Beyond Money and Capitalism
Our drive to survive is very real, and capitalism is like a fiery pit that follows our every step. Keep moving buddy, or you'll get burned. Yes, this is the "reality" that keeps us on our toes. It has no mercy on those who are "too lazy" to secure themselves with capital. In my opinion, it's a practice that is totally at odds with the very concept of intrinsic value and freedom. Capitalism can be dehumanising and in my opinion, quite a huge insult to life.
No matter how rich or money-savvy we get.. one epic misfortune is enough to wipe us out. It forces us to hoard resources for uncertain futures, and at the same time, stifles our mental-lives living day-to-day worrying about something that really has nothing to do with life.
That said, one can never rest on their laurels for too long in the game of capitalism. I agree that it's a necessity in a world of scarcity, and I don't deny that it has been a useful concept for improving productivity and market efficiency. But don't you wish that it's a friendlier game? It doesn't have to be a fiery pit of trouble.
In my opinion, we are at our best selves whenever we do stuff that we deeply love and care about. But at the current state of capitalism, not all human activities have anything to do with the ability to acquire and secure capital for ourselves. Money is both a tool and a skill, and the reality is - not everybody "gets it". I would like to call this the Good Samaritan problem.
So how do we really fix this major flaw?
With the many great post-scarcity technologies on the rise, perhaps the more important question now here is: what kind of money will begin to bridge between old-world scarcity and new-world abundance? I can't help but think that cryptocurrencies like STEEM may be part of the solution. However, I just can't explain well enough to make any good sense. I hope to discover more of the "shape" I have in mind through research and writing.
Or I may just be another silly guy who sees problems where it doesn't exist, and perhaps a little too idealistic / unrealistic about things.. ;)
Anyway, I'm currently working on an essay at the moment and quickly realised that I may not know much about the history of capitalism at all. So here's a pretty interesting video that I've found on the subject. Enjoy it!
I would hazard the guess that an investigation of capitalism needs to be preceded by an inquiry into the creation, distribution, and destruction of money. What constitutes sound money and how does the process become perverted in various civilizations throughout history. Ignorance of this is almost universal.
Babylonian Woe Part 1
Oh man that guy's so long-winded lol! Off to find something readable - much easier ;)
(remember reading about this before.. thanks for the reminder!)
capitalism simply means private property ownership + voluntary exchange... pretty difficult to hate on that. Maybe you mean CRONY capitalism. . . when you have a centralized state/coercion involved no wonder things don't work out so well..
no that's not what capitalism is all about nowadays. Capitalism has now far more to do with financial "capital" and how it can manipulate the real productive economy at benefit of the money manipulators who produce nothing of any value
Hmm, now you make sense too since a majority capital these days are pretty much a financial instrument, backed by nothing but confidence - am I right about this? I guess everybody will have different takes on the matter :)
Yes, that's what capitalism "simply" means. But in reality it seems that what starts as simply positive idea turns, sooner or later, into crony capitalism. Concentration of capital is inevitable, followed by concentration of power, etc.
+1 this, I don't think the simple take on such a complex subject adds much, by definition
True that, it's just difficult to write about it precisely while maintaining brevity :)
I've used a blanket statement just because as the way things are going right now, it seems that the free-market has been favouring or leaning towards centralized states / coercion like you've mentioned..
About money :
Now that a basic income exists, it would be really stupid not to use it. We are creating new means for entrepreners, like wings.ai or bitshares and new currencies.
About capitalism :
The history of capitalism is awful and now that many people is aware of it, it seems difficult not to invent something better.
About society :
We are still missing proper tools to decide in which directions we want to go. Communities are working to solve this problem. Proposed Model for the Societal Progress Platform for Collaboration and Organization
Thank you for the links - the 3rd linked article is quite an interesting read!
Interesting post, @kevinwong, how would you view the steemit system of capitalism and do you think it is sustainable?
Upped! Namaste.
I think if STEEM's price go up, it may very well turn into something I may want to call "friendly" capitalism lol. It will be sustainable as long as there's a positive net effect of people not minding to hold onto cheap currency and keep using the platform until it becomes valuable. Namaste :)
You have dodged the question, my friend! Capitalism is the employment of capital. The distribution of capital should be equitable thereby creating a fair playing field ... now you have the introduction...
I shall make it easier for you via a question: If this is a fair and transparent system, why is the value of everyone's vote not displayed? I know it changes which is why post payouts change. The fact that nobody can give a straight answer is telling!
Published vote values will embarrass the capitalism of steemit into reform. I have analysed it ... Let's hope! The true value of steem, right now, upon basic valuation models, should be 4 cents.
"The distribution of capital should be equitable thereby creating a fair playing field"
Then should the "accumulation of capital" that can be distributed not also be "equitable" by your logic of "shoulds".
Yes.
The simplest of answers! The accumulation of capital, in the case of steemit, was not performed on an 'equitable basis', causing an imbalance which is having an exponentially adverse effect, in line with the exponential imbalance of distribution. This imbalance is driving down the value of steem as a result. If the structure is not equitable, the enterprise value will always be compromised. It is a self-defeating imbalance of leverage.
It wasn't dodged as I'm unaware of what was previously asked :)
If I understand it now correctly from your question, are you talking about this? (screenshot)
For larger size: https://postimg.org/image/rb80e8l3j/
Yes, this should be visible behind every vote! Then we can see the steemit capitalism exponential curve for what it really is!
I see! Other than for UI / UX reasons, the info is still available at www.steemstats.com - I don't think the curve is going away anytime soon until they solve the issue of 1 user = 1 account, or somehow require some form of identification. But kinda difficult since they allow for anonymity as well. Would like to see other social coins beat this model without being a pay-to-play scheme hmm..
My sentiment exactly. You couldn't have phrased it any better. If everyone just works together to uplift everyone and not just themselves, the world would be such a happier place to live in.
It's definitely idealistic, but what's wrong with that, right? You're definitely not alone in your thought. UBI, voluntaryism, it's all in conjunction with this. Keep on sounding off until the world we want to live in becomes reality.
Oh even if good changes are coming.. I think there'll be huge resistance coming from all sides, which is kinda expected!
Definitely, and we just need to call it something different than "capitalism", because it no longer will respond to the name ;)
One might say that "capitalism" as a concept is outdated, and we need to evolve our thinking if we want to grow as a society.
“Economic power is exercised by means of a positive, by offering men a reward, an incentive, a payment, a value; political power is exercised by means of a negative, by the threat of punishment, injury, imprisonment, destruction. The businessman's tool is values; the bureaucrat's tool is fear.”
― Ayn Rand
Thanks and nice take - wasn't aware of this rand reference :)
Great narrative! ☆☆☆☆☆🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳
You've got a good thing going, worrying about art! ;)
belo artigo me fez entender o que é realmente o capitalismo.
Right @kevinwong, because story your video post amazing.
I love all your post.
"it's a practice that is totally at odds with the very concept of intrinsic value and freedom. "
Thank you