Money, Irreverence and Equity

Fairness, equity and even-handedness are generally not associated with Money: A means of accepted exchange for services, goods, labour and intellectual property.

Governments have the power to print money when it is deemed necessary for their collateral is the land and all its associated resources. The downside is inflation, soaring interest rates and rating agencies.

The value of exchange depends on recognised global trade, the International Monetary Fund (Global Bank) and internal mechanisms.

Public trust in the exchange mechanisms also plays a vital role in the overall acceptance of value-for-money, sustainability of the processes and buying power.

Overall, money can be classed as an energy that needs to be acknowledged, managed and perceived as real. This applies in all sorts of social environments, human interactions and governing methods. The most common means of exchange governance is Capitalism.

The overriding principle governing money is that it does not exist in a vacuum: if a country with a strong currency ‘sneezes,’ the rest of the world gets a cold. The other overriding principle is that ‘money has no morals.’

Many a financial scholars and Nobel prize winners have written treatises on the apportioning of money on a fair dispensation. Unfortunately, the outcry by those with monetary resources push said treatises to the annals of academia.

The financial treatises mostly revolve around the distribution of money without the need of being paid a salary for services rendered. Three prominent theories are:

1) The National Dividend. This was invented by engineer C. H. Douglas and has been revived by Ezra Pound and designer Buckminster Fuller. The basic idea is that every citizen should be declared a shareholder in the nation, and should receive dividends on the Gross National Product for the year.

2) The Guaranteed Annual Income. This has been encouraged by economist Robert Theobald and others. The government would simply establish an income level above the poverty line and guarantee that no citizen would receive less. This plan would cost the government less than the present welfare systems, with all its bureaucratic red tape and redundancy factors.

3) The Negative Income Tax. This was first devised by Nobel economist Milton Friedman. The Negative Income Tax would establish a minimum income for every citizen; anyone whose income fell below that level would receive the amount necessary to bring them up to that standard. Again, this would cost “the government” less than the present welfare systems. It would also dispense with the last tinge of humiliation associated with government “charity,” since when you cashed a check from IRS nobody would know if it was supplementary income or a refund.

The National Dividend, The Guaranteed Annual Income and The Negative Income Tax, all make use of fair disbursement principles and rely of the integrity of those charged with the oversight thereof.

The web is full of interesting quotes about money and the pursuit thereof. Here are a few extracted from web sites and movies about money:

“Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.” Money Never Sleeps – Oliver Stone

“In a society governed passively by free markets and free elections, organized greed always defeats disorganized democracy.” – Matt Taibbi

“Prosperity brings choice” – David Voas

Modern life is about debt. Debt can be traded, exchanged and sold. It can be speculated on, extended and retracted. Every year, the USA extends its debt ceiling. A process that allows the Mint to print more money thus keeping their economy alive.

Credit Companies are alive and solvent. Mortgages are processed faster than a McDonalds burger. Likewise for Personal Loans (these tend to be stingier but having the ability to sell these off to 3^rd parties makes them generally profitable.)

Lotto and Gambling syndicates are making money hand over fist. Insurance companies are no slouches where profits are concerned. Investors are dime a dozen. The ranks of the Well offs, Millionaires and Billionaires expand on a regular basis. Even during the Covid pandemic, profits were being recorded daily.

No one is exempt from the benefits or ravages of money for it has no gender, race or creed. Religions are past masters at collecting their dues (Tithings) and will not hesitate in establishing fund-raisers, collection drives all on the back of well-worded emotional-laden sermons.

The poor are more often than not, told to get-a-job by the apathetic public or given a pittance by those with a sensitive conscience.

Will there be an end to the value of national resources (the promissory note that Government relies on when printing money)? Capitalism has the habit of reinventing itself for there is too much money to be lost if ever the system fails. For the foreseeable future, there is still money to be made. Lots of it.

The digital world has unleashed a slew of new ways to trade and make profits: Bitcoin, Non-Fungible Tokens, Blockchain… (If one takes a gander at the value of bitcoins, no wonder that Companies are starting to accept bitcoin as a means of trade.)

Where too from here?

What must never be forgotten is the unpredictability life of money (i.e., complacency): One can be basking in glory today but there are no guarantees that tomorrow, life will be the same.

“There is no nobility in poverty.”  Wall Street – Oliver Stone

Ends

How to get Screwed on a Budget

“Please, sir, I want some more.” (Dickens)

It is said that the more things change, the more they tend to stay the same. Such is the feeling after the pious budget speech delivered with much smurkiness by the positively radiant South African Minister of Finances on Wednesday the 22 February 2012.

We, the people, have been told to work together towards building a better country. And with that emotive aphorism, all is well in the land of the living. Or so we are told.

We were even told that if we think that running a democracy is easy that we should go and work with ‘them’ for a while. If this is not a veiled threat of ‘we know what we are doing,’ then I don’t know what the meaning of a veiled threat is!?

What irks me the most is the constant fleecing of the motorist whenever funds are required to pay for financial blunders by those that have our best interests at heart? If this is having our best interests at heart, I would hate to see what it would mean to be on their bad side!?

And as predicted, the e-tolling system is going ahead. The difference is that the motorist will now not only be paying the tolling taxes as one drives through the numerous tolling gantires but also paying for the tolling deficit through the fuel levy. Is this what is meant by being cautiously optimistic?

On the plus side, the platitudes for the wonderful buoyant budget-speech have been flowing freely by all financiers, bankers, political parties and most news agencies. I, for one, can’t wait for the post-mortem.

At least we the people are assured that the sun will continue to shine and the moon to wax and wane.

Comment: if Governments have to power to print money when required (and they do,) why is the concept of taxation still in existence?

How to get Screwed on a Budget

“Please, sir, I want some more.” (Dickens)

It is said that the more things change, the more they tend to stay the same. Such is the feeling after the pious budget speech delivered with much smurkiness by the positively radiant South African Minister of Finances on Wednesday the 22 February 2012.

We, the people, have been told to work together towards building a better country. And with that emotive aphorism, all is well in the land of the living. Or so we are told.

We were even told that if we think that running a democracy is easy that we should go and work with ‘them’ for a while. If this is not a veiled threat of ‘we know what we are doing,’ then I don’t know what the meaning of a veiled threat is!?

What irks me the most is the constant fleecing of the motorist whenever funds are required to pay for financial blunders by those that have our best interests at heart? If this is having our best interests at heart, I would hate to see what it would mean to be on their bad side!?

And as predicted, the e-tolling system is going ahead. The difference is that the motorist will now not only be paying the tolling taxes as one drives through the numerous tolling gantries but also paying for the tolling deficit through the fuel levy. Is this what is meant by being cautiously optimistic?

On the plus side, the platitudes for the wonderful buoyant budget-speech have been flowing freely by all financiers, bankers, political parties and most news agencies. I, for one, can’t wait for the post-mortem.

At least we the people are assured that the sun will continue to shine and the moon to wax and wane.

Comment: if Governments have to power to print money when required (and they do,) why is the concept of taxation still in existence?

Money: Is it fait accompli?

It is done, finished, dusted. Or that is what is the seemingly future of capitalism is heading towards.

With so much debt being accumulated by the worlds governments, the future of money as we know it, is staring down a bleak future. I mean, why else would the worlds leading economies spend much money on hiring spin doctors (marketing drives, public motivational initiatives, yes-you-can propagandas,) who make use of emotive euphemisms encouraging us to tighten our belts (for our own good of course,) until the present-day depressive economic cycle is overcome and put to bed?

We, the people, are encouraged on a daily basis to save, to be frugal and to service our debts responsibly. We are also told that the world is facing an economic double-dip recession and that we must remain positive until such times as our leaders have debated, discussed and argued a viable solution that will ensure our future prosperity and affluence; all for our own good of course!?

I for one become paranoid when governmental types start pushing blame onto us ‘wicked’ people (wastage, lack of frugality, irresponsible spending, not saving, etc) for the monetary problems being experienced around the world. Not only do I become paranoid but also extremely cagey of verbiage and clever manipulation of words by leaders, politicos and corporate chiefs, when they expound the evils and consequences of the ‘debt’ crisis, for it mostly becomes our doing and our responsibility to fix.

Caveat: there is a reason why the rich get richer and the poor poorer!?

As Bertrand Russell so aptly stated “advocates of capitalism are very apt to appeal to the sacred principles of liberty, which are embodied in one maxim: The fortunate must not be restrained in the exercise of tyranny over the unfortunate.”

The one solution is to learn to read between the lines and not be sucked in by the propaganda of deflected blame and implied guilt.

The problem is that we have become so reliant on money in all its glory that changes to capitalism does not sit well with us. We are locked and loaded into the barrel chamber of capitalism. The only way out is by pulling the trigger of change. Yes!?

Climate Change versus Employment

Climate change is not a new phenomenon. It is a weather condition that has been taking part in cycles over the millennia; and by all accounts, the next cycle has been 50 thousand years in the making.

The bottom line is that climate change is a natural ecological event that is going to happen irrespective of humanity’s effort to stave it off; stave being the operative word.

Global-warming is another kettle of fish altogether: besides it being a natural ecological occurrence that takes place every-so years, it is also an occurrence that is aggravated by human consumption and industrial activity.

On the natural side, volcanic activity, solar radiation and the earth’s cyclic movement through the Universe, et al, all play a role in keeping the environmental scales in fine equilibrium, or not.

On the human side, industrial growth, human green-house gas generation and fossil fuel usage all contribute to upsetting the fragile balance that encompasses the environment, atmosphere and the way the eco system deals with these eventualities.

Although the Industrial Age is lauded and praised for much of the technological development that is being experienced today, it has brought with it unforeseen (maybe) side-effects; side-effects that have malignantly contributed to the many environmental problem and human enslavement being experienced today.

Yes, medically, technologically and financially, humanity finds itself riding the waves of success and development (although the last one is debatable.) Humanity is at an all time high: lofty life-spans, healthy bank balances and prosperity. And now that the ‘east’ has caught up and surpassed western developments, life has accelerated to the next level faster than anticipated.

Humanity has become technologically and information hungry. It has huge wants-and-needs that are being met by extravagant usage of natural recourses and over capitalisation of available real estate, all drawing upon the human propensity for avarice to drive those wants-and-needs along.

The main challenge facing modern Governments is employment: how to create avenues that help foster employment versus creating avenues that produce profits, thus keeping the economic status-quo fresh, is the quandary? It may be argued that other systemic life issues are of more importance but without employment, the system will consume itself to the overall detriment of humanity – the money energy cycle needs to be maintained.

To my mind, all the talk of climate change and or global warming will come to naught if the employment factor is not fixed. A hungry person does not care about the environment. A dejected unemployed person does not care about the environment. As a matter of fact, both types of people are more given to fits of pack-rage and destructive tendencies than those that are gainfully employed.

The South African Minister of Energy Affairs recently stated that renewable energy initiatives will cut employment as renewable-energy power generating plants, besides being more energy efficient, are also human real-estate efficient e.g. wind farms require less human-power to keep the equipment operational than that of a coal fired power station. Solar farms face the same employment dilemma.

With the growth in the human population expected to reach nine billion by the year 2030 (by recent extrapolations,) the employment quandary increases with each passing year. A prospect that is going to place even greater stresses on the environment due to the logarithmic growth in energy demand, food requirements, and other natural resources. A prospect that is neither positive nor captivating for the coming generations of humans.

I am of the opinion that the existing democratic (or whatever other forms of Government there are around the world) and capitalistic energies are in dire need of an overall. These energies worked well during the birth of the Industrialisation age to about 20 years ago. Since then, they have been faltering and overwhelming humanity at a dizzying pace of consumption. Changes to both systemic energies will not be easy, but the alternatives are worse.

Carl Sagan once said that if humanity can survive past its puberty stage (speaking of human development in the greater scheme-of-time,) the future will be humanity’s oyster. Unfortunately, very little positivity is pointing in that direction.

“The needs and wants of the people need to be addressed and pacified. Workable solutions have to be constructed in such a way that either gainful employment is generally guaranteed or alternatively, that a new means of income generation is implemented i.e. doing away with the traditional capitalist way of doing things.” ~ Global Warming: A Growing Woe

Life should be Just and Fair!

It is said that the ideal behind civilisation is for humanity to continually grow and evolve by making life that little bit more just and fair with each passing generation.

How can that ideal be achieved when most of the information floating around is biased one way or the other?

If life is to be made that little bit more just and fairy with each passing generation, change is required, for that is what human progress is all about. History attests to that.

It is all very well and noble but the reality is not that simple.

Change to capitalism will mean that most will have to forego some of their material gains which mean that the governmental types will not get their due recompense through taxes and other clever manipulations of the fiscal system.

Change to Democracy also carries with it much risk. Loss of voter control being one of the major concerns. Control of the masses is paramount to enabling cash flow and continued existence and survival.

Both change scenarios form the vicious circle of everyday existence that prevents any virtuous progress from taking place.

It is for this reason that Governments spend millions in advertising initiatives trying to convince the populace that a certain way of action or thought is the best way forward. It is for this same reason that media moguls spend time and thought into shaping public onion. The same goes for the feel-good lobbyists who throw money at telling all and sundry that life will be ok if one just keeps a positive outlook on things.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a French political philosopher, once stated that “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.”

The will to affect change, whether political, personal or financially, is paramount to our continued development and human progression.

Global Warming: A Growing Woe

I am of the opinion that the whole so called global warming/climate change issue is too complex a subject to just apportion blame willy-nilly onto the veritable human being, especially as no real workable solutions are put forward by the activists and pundits of global warming/climate change theories.

We live in a self perpetuated and accepted way of life that puts much emphasis on finances and wealth. We mostly all work for a living because of that culture: Those that sponge of the system are looked upon as just that; spongers (why don’t you get a job, you lazy good-for-nothing so-and-so.)

The accepted capitalist system is devoid of emotion and empathy: two human qualities that make life liveable and mostly comfortable. We are becoming automaton of technology and convenience while overlooking the consequences of those actions (I have money, why should I care.) Anyway there are enough charities to contribute too to pacify that nagging conscience.

I am also of the opinion that the capitalist system as we know it is long overdue for a makeover. The fact that the living-wage gap (rich vs. poor) is getting larger by the moment, is enough of an indication that all is not well in the land of finances.

Add to the above equation an emotional subject such as global warming/climate change and a calamity is created at the forefront of the human perception and psyche. The situation is mostly aggravated by the fact that traditional means of incomes are threatened by the call for closure/minimalisation of factories, manufacturing plants and energy utilities – oil is bad, coal is bad, CO² is bad, methane is bad, flatulence is bad, meat is bad, mercury is bad, sugar is bad, cholesterol is bad, obesity is bad, paper is bad, planes are bad, motor vehicles are bad, smoking is bad, fertiliser is bad, et al.

The above-mentioned commodities supply a large percentage of workers with employment/wages on a global basis.

The call for cleaner and renewable energy utilities is adding to this woe for most of the proposed renewable energy generating theories require little human intervention and hands-on skills (not labour intensive); and are expensive to boot.

Developed countries are being asked to provide assistance (money) to developing countries so that they too can implement ‘earth saving’ initiatives. This in itself is seemingly the-proper-thing-to-do, but the underlying catch is that it’s the tax-payers living in the developed countries that will have to foot this noble expense. It must be said that altruism and charity, although seemingly noble, do not fix the underlying problem(s).

So yes, global warming and climate change is a reality of life on earth. It has been for countless of centuries and nothing we do will stave off that inevitably. And yes, our contribution to that ‘inevitably’ can also be counted and measured. And yes, many proposals have been put forward by pundits and activists alike – some more aggressively than others, to what needs and must be done to put off that ‘inevitably.’

What most do not want to take-in is that the problem is not that simple to solve. Those that are at the forefront of the war for change, are mostly gainfully employed or living of the welfare of others, or living on some plot of land (usually wrongly occupied or left behind as an inheritance) growing their own meagre crops feeding themselves and their offspring: close to nature, so to speak.

What most also do not take in is that there are factors outside the control of the veritable human being viz. Volcanic eruptions, solar flare-ups, earth’s passage through the galaxy/universe, moving tectonic plates, etc, that add to the ‘inevitably’ equation.

The ‘legacy’ issue also plays an emotive role in the whole cry for survival i.e. what of the future of my children, what about the poor animals, etc.

And then there is technology; another detractor.

Technology has provided a portion of the human race with tools that have made the acquisition of knowledge easier and cheaper. Technology has also provided a portion of the human race with powers that were previously not easily enacted i.e. freedom of expression (good and bad,) global empathy (good and bad,) power to circumvent despotism, cyber anarchy, etc.

Technology has also provided a portion of the human race with feelings on invincibility and immortality i.e. blogs will live long after one has expired, I can say what I like to whom I like without fear of physical consequence, the power of anonymity, governmental/corporate feel-good marketing campaigns, etc.

And not forgetting the power that technology has granted the giants of human-thought-manipulation i.e. the media, the swaying of public opinion, bending of outcomes to suit a given objective, popularising a certain way of life, sensationalising a happening for the sake of profit, etc.

I have over the past years made it my business to follow the reasoning behind the global warming malady by reading, watching, researching and pensively thinking about the issue at hand (from both sides of the spectrum.) I have also, in view of the few points mentioned in the preceding paragraphs, tried to formulate an opinion that encompasses the problem as a whole, without going off the activist deep-end.

My take on the problems facing the required ‘global warming’ mindset change always comes back to one glaring point: economics. What happens to the petrol industry workers when the petrol plants are done away with? What happens to the meat farmers when people minimalise eating meat? What happens to the livestock when people discontinue feeding on them? What happens to the pilots when people minimise flying? What happens to the motor vehicle industry workers when motor vehicle manufacture is minimised or done away with?

Thus in essence, solve the economics of living and the problem at hand is minimised!

Although the predicament of the human-inflicted global warming danger is a growing one, being self-centred and antagonistic in forcing people to change their sceptical fearful mindsets will not change the internal motivational drives of the human being.

The needs and wants of the people need to be addressed and pacified. Workable solutions have to be constructed in such a way that either alternative gainful employment is generally guaranteed or, that a new means of income generation is devised i.e. doing away with the traditional capitalist way of doing business.

Irrespective of what is said and done, my overriding opinion is that the inevitable will happen and that no amount of political posturing and or activist will and or new-age bluster will change that ‘inevitably.’

It is the now-or-later scenario that remains on the table.

What is in your tog-bag?

Modern life is about the accumulation of material goods which translates into the precept of being well-off or of being seen as someone of means. In other words: material possessions, lots of them.

The challenge with the precept in question is that it is a precept rather than a tangible event. It relies on the visual appearance rather than the actual state of affairs. The challenge also relies on others falling for the illusion rather than accepting the actual reality.
The theory behind ‘what is in your tog bag’ is about unpacking the so-called tog bag until one is freed up from all the self-imposed material constraints that limit one’s ability to live and function as a human being.

The theory also relies on one’s ability to step-away from being a wage-slave; which is quite contrary to that which the fiduciary system calls for. What the theory does not call for is irresponsible reactive action while in the pursuit of unpacking the proverbial ‘tog bag.’

The ability to step-away from being a wage slave implies a pro-active action that will gradually lead to one being able to step-away from being caught up in a world where material possessions and living-the-high-life illusion reigns supreme.

Thus walking away from one’s self imposed fiduciary responsibilities is not what the theory calls for. Quite the contrary. One needs to step-away from the real world without the worry that debt-hounds will eventually rob one of the sought-after freedoms.

The first step towards understanding the ‘what is in your tog bag’ theory is to visualise an empty ‘tog bag’ lying on the floor full of emptiness. This visualisation process is an important one as the picture of an empty ‘tog bag’ must be fully understood and felt by the mind. If the visualisation process is executed correctly, one must be able to touch and smell the empty ‘tog bag’ lying on the floor.

The ensuing steps revolve around picking up the ‘tog bag’ and beginning to slowly start filling it with ‘stuff’ that one uses on a daily basis i.e. toothpaste, toothbrush, clothes, shoes, wallet, briefcase, etc. Feeling the weight of the ‘tog bag’ increasing becomes the paramount sensation in the continuing visualisation process.

Once all the ‘stuff’ that one uses on a daily basis are packed, one can progress to filling the ‘tog bag’ with electrical utensils i.e. kettle, microwave oven, coffee percolator, etc. Once all the utensils have been packed in the ‘tog bag,’ start filling it up with the rest of the possessions one has in the home i.e. bed, bed linen, desks, couches, TV, computers, etc.

When all these have been packed in the ‘tog bag,’ one can now place the last remaining items in the ‘tog bag’ i.e. car, bicycle, gym equipment, workshop tools, garden tools and equipment, etc.

Finally one can add the ‘home’ to the bag.

It must be ensured that after each step, the incremental weight increase is felt by the mind’s eye. Even if one understands that one cannot lift said bag from the floor, ensure that the exertion required is felt to its fullest extent. Again, the sensation of weight to the mind’s eye is of paramount importance.

To the final sensation, start asking the question: What can I do without and still retain the lifestyle that I want to live? Do not rush this step. Think about it carefully over the span of a few days, all-the-while recalling the weight-sensation of the full ‘tog bag’ every time the question is asked (recalled.)

Once one is comfortable with the realistic answer, visualise the items being removed from the ‘tog bag’ and the sensation of relief evident from the reduction in weight of the ‘tog bag.’ Feel this sensation to its fullest extent. Again, the relief must be felt by the mind’s eye.

The items in question must at first only be those items that are dragging one down or are of unnecessary bulk.

Once the items have been identified and accepted by the mind from amongst all the rationale imposed on the question asked, bit-by-bit, one can start implementing a physical plan-of-action with the view to getting rid of said items or reducing the obligatory debt associated with said items i.e. credit card debt, unused gym equipment, etc.
It must be emphasised that throughout the continuing process, the sensation of ‘weight’ must be visualised and fully felt by the mind’s eye. This includes the ‘relief’ felt when items are removed from the ‘tog bag.’

The whole exercise uses left vs. right brain activation processes as the means to achieving a goal. Being able to just positively think about overcoming a problem does not instinctively instigate the required actions for lightening of one’s material life burden.