Sunday 31 March 2013

Day 211: Labour Flexibility and Equal Money Capitalism

In Zimbabwe, the Reserve Bank has been laying off people as part of desperate cost-cutting measure. The employees that had been retrenched have not received their full retrenchment packages that they are supposed to get.

In the meantime, people are unemployed and are finding it hard to find a new job, with many resorting to work in the informal section. In Third World countries like Zimbabwe, entire families are often dependent on a single person’s income. This leaves many families suddenly without the necessary funds to pay for their medical aid, while kids are not going to school anymore since they can no longer afford to pay the school fees.

Some have gone as far as killing themselves as they succumbed to the stress of unemployment and no retrenchment package in sight.

In the light of all of this, one economist had the following perspective:

“The idea that people are deserving of compensation if their employers can no longer retain them has never been properly justified. The employees’ compensation for their labour was given to them as their wage every month while they were working. Why should compensation continue when their work is no longer needed?” Robertson told IPS.”

This is your typical ‘Free Martketeer’ opinion – where people are no longer considered as being living beings, but are reduced to mere commodities, which one should be able to hire and fire as one pleases. They also have a fancy word for it: “Labour Flexibility”.

Obviously a statement like this will only come from someone whose job is secure and will not find themselves being thrown around by the merciless tides of the labour market any time soon. The Corporation as an entity on its own has gained a superior status than living, breathing, human beings. The corporation is a dead thing – it’s merely an assembled structure. Yet, it’s the corporations who are in the position of ensuring life security to people, and when this is threatened there are consequences:

““The suffering of the retrenched workers is transferred to their families, children and spouses. Tension and stress grows, leading to unwarranted domestic disputes and eventual violence and abuse of children,” Bohwasi told IPS.”

Within Equal Money Capitalism, we get this.

That is why Labour Flexibility within Equal Money Capitalism will take on a whole new dimension. Instead of Labour Flexibility entailing the freedom of the corporation to hire and fire with no restrictions in place – Labour Flexibility will be a principle of understanding that one require to be Flexible with Labour, as it is clear that one will not always be able to occupy the same job position. This may be due to fluctuations in the needs and requirements of the population, the environment or technological innovation. Thus, within this flexibility, the corporation ensures that one can continue employment elsewhere (such as the compassion department), as the corporation understands and realizes that the only capital which matters is the Capital as Life as the employees who bring life into the corpus of the Corporation– and will thus tend to its Capital with the utmost care and respect.

To Read the full article on the Zimbabwe retrenchment disaster, go to: http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/03/zimbabwe-struggling-to-pay-laid-off-workers/
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Wednesday 27 March 2013

Day 210: New Sin Tax on Sugar Introduced!

Yes - finally - after years of raising sin taxes on tobacco and alcohol - governments have started seeing that the most harmful substance was still rampantly being consumed, a substance that not only influences and damages the health of adults and teenagers - but of children too. Governments are finally raising a sin tax on any products that contain Sugar - and with Sugar is not meant Sucrose, but fructose specifically - as this is the harmful substance that acts like a poison inside the human body and causes a whole range of diseases.

Finally!!

In making sugar more expensive, we're creating incentive for people to look at what they eat and rather buy sugar-free products. So - that when you go to a fast food restaurant, a salad will not be the most expensive item on the menu, but the cheapest. And so will it be in any other restaurant and in any shop and in any market. This means that so much money will be saved on treating the consequences of excessive sugar consumption - in essence, preventing the disease before it manifests.

Finally...

Yeah...

Wouldn't that be great - to open up your newspaper and see something like this being printed? I suppose sugar and disease are both just too lucrative to be taken on and reigned in. What kind of economic system do we live in if we cannot make these kinds of obvious decisions, just because it would 'cost the economy too much' - what is the use of an economy if the people in it aren't supported by it? Where, now - people are obese and have chronic illnesses such as diabetes just because our diets are determined by what's affordable - and what's affordable is a cheeseburger. And a cheeseburger is full of high fructose corn syrup - and that will slowly kill you.

I suggest all governments implements a sin tax on Fructose to Prove that they Care about the well being of the citizens in the country. And I suggest that if such a sin tax would come at a great cost in terms of industries being hit and jobs being lost - that the economic system in itself is redesigned so that a decision that is made to support life on the one hand does not require a trade off where life is harmed on the other hand. That's just basic common sense. For suggestions on such economic systems, visit www.equalmoney.org and http://economistjourneytolife.blogspot.com/p/emc.html.
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Tuesday 26 March 2013

Day 209: Health Care or Disease Care?

Please watch the following documentary for additional information:
Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare





In the US 75% of healthcare costs go towards patients suffering from preventable diseases. Instead of focussing on prevention within educating people on lifestyle and what consequences come along with what lifestyle – the healthcare system only bothers with dealing with the aftermath.

A person suffering from diabetes, who as a result has heart problems – will be filled with stents each time there’s a heart problem. Only symptoms are alleviated and the problem remains. This method of treatment is of course very good for the pockets of the medical industry. The patient is not getting better, he’s also not really dying and he keeps on coming back. The very point that the cause and origin of so many people’s preventable chronic disease is not even discussed is questionable to say the least. This clearly shows a lack of integrity and care as it becomes obvious that an actual solution is not was is being sought after – but merely the management of the disease.

In Equal Money Capitalism, we reverse everything. Instead of tending to Consequence we focus on Prevention. Education will have a primary role within Health Care, within making people aware of how they can best support themselves and their bodies so each one can live at optimum capacity. People who pursue a career in medicine will be those who truly have a passion for the practice and really want to take care of people (read Day 188: Simple Solutions in Equal Money Capitalism on how this is made possible).

Changing our approach to health care will not only save us tremendous costs in monetary terms – but will also save on a lot of harm as the result of overtreatment and limited symptomatic relief. Consider also that a lot of patients only go to the doctor and are on prescribed drugs because they are overworked and cannot cope with the pressure of the demanding system that we have today. In such cases – medicine is not the solution, but a change in lifestyle – which is exactly what Equal Money Capitalism is all about.
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Sunday 24 March 2013

Day 208: Is Equal Money a Fascist Regime?

Continuing from yesterday's blog - Day 207: Will Equal Money Bring about a Utopia? - we're here going to have a look at the common accusation that Equal Money Capitalism or the Equal Money System will be a Fascist regime - where some even claim there will be some form of concentration camps where people will be brainwashed...

It is never really clear what the context is in which Equal Money supporters will apparently go and do this brainwashing, so I will walk through the different contexts that I see could be referred to.

The first one is the idea that the Equal Money supporters will attempt to utilize mind-technology to try to persuade anyone who does not agree with the Equal Money proposal. In terms of this point - there's really nothing to worry about. We've stated several times that Equal Money will only be implemented through Political means. This means that: if a vote is held to determine whether an EMS system would be implemented and the vote determines that the majority is not in favor of Equal Money - then it will simply not be implemented. There's not more to it, no-one will go and harass anyone that did not vote for Equal Money. That's completely non-democratic.

If the vote determining that the majority votes for implementation of Equal Money and you're then asking: what about the minority that does not agree with Equal Money? That is a point that is established by the democratic rules today. When the majority votes and the vote is binding, the minority has to adjust to the binding vote. That is how democracy operates at the moment. Once Equal Money is then implemented, the democratic system would change. Direct democracy will be instated in such a way that voting is no longer about implementing the policies and decisions that the majority wants, but will stand in relation to agreeing whether the proposed policy is indeed what is best for all. So, if one votes for the policy, one agrees that the policy is best for all. If one disagrees with the policy, one must provide proof that there is inequality in the equation and that it will cause harm that can be prevented - and then one can suggest adjustments to the proposed policy or suggest alternatives.

From this point onwards - if individuals continue to be in disagreement with Equal Money and the policies that are established through such democratic means - three things can happen.

Scenario 1 - one takes some time to adjust and after a while sees that the fears one had about Equal Money had no real foundation, and in seeing how society operates according to the principles of Equality and What is Best for All - that it actually works out.

Or - scenario number 2: you continue to be in disagreement with Equal Money and express this disagreement through democratic means. Each one will have their online LifeProfile where they will stand in direct contact with the government administrators. When such input is received, you will be asked to supply specific information in terms of how you see yourself being harmed within the current system. If the information you provide indicates that you are indeed being harmed unnecessarily - solutions will be implemented to correct the disharmony in the design of the system. If it is found from the information your provided that the cause of your discontent is not within the system as the system is sound within the principles of harmony, equality and what is best for all - then support will be provided in terms of explaining how alternatives of the current system would cause greater harm. These points would have been scientifically determined through the policy-making process. If these explanations are rejected by the being without other reason than 'I just don't agree', then this may indicate that there may be some psychological imbalance where the person is not sufficiently capable of considering another as equal to themselves. In these cases, then, psychological support will be offered, where professionals will be available to assist you in correcting your own psychological disharmonies. This will not be compulsory. Forcing a person to change will not result in actual self-responsibility and self-correction - one can only correct oneself - therefore, assistance can be offered, but it cannot be forced upon the person. If assistance is refused, one will have to live with one's own discontent as the refusal to change will be one's own responsibility.

In the 3rd scenario - the disagreement with Equal Money will be expressed through spiteful behavior in deliberately acting in a way that is in disagreement with the laws and rules that have been established through democratic means under the Constitutional principle of what is best for all. In such cases, one has decided to deliberately cause harm and disharmony. Again - firstly, it will be investigated whether your discontent flows from a disharmony within the system that would cause you to 'act out'. If this is the case, steps will be taken to correct the problem. If this is not the case, then one requires to face the consequences of one's spitefulness. When a being is deliberate within causing harm and disharmony when one lives in a system that supports each one equally and provides the best results for everyone - there will be no more choice involved. One will be placed in a facility for self-correction. One has at this point forsaken one's rights to be a part of the society as one is willing to harm others within the society, and has created oneself to be a threat to others. Within the self-correction facilities, again - one will be assisted and supported to correct one's own abusive patterns. No one will attempt to change you - because one can only change oneself if the change is to stand within actual realization, understanding and integrity. This the only valid change. Therefore, professionals will continue to support you, but if one does not support oneself towards actual self-correction, one cannot expect to return to society, considering the risk one poses to others.

Herein - consider that these self-correction facilities are not concentration camps and the procedure is very similar to the correctional system that is in place currently. However, currently - when individuals break the agreements of society, they are branded as 'criminals' and are removed from society where they are placed in a cell as punishment, and from that, supposedly they 'learn a lesson'. We have seen that this approach is not effective. Firstly, because many of the 'criminal behavior' is a direct outflow and consequence of a system that does not support each one effectively, causing individuals to resort to crime to support themselves. When crime can be prevented in the way we structure our society, it should be done - but this is not sufficiently considered within our current system. Secondly - most people coming out of prison do not learn any lesson. Instead, they feel alienated and often fall back in their previous patterns. Those imprisoned are not sufficiently supported in understanding their own psychological and behavioral patterns and are not sufficiently guided in terms of how they are able to correct these patterns. Therefore - self-correction facilities will be the correction of what we currently know to be prisons - where individuals are no longer abandoned or punished - but unconditionally supported to as effectively as possible be re-integrated into society.

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Friday 22 March 2013

Day 207: Will Equal Money Bring about a Utopia?

It's interesting when the concept of Equal Money is introduced on discussion boards, on the one hand the Equal Money Team is blamed for being Utopian and on the other hand is being blamed of being fascist.

So - let's look at the Utopia point in this blog and in the next one look at the fascism point.

Will Equal Money Capitalism bring about a Utopia?

Introducing Equal Money will definitely change our society and solve many of the problems we have been struggling with for decades. Will it become a utopia, though?

You're still going to have to go to work. Your work environment will probably be different and you'll probably be doing something you actually like to do - and, hey, you might actually have a say in company policies. But, you're still going to have that alarm going off in the morning and you're going to have to show up for work every workday.

Pregnancies will still mess with your hormones, where you have to suddenly cry for no reason or have weird cravings or feel tired. Though, you'll have a qualified medical team to support you and so will your neighbor and every other woman.

Your house won't clean itself. You're still going to have to get your hands dirty to keep your household in order. Though, you'll have the comfort of knowing that it's the same for everyone else, since there will probably be no-one who wants to go clean up after another - so, cleaning will just be part of living in the physical world.

You'll still have to study and apply yourself in everything you do if you want to be effective in it. If you want to make something of yourself and your life, you'll have to work for it. And you might need to try out a whole range of different things to discover where you 'fit in'. Though, with Equal Money, everyone will have an equal opportunity to do this.

You'll still get sick - snotty nose, fever, diarrhea - those annoying physical conditions will still visit us from time to time. But you'll have your proper healthcare and a schooling system that is geared towards educating you to be informed about how to prevent as much illness as you can.

So, for those who are worried that Equal Money Capitalism is too much of a utopic idea - don't worry - life will still suck from time to time. But the main stress-point of worrying about money will be removed - which will make life so much more enjoyable.

It's not because we're showing a different way of living, a different way of organizing our society - a way that provides results that are best for all - that we're naive or utopic. It just means we haven't given up yet and that we are not interested in settling for anything less. Why should we settle for anything less? For some, Equal Money Capitalism might not bring about that much of a change at all - those that have a life of security will see it being continued. But for soooo many others, it would mean living a secure life for the first time. Does that make us evil? Does that make us stupid?

Did you know there's children in poor countries who think that there's something wrong with the world just for a moment, which makes it that they can't have food and a house to live in, that makes it that they have to work so that the family can make ends meet? And did you know they think that the people in rich countries are working every day to try to fix the problem so that they don't have to live like that anymore? I mean - let's do that - let's fix the problem.

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