Take education--not the current education system which is designed for the 20th century, but a 21st century education system that is based in optimal human development. Right now, our system teaches a lot about subjects we rarely use, but very little about how to build healthy, whole and dynamic lives. A big example of this is that most high school or college graduates have no idea how the money system works! How could we spend twelve to sixteen plus years in school and yet be so ignorant? But we are and that is one major factor as to why this financial crisis could happen with very few people even realizing or understanding it! Building a 21st century education system would employ thousands of people because we could create schools that are full spectrum community centers where education will become a lifelong learning process. Within this 21st century education system will be a huge connection to technology, travel industries, film and television and all sorts of other businesses that will participate and support a lifelong education system.
Medical: our current system is a mess. Millions of people live in fear of becoming ill and ending up bankrupt! The move to a Universal Health care system that employs thousands of people would enable us to shift our system into prevention--something that currently doesn't happen because the profit-driven medical system (profits mainly to the insurance companies) makes more money by us being sick than well. That's a failed system and it can change. A Universal health care system would link with the education system and provide health care/prevention education within the system to enable people to choose this career path without going into massive debt. In exchange for this education, they work in a system that manages costs and pays them a sufficient income, but also enables them to build a prevention/whole health medical system. Universal health care doesn't preclude anyone from going into private practice, but they would then pay back the system for their medical education while others in the system would not.
I could go on and on but here's the bottom line: there's plenty of work to be done to create a world where humans thrive and achieve optimal development and we are all needed to play a part in it. A full spectrum economy is possible.
At the same time that we're moving away from the consumer/credit/debt driven economy, we also need to give ourselves permission to address the issue of our work/life schedules. In the new economy, instead of the intensive work schedules from ages 20 to 65 and then a full stop into retirement, it is time to appreciate that this current schedule works against us, our children, our families, our communities and the world. We're in such a rat race pace while raising our children that we barely get to know them! We're all so exhausted, having little time to foster good marriage relations and community involvement. It's time to recognize this and change it. Let's abolish retirement while instituting the four-day/28-hour work week throughout our lives, thus enabling us to have the time to live life throughout our entire lives! As we move into our 70's, we might trim these hours a little more still, but we stay engaged in the economy until or unless we are so impaired that we can't work. Then, as we look at 'saving' for our elder years, it isn't something we're rushing to do and worrying about throughout our younger years. We realize that we'll be fine into our older years because we will still be working.
From the Rule of Gold...to the Golden Rule.
Somehow along the way, we've created a world where we believe that 'making money on making money' is the centerpiece of our economy. But the present financial meltdown shows the fallacy of this system. It's left us bankrupt on the financial level, and it's done so on the moral and spiritual level too. As we moved into this money-driven system intensively over the last 50 years, we got separated from life and let our economy become run by the money instead of life. The Rule of Gold has taken over--he who has the gold makes the rules. So, we all started chasing the gold and it has become the primary value system that has left us without life. We convinced ourselves that two cars, big houses and tons of stuff were worth the exchange for money to buy this stuff, even at the expense of knowing our children, our neighbors, our community. This scenario is reflected is what could be termed M3P. Money, Property, Possessions and Power, that represent what we think we need in a world that operates with a dominator value system attached to money.
The Golden Rule--do unto others as you would have done unto you--is the one tenet that is present in every spiritual denomination and provides the foundation for a value system that we've always understood: caring for ourselves and each other. As we begin this transition from a consumer economy, the new value system could be termed M3C: Material needs, Conscious living, Creativity and Caring where the primary value is caring for humans and the planet. Building a real wealth, full spectrum economy based on this value system ensures a healthy economy that works, enables us to design vibrant lives and live with respect to the earth and all its inhabitants.
How do we fund it? Well, there's an available tool, called money that would help us facilitate this process. Only, instead of using the old banking system (which is in collapse due to their own excesses), it is time to employ the backing of the 'full faith of the American people' and enable the government to issue money directly into these transition industries and new systems. This would interrupt the current credit/debt system that the private banking system has strangled us with and enable us to issue funds to businesses with the interest payment returning to the government and the American taxpayer. In this way, instead of taxing ourselves individually, we would generate income through all these "Public Utility Enterprises' (PUE) paying back interest on these investments by the government/us. Taxes would go down across the board and possibly be eliminated all together. (And if you think this is crazy, there are already several small countries where this public banking system has been utilized for years. Citizens have never had to pay taxes out of their own income; it is sourced through the economy--people working in activities that enable life to occur!)
Say, for example, the US government invested $700 billion into the solar, wind and retrofit industries for our houses. This would fund the start up and/or expansion of thousands of small local businesses who would work in these fields, being paid for their services. They would pay interest on these loans and that interest would return to the public coffers. The government would have a small stake in each of these PUEs with the caveat that over time--say three years--if the PUE is successful in repaying its loans, the employees would have the option to 'buy out' this government stake and become owners of this enterprise. At the same time, these companies would maintain a 1:7 balance between new entry employees and highest management in order to prevent the excessive executive pay scales that have lately become the norm whereby even when they fail, executives receive massive bonuses!
We also have the option to create local currency which is traded within a local region. This is legal and is already being done throughout the world. To this can be added the Community Credit system, The Community Credit system enables a local economy to support the volunteer/non-profit sector through a business, volunteer, individual linked system that ensures a strong thriving local economy around real life needs.
We obviously can do this! Many will say, "But the government doesn't know how to run anything; it has to be private business." Let me remind you that the brightest minds in the private system have brought the world banking system to its knees and sparked a world-wide depression. The argument that the government/people of the US could do any worse would be hard to sustain. In fact, there's a great argument for doing this because it is connected to a plan based on supporting real life. We all gain as we build this new economy based around enterprises that will provide for optimal human development--life! We've handed over $700 billion to a system that is dedicated to maintaining the status quo. Now, let's walk away from that and invest $700 billion into regional food systems, Universal health care, energy efficient/oil independent industries, dynamic schools and communities, transportation systems that let us all move around while protecting the environment, etc. We can have a thriving, full spectrum economy that works for us all, instead of a banking system that works for the few.
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