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Friday, August 5, 2011

Resource Based Economy

The Venus Project.
I heard about this a while back and it sounds good to me though I am not giving it an unqualified tick just yet.
It centres around a Resource Based Economy, as opposed to the Money Based Economy that we have now.
The thing I find about money (and I'm not saying I'm against having it) is that it doesn't really represent the resource cost of an item. Therefore, an item bought in China and an identical item bought where I live in Australia are not evenly price matched. The Chinese item is cheaper even though exactly the same resources went into producing it. The added cost of shipping from China to Australia ought to make the Chinese item more expensive, but it doesn't because of lower wages and costs of materials. The resource cost from an imported item is greater than a locally produced item, yet the monetary cost isn't; so we are encouraged to use more resources rather than less.
Also, money gets rather unevenly spread, tending to clump in the accounts of the very few. I have nothing against wealth - in fact I'm all for it! I just think that a little sharing might not go astray. (Good on those at the top that do, by the way.)


The Venus Project is an interesting take on this though I feel it can get a little messianic, and certainly worth your looking at. All the ideas are there and the will is good.I think that the principle is essential to the continuing growth of humanity and the care of the Earth. It includes notions of construction and living to make an enjoyable and sustainable environment.

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