encourage our citizens to learn new things as frequently as we can.
It would become a social stigma to be lazy. There would still be those that don't do anything to help the system, but they are also the ones standing in line for their welfare checks every week anyway. You might as well get used to it.
This would lead to a more flexible society, able to handle changes much faster than the stiff, rigid society we have now. People have to pay their mortages every month, so it is advantageous to have the same job for 25 years. However, on the whole, we are unable to adapt to changing conditions if we continue to live like this.
Another benefit to abolishing money is that our politicians can no longer be bought out by corporate interests. You might pass a bill saying that polititians can no longer accept campaign contributions for businesses, but that would just move the transaction under the table.
This is the cost of money and currency. In a world driven by money, only one thing matters: money. If you ask all of your friends what the single most important thing in their lives is, I can guarantee is wouldn't be money.
So why does our world run on money?
Now for the real questions. How do we get from point A to point B? How do we trade with other countries that do not operate on such a system? How would a store even operate if everything was free?
Let's start with a simple transaction. Say you want to purchase a pack of gum in a convenience store. Instead of a price label, you simply ask the shop owner if you can have the pack of gum. He says yes. Transaction complete.
Now, what if someone were to abuse the system. Instead of one pack of gum, you want the whole box. You ask the clerk if you can have the whole box. The clerk probably won't say yes, but may ask you why you need all of them. If you have a good reason, the clerk might go ahead and give them to you. Otherwise, you might have to settle with taking only a couple packs.
How about a car. If everything were free, everyone would want a Ferrari or some other luxury car. How do you sort out who gets one and who doesn't? Again, it would come down to the seller's decision. In a system where everything is free, the a product's seller would have the final say in who is allowed to have a product.
In a case such as cars, it would probably be first come first serve, and you would have to demonstrate your ability to not crash the car you're getting. What's funny though is that cars would no longer be a status symbol. It would be about the most comfortable car, the one you like to drive the most.
So on to dealing with other countries that still use the old money system. How do you trade with them?
You ask their companies for free stuff, plain and simple. If they say no, then you offer a trade or a future favor. Essentially, you would come up with some sort of agreement. If the company insists on only accepting curreny, then it looks like it's time to start a new company in your money-free country.
Lastly, how do you make the big switch? I have proposed one way of doing it in a previous article called The Peace Revolt, but I shall simplify the process here.
Essentially, you start working at your job for free. Now, of course, no one is going to want to because then what if you get evicted? The people that should start this revolution are the ones that can afford to work their jobs for free. Once people start seeing their coworkers working for free, it will catch on easily.
The financial system could be discarded much more quickly than you might imagine. Money stops having value the instant people stop giving it value.
So I ask you one last time. Why is our world run by money?
04.29.2010. 01:28
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