Socially Responsible Finance 2.0
 

OK so let's imagine the it's some time in the future and the world financial system has collapsed, the people have overrun the authorities in a kind of big French Revolution and we've arrived at a situation where the masses are now forming a new world order based on higher levels of conciousness and social responsibility.

Will people still use a money system to exchange goods and services, will there still be business and will people still own their own homes? If so how would the new banking/financial system work?

If it comes to that I would much prefer the Star Trek version of a moneyless society, definitely not the smelly hippie commune version.

If it comes to that I would prefer a venus project type of society. One where 95%+ of the actual labor is done by computers in an automated way. Everything is built in a sustainable way. No need for money, because everyone is provided with everything they need whenever they need it. Very little crime exists anymore, because everyone owns everything. I don't know about you, but I don't want to own things for the sake of owning them. I own things because I need them for awhile. So instead of owning something we would have a library type of system. If you need a camera you simply go get one, and bring it back when you are done with it. I like the idea of owning nothing, as long as I have what I need when I need it. Technology is the key to solving our current issues. We are a consumer based society, but we need to be a resource based society. Our current financial model promotes waste. Things are built to last only a little while, because a company always needs to be bringing in more money. In a cashless society we would build sustainable products, because money wouldn't be the driving force behind anything. The Venus Project

Did I spark this thread Peter? I'm sorry...my laptop crashed.

Some ideas:
1. No money, no barter.
2. No more ''growth'', just change. Nothing is lost nothing is gained, everything is transformed. Why not live according to natural law?
3. I think for this to work, people need to get used to giving for the sake of giving. Only give if it feels good to you.
4. Society of access, not property (stolen from the Venus project). If you have access to most stuff, you don't need to own any of it. And since we all have access there's less waste. A lot could be made in this department considering the masses of OWS.
5. Make sustainability a priority. Every industrial project must be balanced by equivalent efforts so as to make the effect on the environment negligible.
6. A centralized exchange on the internet. Find free education online, offer your services and your terms, your needs, etc. People will find each other and naturally, organically fulfill each other's needs.

Why the Venus Project would not work in its current form:

1. No direct plan. It's explained what point Z is but never how we would get there. I won't be too hard on this point since I know how hard that can be.
2. A centralized computer system that controls all the world's resources...First of all we don't know how many resources we have. Second of all who programs this supercomputer? How do we know we can trust these individuals? If we can't, the consequences could be catstrophic.
3. Boiling down people's voices into ''opinion'' or, in other words, worthless. Scary. Totalitarianism.

LOL, I agree, but why's it gotta be smelly?

Someone posted some interesting links in the Golden Motorcycle Gang thread. I thought I would repost them here as it pertains to this thread as well. I've only read the 1st part of ''the Gift World'' so far. Quite the interesting read.

This is sparked by all the recent threads about the occupy movement. Some good ideas there :)

Thanks for the links, I'm really into this stuff now so I'll have a read over them this weekend

Markets that price good are one way to mediate transactions between people.
Even at the moment they aren't the only one.
In the future there a good chance that more transaction will be non-money-based.

http://www.rand.org/pubs/working_pap...RAND_WR433.pdf is a paper by a guy from RAND that's worth reading to get an overview over the different transactions that are out there.