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Mats Kaarbö

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Is There a Future for Money?

In our digital age, where banks and even nations fail through reckless monetary spending and policies, it seems that our monetary system is becoming the big elephant in the room, yes even obsolete. Automation replacing humans seems to be one of the fundamental contradiction of capitalism and may be the demise of the system itself leaving the looming possibility of fascism or military dictatorship to arise and flourish if we fail to arrive at any alternatives.

While some believe taking us back to the gold standard will fix things, and others believe that debt forgiveness is the solution, we hear talks about access/resource based economies, where we simply declare all of Earth's resources as the common heritage of mankind and make goods and services available to all without the use of money, credits, barter or any other system of debt or servitude, through technological abundance.

In fact, let's rephrase the question. At what point in the future do you think that our technology will make automated systems possible and allow us to move out of a monetary system?

Topics: cultural evolution education future future technology government money science social change society technology
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    Krisztián Pintér 200+

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    Aug 22 2012: "James, I invite you to read about a resource based economy"

    i hate that i'm always right. i have successfully guessed that your "knowledge" comes from the v.p. crap.
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      Mats Kaarbö 10+

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      Aug 22 2012: I am sorry you feel this way. I invite you to read and learn more about it and contribute to a healthy discussion on it afterwards.
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        Krisztián Pintér 200+

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        Aug 23 2012: i don't need to read more about it, i have read enough already. it is nothing else but idealist communism with magic (supercomputers). i can't wrap my head around the fact that so many people take it seriously.
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          Mats Kaarbö 10+

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          Aug 23 2012: "i can't wrap my head around the fact that so many people take it seriously."

          Fair enough. But that doesn't mean that you have the right to undermine the opinions of others. That doesn't contribute to the conversation. It's just useless space frankly. I'm sorry to be blunt about this, but I was really hoping for a healthy discussion on this topic as I am very interested in it and at the same time learning a great deal about it. So, I would be more than gladly to hear your proposals or your predictions on the future of economics or money or whatever you want to call it.
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        Krisztián Pintér 200+

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        Aug 23 2012: this conversation is not about the v.p. crap i hope. but about money. and i contributed a lot to that conversation, i'm sorry if you can't find.

        there is already a lot of conversations about the v.p. crap, no need for one more.
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          Mats Kaarbö 10+

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          Aug 23 2012: The conversation is about the future of money and if there is one, yes. A resource based economy is just one of many conversations that is equally important as the other ones as it offers a solution to our current problems.
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        Krisztián Pintér 200+

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        Aug 23 2012: "resource based economy" lacks meaning, thus can not be important.
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        Krisztián Pintér 200+

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        Aug 23 2012: probably we have different idea about what is "through".
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          Mats Kaarbö 10+

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          Aug 23 2012: Well, please elaborate then on what is lacking in its meaning. Critical thinking is important and if there is anything that I am for, it is just that.
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        Krisztián Pintér 200+

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        Aug 23 2012: critical thinking starts with asking "what is our current economy is based on"? turns out that resources. the economy itself is nothing but a giant system to distribute resource to maximize the output. because resources can be put together in virtually infinite different ways. which arrangement maximizes the amount of demands served? that is all that the economy does. nothing can be more "resource based" than that. but in fact every economy has this goal, so all other economic models are just as "resource based". it is just a meaningless term. buzz word.

        • Joe Fletcher

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          Aug 25 2012: Hey I know because I have seen you around on TED and don't relay care about ideas or conversation just proving yourself right even when your blatently wrong but if the " buzz word" of resource based or access based economy scares your world view look up participatory economic system Wikipedia has a good overview. Could with relatively little difficulty could be implemented today.

        • Jan Seidler

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          Sep 3 2012: Krisztián, one cannot know the sea if too afraid to swim beyond the pond. I have certainly watched some of your arguments defending the 'Free Market' (another buzz word for capitalism), and found that you provided some valid arguments to your point of view, but money by no means stays at managing resources. I think you know better than this. First came barter, then money, now it is time to free ourselves from this enslavement and social stratification. You see, money of course means power (in the current system), and you have no problem stating that nothing more resource based than that? Not even when institutions exist such as The Federal Reserve, The European Central Bank (institutions that of course are private, not public). No problem at all with fractional reserve banking? With lobby for vested interests? Not even for the invasion of other countries by means of economical warfare? What about the bank bailouts from the crash of 2008? Now, perhaps one might say, the politics of one were at fault, or there wasn't enough transparency, but that is only swimming in the pond. Money is the corrupting hand of nations, and even culture. No problem at all with advertisement? With all its artificiality? Perhaps the one standing in the loop might be yourself. Ever asked that question?

          Regardless of the nature of the debate, I appreciate your comments and responses, for they illustrate you having a great deal of knowledge pertaining the 'Free Market' (there goes that buzzword again), and I learn much about the present state of affairs. Needless to say, the money system will collapse on its own accord, unless we finally get an understanding of what it takes to be truly free of modern servitude. Human Resources we are even considered by this corporate mentality. I can only imagine how the top individuals of this money pyramid see the general population... sheeple perhaps? What a detrimental factor this consumption loophole generates. Dare to swim beyond the pond into the sea.

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