Sunday, August 5, 2012

The Distorting of Money



Money was invented as a way to make it easier for people to trade valuable goods or services. So, if I grow peas, and you make horseshoes, I don't have to necessarily give you peas for some horseshoes I need. I can just pay you in money. 


The main problem with our "economy," is that we have forgotten what the purpose of money is. We have reversed the use of money. We now use trade as a way to grow money instead of using money as a way to facilitate trade.




We need to think differently about money. Specifically, we need to question whether or not this or that transaction should be "monetized," or if it makes sense for people to "profit" off of particular services.





Most of the civilized world has done this kind of thinking in regard to "health care," and by in large, the majority of civilized countries have decided to greatly limit the role of money in healthcare, finding it inappropriate for one man or company to greatly profit from another's death or illness.



An irrational "religion of money" has sprung up around a notion that the "free market" makes everything good. The assumption need not be argued against, nor can it be argued against, since it is a religious fantasy. Any sane individual knows that nothing is "perfect and makes everything good."



We need to conduct the same analysis that the world has conducted about healthcare about our food supply, prisons, and many other aspects of our trading lives.


The economy should support logical trading practices... and at times, monied transactions will be exactly appropriate and logical. In other instances, we may want to "un-monetize" other forms of trade if the presence of money in the transactions is causing the failure of the system.