In responding to recent posts and comments from Randy Crutcher, Parke Bostrom and Don Allen, I first reiterate that with Entrepreneurial Humanism and Fractal Economics I'm not trying to create yet another ideology for debate.
I'm trying to get as quickly as possible to a level of consensus on principals held in common that makes effective action possible, and I'm willing to take seriously any plans or structures that might work better than the ones I'm proposing.
What I'm hoping is that, at some point, this dialog will move from critiquing bits and pieces we question or don't agree with to something like "Okay, there's more I agree with than disagree with here, and it could conceivably work. What would the next step look like?"
I read all of Matt Stoller's piece "Why Ron Paul Challenges Liberals", and found more there that I agree with than don't. I think his fingering of long standing Liberal/Dem ties to war financing and centralized control are right on the money, and Obama is acting them out as clearly as I can imagine possible.
I've had it with supporting tax & spend government as the answer for virtually all social problems, and I've had it with the Democrat-enabled war, torture, assassination and imprisonment machine. (Look at this Glen Greenwald piece if you have the stomach for it...)
But I'm also not in support of some Conservative/Libertarian rhetoric that goes something like "If we just close down all the social programs and get the Gummint the hell out of the way of a free, unregulated market right across the board, everything will turn out fine."
I think that Americans have been too long in the thrall of push-based consumerism, as well as Big Daddy government, to be able to cope with true freedom (including the freedom to fail catastrophically,) and all the responsibilities that go with it, delivered in one fell swoop.
I think we must first undergo a period of building the 'muscles' of personal integrity and effective cooperation while weaning ourselves from government aid and corporate/government control of the marketplace.
That's why I'm pushing the principles of Fractal Economics and an American Consumers Union, because it would give us some kind of framework for building those muscles - both individually and as a community.
I also see this as an implicit answer to Randy and Parke's challenges of the "Buy American" thing.
No, I don't advocate buying American made stuff, regardless of its quality or the integrity of its manufacturing process, simply because its American and we're the good guys so it must be the right thing.
But I do see it as a place to start, an opportunity to cooperate across long standing ideological boundaries, to make enough of a difference in our economy that we can actually see and document that difference, and to use our cooperation and its results as the basis of further cooperation in advancing a common set of values - all within the existing market structure, and without passing laws forcing other folks to do likewise.
I'm calling this conscious mutual acculturation - the process of starting with a set of common principles, putting those principles into action, documenting the results, and using this documentation to support more action which, over time, changes the fundamental fabric of the culture in which we live.
It may also be a response to Don's theme (my term) of "We can only change ourselves."
My view is yes, we can only change ourselves, and yes, when we change ourselves (e.g., our buying habits, our willingness to act for something beyond our own convenience,) in conscious cooperation with other selves, we create changes in our world that support and compound our individual efforts.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Friday, January 6, 2012
Of sparrows and empires
[I sent the below letter to the local paper, but I figured Bob might also want to post it here. I found Obama's press conference comment to be remarkably honest.]
In 2003, Vice President Dick Cheney's wife chose the following quote for their annual Christmas card: "If a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?"
Asked about the quote, Cheney said: "It did not refer, or should not be taken as some kind of indication, that the United States today sees itself as an empire."
Donald Rumsfeld said: "We don't do empire. We're not imperialistic. We never have been. I can't imagine why you'd even ask the question."
It appears President Obama is not as timid as Cheney and Rumsfeld when it comes to describing America's future role in world affairs. On Thursday January 6, Obama became the first U.S. President to hold a press conference at the Pentagon. He said the following:
"Over the past 10 years, since 9/11, our defense budget grew at an extraordinary pace. Over the next 10 years, the growth in the defense budget will slow, but the fact of the matter is this: It will still grow, because we have global responsibilities that demand our leadership. In fact, the defense budget will still be larger than it was toward the end of the Bush administration. And I firmly believe, and I think the American people understand, that we can keep our military strong and our nation secure with a defense budget that continues to be larger than roughly the next 10 countries combined."
In 2003, Vice President Dick Cheney's wife chose the following quote for their annual Christmas card: "If a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?"
Asked about the quote, Cheney said: "It did not refer, or should not be taken as some kind of indication, that the United States today sees itself as an empire."
Donald Rumsfeld said: "We don't do empire. We're not imperialistic. We never have been. I can't imagine why you'd even ask the question."
It appears President Obama is not as timid as Cheney and Rumsfeld when it comes to describing America's future role in world affairs. On Thursday January 6, Obama became the first U.S. President to hold a press conference at the Pentagon. He said the following:
"Over the past 10 years, since 9/11, our defense budget grew at an extraordinary pace. Over the next 10 years, the growth in the defense budget will slow, but the fact of the matter is this: It will still grow, because we have global responsibilities that demand our leadership. In fact, the defense budget will still be larger than it was toward the end of the Bush administration. And I firmly believe, and I think the American people understand, that we can keep our military strong and our nation secure with a defense budget that continues to be larger than roughly the next 10 countries combined."
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Various comments and reactions
I have had various reactions to recent postings. I am not sure if these reactions could be organized into a single piece of prose, and I have not had the time to try, so instead I have collected them into a list.
Bob [wrote]: "I truly believe that we must come to grips with the basic human conflict of individual vs. collective good."
Can you provide an example of this conflict that involves neither externalities nor charity? (Regulating externalities being a proper function of government, and providing charity being a proper function of a free [non-governmental] society.)
Bob: "Reaching the point where enough people have resolved this conflict to create a culture of cooperation will, in my belief, be as great a leap in human evolution as the emergence and success of the Cro-Magnon brain that replaced the Neanderthal brain."
Or, to quote John Adams: "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." Or Benjamin Franklin: "[O]nly a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."
More [albeit mostly religious] quotes here:
http://www.free2pray.info/5founderquotes.html
Bob: "I believe that the workable answer to the corporate capitalism/fascism we have today is "fractal economics": an economy based on small to mid-sized businesses applying a common set of ethics and principles, operated by employers and employees who are applying these same principles in their daily lives, and serving a customer base also applying these principles in the use of their purchasing power."
Shades of the yeoman farmer? (As also noted by Randy Crutcher.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeoman#United_States
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/hns/yoeman/yman3.html
http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2005_summer_fall/agronomist.htm
Tangentially, what would a fractal national defense policy look like? Hint, read the first half of the Second Amendment.
Bob: "The push-based market is dominated by corporations dedicated to generating profit without regard to the impact on human beings and the world in which humans live."
The push-based market is dominated by consumers who buy products that are marketed and sold in a push-based manner.
Bob: "I propose that we call the parent organization the American Consumers Union, the local affiliate the Humboldt Consumers Union, and that we create and copyright/trademark logos for them right away. [...] This phase of fractal economics is less thought-through in my own mind, but it starts with a trademarked/copyrighted logo and mission statement."
Are copyright and trademark appropriate tools to use in a fractal economy, or are they instead the tools of a hierarchical, top-down power structure ("thou shalt not!")?
Bob: "I also agree that the Federal Reserve is really private enterprise masquerading as "government for the people by the people". I think the whole system of government creating debt (bonds) out of thin air, then creating more debt by borrowing money against them at interest from banks is the greatest and longest-running con game in American history."
But if we get rid of the Federal Reserve System, how will the government create jobs, stimulate the economy and wage war?
More here:
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/12/matt-stoller-why-ron-paul-challenges-liberals.html
Don Allen: "The first three are sublimely interconnected and are the key to all effective social change. (1) There’s a perceived difference (Bob says "conflict") between our notions of individual and collective good; (2) The resolution of this difference necessarily happens within the individual – i.e., it can’t happen anywhere else than within the individual; and (3) In order to resolve this conflict, the individual must redefine (for oneself) such terms as "peace, prosperity, well-being and contentment."
This resolution does not necessarily happen "within the individual" (although I believe it should happen within the individual). In my opinion, the crux of the problems we face today is that government is resolving (or trying to resolve) these problems that should be resolved at the individual level. (Perhaps this is what Don meant.)
On job relocation vs. job creation:
Bob: "For example, with a loyal customer and disciplined customer base, ultra-efficient cars could be produced using parts from relatively small contractors, assembled in relatively small local/regional plants, and pre-sold to customers who know exactly what they want."
As I watched it, the primary message of the "Made in America" video (and there were lessor messages as well) was that buying American made products would create jobs in America at an acceptable cost.
It might be worth pointing out the difference between creating jobs and relocating them. Why should I relocate a job from overseas by buying American made products? Perhaps one product is higher quality, or lower cost, or manufactured in a more eco-conscious manner. And those are all good reasons to prefer one product to another, regardless of where the products are made. But I don't see any inherent reason (unless one subscribes to the religion of nationalism) to prefer domestically manufactured products. For example, a great deal of military hardware is manufactured in America. Does that mean that that military hardware is inherently good?
At the same time, if other people choose to voluntarily purchase products made in a certain location, I support their right to make that choice for whatever reason, even if I do not agree with their reasons. Similarly, I oppose government barriers to international trade.
Randy: "What is most interesting to me about this is not so much the nationalism of 'Made in America' but the fact that people are passionate enough about their nails to make them so they won't jam in the nail gun. [...] Those businesses with a passion for quality, energy efficiency and proud and happy workers will be the winners wherever they are located."
Bob: "I agree with [Randy's] comments here and on the 'Made in America' post about passion as an essential ingredient of a new economy (rather than trying to patch and whitewash the old one.)"
As Bob and I discussed earlier, government does two things. It forces people to perform certain actions, and it forces them not to perform certain other actions. It is difficult to be passionate when your actions are forced.
On totalitarianism:
Bob: "When the 'Bad Guys' hold people indefinitely without charges, without counsel, we call it totalitarianism."
I've heard the following definition of "totalitarian": A government is totalitarian not when it controls everything, but when it believes that it could control anything it wanted to, if it wanted to. The Bill of Rights defines clear limitations on the power of government, yet those limits are sadly ignored by our government and our society. When you look at indefinite detention (basically the suspension of habeas corpus), and numerous other laws coming out of D.C. (or Sacramento) it is hard to avoid the conclusion that we live in a totalitarian society, where for any given societal problem, most politicians believe there is a legislative solution. Habeas corpus was the only liberty that was secured in the original Constitition prior to the adoption of the Bill of Rights. And Congress and the president just suspended it.
Bob [wrote]: "I truly believe that we must come to grips with the basic human conflict of individual vs. collective good."
Can you provide an example of this conflict that involves neither externalities nor charity? (Regulating externalities being a proper function of government, and providing charity being a proper function of a free [non-governmental] society.)
Bob: "Reaching the point where enough people have resolved this conflict to create a culture of cooperation will, in my belief, be as great a leap in human evolution as the emergence and success of the Cro-Magnon brain that replaced the Neanderthal brain."
Or, to quote John Adams: "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." Or Benjamin Franklin: "[O]nly a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."
More [albeit mostly religious] quotes here:
http://www.free2pray.info/5founderquotes.html
Bob: "I believe that the workable answer to the corporate capitalism/fascism we have today is "fractal economics": an economy based on small to mid-sized businesses applying a common set of ethics and principles, operated by employers and employees who are applying these same principles in their daily lives, and serving a customer base also applying these principles in the use of their purchasing power."
Shades of the yeoman farmer? (As also noted by Randy Crutcher.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeoman#United_States
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/hns/yoeman/yman3.html
http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2005_summer_fall/agronomist.htm
Tangentially, what would a fractal national defense policy look like? Hint, read the first half of the Second Amendment.
Bob: "The push-based market is dominated by corporations dedicated to generating profit without regard to the impact on human beings and the world in which humans live."
The push-based market is dominated by consumers who buy products that are marketed and sold in a push-based manner.
Bob: "I propose that we call the parent organization the American Consumers Union, the local affiliate the Humboldt Consumers Union, and that we create and copyright/trademark logos for them right away. [...] This phase of fractal economics is less thought-through in my own mind, but it starts with a trademarked/copyrighted logo and mission statement."
Are copyright and trademark appropriate tools to use in a fractal economy, or are they instead the tools of a hierarchical, top-down power structure ("thou shalt not!")?
Bob: "I also agree that the Federal Reserve is really private enterprise masquerading as "government for the people by the people". I think the whole system of government creating debt (bonds) out of thin air, then creating more debt by borrowing money against them at interest from banks is the greatest and longest-running con game in American history."
But if we get rid of the Federal Reserve System, how will the government create jobs, stimulate the economy and wage war?
More here:
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/12/matt-stoller-why-ron-paul-challenges-liberals.html
Don Allen: "The first three are sublimely interconnected and are the key to all effective social change. (1) There’s a perceived difference (Bob says "conflict") between our notions of individual and collective good; (2) The resolution of this difference necessarily happens within the individual – i.e., it can’t happen anywhere else than within the individual; and (3) In order to resolve this conflict, the individual must redefine (for oneself) such terms as "peace, prosperity, well-being and contentment."
This resolution does not necessarily happen "within the individual" (although I believe it should happen within the individual). In my opinion, the crux of the problems we face today is that government is resolving (or trying to resolve) these problems that should be resolved at the individual level. (Perhaps this is what Don meant.)
On job relocation vs. job creation:
Bob: "For example, with a loyal customer and disciplined customer base, ultra-efficient cars could be produced using parts from relatively small contractors, assembled in relatively small local/regional plants, and pre-sold to customers who know exactly what they want."
As I watched it, the primary message of the "Made in America" video (and there were lessor messages as well) was that buying American made products would create jobs in America at an acceptable cost.
It might be worth pointing out the difference between creating jobs and relocating them. Why should I relocate a job from overseas by buying American made products? Perhaps one product is higher quality, or lower cost, or manufactured in a more eco-conscious manner. And those are all good reasons to prefer one product to another, regardless of where the products are made. But I don't see any inherent reason (unless one subscribes to the religion of nationalism) to prefer domestically manufactured products. For example, a great deal of military hardware is manufactured in America. Does that mean that that military hardware is inherently good?
At the same time, if other people choose to voluntarily purchase products made in a certain location, I support their right to make that choice for whatever reason, even if I do not agree with their reasons. Similarly, I oppose government barriers to international trade.
Randy: "What is most interesting to me about this is not so much the nationalism of 'Made in America' but the fact that people are passionate enough about their nails to make them so they won't jam in the nail gun. [...] Those businesses with a passion for quality, energy efficiency and proud and happy workers will be the winners wherever they are located."
Bob: "I agree with [Randy's] comments here and on the 'Made in America' post about passion as an essential ingredient of a new economy (rather than trying to patch and whitewash the old one.)"
As Bob and I discussed earlier, government does two things. It forces people to perform certain actions, and it forces them not to perform certain other actions. It is difficult to be passionate when your actions are forced.
On totalitarianism:
Bob: "When the 'Bad Guys' hold people indefinitely without charges, without counsel, we call it totalitarianism."
I've heard the following definition of "totalitarian": A government is totalitarian not when it controls everything, but when it believes that it could control anything it wanted to, if it wanted to. The Bill of Rights defines clear limitations on the power of government, yet those limits are sadly ignored by our government and our society. When you look at indefinite detention (basically the suspension of habeas corpus), and numerous other laws coming out of D.C. (or Sacramento) it is hard to avoid the conclusion that we live in a totalitarian society, where for any given societal problem, most politicians believe there is a legislative solution. Habeas corpus was the only liberty that was secured in the original Constitition prior to the adoption of the Bill of Rights. And Congress and the president just suspended it.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Respect and the "enclave mentality"
My cousin Alan Miller and I exchanged the comments below in response to a link I posted on my Facebook wall. The link I posted is about the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012, which authorizes the U.S. military to detain anyone accused of being a terrorist or supporting terrorism in military custody, indefinitely, and without trial.
********************************************
[Bob said (regarding the DAA of 2012)]
This is serious stuff, folks. When the "Bad Guys" hold people indefinitely without charges, without counsel, we call it totalitarianism. Remember, you wouldn't have to actually do anything to be held indefinitely, just be accused of being/supporting/talking to a terrorist.
http://www.salon.com/2011/12/16/three_myths_about_the_detention_bill/singleton/
[Alan said]
Hey, Cuz, here we have an issue we can certainly agree on unequivocally! Any citizen on the left or right could be branded a terrorist, so this is causing concern across the political spectrum. Hmm...didn't we have that thing called habeas corpus that is supposed to apply to all citizens? Bright spot is that I'll bet this wouldn't stand in the supreme court!
[Bob said]
Alan! Dude! You are so right! Having not only voted but also campaigned for Obama, I'm very disappointed for a number of reasons - but this one pretty much takes the $@^% cake! (Not that I'm letting those ^$##^ Bozo's in Congress off the hook...) What this really, REALLY brings home to me is that it's well and truly time to let go of partisan chauvinism (i.e., launching the heavy artillery when "They" do bad stuff, then making excuses, denying or ignoring bad stuff when "We" do it.) If it sucks, it sucks for Obama, Gingrich, Bush, Kennedy, Everybody. BTW - did you actually read any of the stuff at the blog I started? (http://dialogforpeaceandprosperity.blogspot.com/ ) I think we have a lot more in common than might be imagined...(like, I'm seriously looking at voting for Ron Paul...)
[Alan said]
Haven't had time to go through your blog posting- at some point will make time. I think a lot of the crap that goes on would solved if the fed gov just went back to the basics it was supposed to do under the constitution- common defense, coordinate commerce between the states, etc. and let the states handle everything else on a local level. That's like trying to get the genie back in the bottle, though- too much power and money to give up! The beauty of control going back to the states would be the amount of real "diversity" (that revered buzz word) that would be created as like-minded people create the kind of structures they want in their states and cities. But the feds always redefine the issue of states rights back into the issue of racial discrimination in the south and use that to rationalize federal control over ALL areas of life, because the issue of "equality" (of outcome) is seen to trump individual freedom and responsibility.
…Speaking of which; if you don't like central control, have you gotten a grip on this UN Agenda 21 issue- the idea of using the concept of "sustainability" to affect world-wide centralized control of all areas of life with the rationale that it is all necessary to "save the planet"? Check out this article (from the dreaded Fox News) about the EPA taking up this call to become proactive in not only environmental, but ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL areas of life. I would think you would agree on how this can lead to top down micromanagement of how we live.. Especially note the segment on how this is playing out in Europe. Hey, everybody is for clean air and water, but all issues of life are then redefined back into that issue, so, for example, if you want to live in a single family home or drive somewhere in your own car you want to DESTROY THE PLANET. Here's a link to the article, and a link to an article on Agenda 21. You can find agenda 21 stuff on the UN's own site too. I mean, man, it's got to be obvious the power grab that's going on here! (I'm heading to Yakima tomorrow for the rest of the week, so when you respond back it might take me a while to get back to you. But I'm interested in your take on this and how scientific debate is being silenced by the urgent push to seize control of our lives in the name of "we've got to do something- and we'll tell you what it will be. And you will pay us to do it." http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/19/epa-ponders-expanded-regulatory-power-in-name-sustainable-development/?test=latestnews
…and Agenda 21- http://www.sovereigndistinction.com/globalization.html
…and the UN Eco Power Grab:
http://climatedepot.com/a/14072/Exclusive-UN-Climate-Draft-Text-Demands-New-International-Climate-Court-to-compel-reparations-for-climate-debt--Also-seeks-rights-of-Mother-Earth--2Cdeg-drop-in-global-temps
Exclusive: UN Climate Draft Text Demands 'New International Climate Court' to compel reparations for…
*************************************************************
I did visit all the websites and articles that Alan mentioned above, and found some very interesting things.
To start with, I'd never read or listened to anything from Fox News, so it came as something of a surprise to me that the article on the Environmental Protection Agency by George Russell (Executive Editor of Fox News) displayed less blatant editorial bias than many comparable pieces from liberal/progressive/green sources. I also watched a couple of Fox News video clips, and thought they both gave a pretty even handed perspective on the issues they covered.
Next I visited the Sovereign Distinction site, and read some of the article from December, 2010 by Donna J. Holt on [United Nations] Agenda 21, Private Property and National Sovereignty. While I thought the overall tone of the website and the article more strident and partisan than Fox, I was impressed by the careful research, attributions for information sources, and links to sites for "see for yourself" confirmation of what was being said.
Then I followed the link to www.climatedepot.com, and found what I judge to be bare-knuckled conservative polemic typified by statements like "The contents of this document, turgidly drafted with all the UN's skill at what the former head of its documentation center used to call “transparent impenetrability”, are not just off the wall – they are lunatic." and "The draft, which seems to have been written by feeble-minded green activists and environmental extremists, talks of “The recognition and defence of the rights of Mother Earth to ensure harmony between humanity and nature”."
Setting aside the issue of editorial bias, what impresses me about all three of these sites is the validity and importance of the concerns they are raising.
I did go directly to the United Nations website and scanned their posting of UN Agenda 21, and I think a good case can be made for it being Old Guard Socialism marching under the banner of Sustainable Development.
40 years ago, I would've said "Right on, Brothers! Power to the People!"
20 years ago, I would've said "Gee, I'm all for helping Mother Earth, and I think these people are trying to do that, but I'm having a hard time understanding what, exactly, they're doing…"
Right now, in the last couple of days of 2011, I'm still all for helping Mother Earth, and still think the UN people and their allies are trying to do that.
What has changed for me is that I no longer believe that a just and sustainable world can be created by anything like Agenda 21, which in it own preamble states that "Its successful implementation is first and foremost the responsibility of Governments."
What I'm seeing is that the same combination of pork-barrel politics, bureaucratic arrogance and self-service masquerading as public service that helped create the military-industrial complex and endless war, the medical-industrial complex and endless health care costs, the oil-industrial complex and endless pursuit of the next barrel of crude, can now help create an eco-industrial complex and endless justification of any kind of power grabbing and coercion in the name of sustainable development.
I believe that the creation and implementation of any just and sustainable socio-economic system, whether at the regional, national or trans-national level, is first and foremost the responsibility of the people who live within that system, and that it must be based on mutual respect and cooperation, not mandated by an elite of and then implemented by force.
I also believe that to do that we must let go of the "enclave mentality", in which we insulate ourselves from a world of conflicting values and opinions by respecting and listening only to people whose opinions agree with our own, and dismissing and disrespecting people whose opinions disagree with our own.
I am as guilty of this as anyone, as I found out when I visited the websites that Alan recommended, and found much truth there that I had previously dismissed because I "didn't like the politics" of the people who were presenting it.
Respect does not always equal agreement, disagreement does not always mean disrespect.
In order to authentically agree or disagree about anything, we must first respect and pursue the truth, regardless of who tells it or how inconvenient it may be.
If we commit to telling and hearing the truth regardless of how disagreeable or inconvenient it may be, and we honor that commitment in our speaking and listening, that is respect.
Where there is respect, there can be trust.
Where there is trust, there can be cooperation.
Where there is cooperation, all things are possible.
Next up: "On The Nature Of Truth And Democracy"
********************************************
[Bob said (regarding the DAA of 2012)]
This is serious stuff, folks. When the "Bad Guys" hold people indefinitely without charges, without counsel, we call it totalitarianism. Remember, you wouldn't have to actually do anything to be held indefinitely, just be accused of being/supporting/talking to a terrorist.
http://www.salon.com/2011/12/16/three_myths_about_the_detention_bill/singleton/
[Alan said]
Hey, Cuz, here we have an issue we can certainly agree on unequivocally! Any citizen on the left or right could be branded a terrorist, so this is causing concern across the political spectrum. Hmm...didn't we have that thing called habeas corpus that is supposed to apply to all citizens? Bright spot is that I'll bet this wouldn't stand in the supreme court!
[Bob said]
Alan! Dude! You are so right! Having not only voted but also campaigned for Obama, I'm very disappointed for a number of reasons - but this one pretty much takes the $@^% cake! (Not that I'm letting those ^$##^ Bozo's in Congress off the hook...) What this really, REALLY brings home to me is that it's well and truly time to let go of partisan chauvinism (i.e., launching the heavy artillery when "They" do bad stuff, then making excuses, denying or ignoring bad stuff when "We" do it.) If it sucks, it sucks for Obama, Gingrich, Bush, Kennedy, Everybody. BTW - did you actually read any of the stuff at the blog I started? (http://dialogforpeaceandprosperity.blogspot.com/ ) I think we have a lot more in common than might be imagined...(like, I'm seriously looking at voting for Ron Paul...)
[Alan said]
Haven't had time to go through your blog posting- at some point will make time. I think a lot of the crap that goes on would solved if the fed gov just went back to the basics it was supposed to do under the constitution- common defense, coordinate commerce between the states, etc. and let the states handle everything else on a local level. That's like trying to get the genie back in the bottle, though- too much power and money to give up! The beauty of control going back to the states would be the amount of real "diversity" (that revered buzz word) that would be created as like-minded people create the kind of structures they want in their states and cities. But the feds always redefine the issue of states rights back into the issue of racial discrimination in the south and use that to rationalize federal control over ALL areas of life, because the issue of "equality" (of outcome) is seen to trump individual freedom and responsibility.
…Speaking of which; if you don't like central control, have you gotten a grip on this UN Agenda 21 issue- the idea of using the concept of "sustainability" to affect world-wide centralized control of all areas of life with the rationale that it is all necessary to "save the planet"? Check out this article (from the dreaded Fox News) about the EPA taking up this call to become proactive in not only environmental, but ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL areas of life. I would think you would agree on how this can lead to top down micromanagement of how we live.. Especially note the segment on how this is playing out in Europe. Hey, everybody is for clean air and water, but all issues of life are then redefined back into that issue, so, for example, if you want to live in a single family home or drive somewhere in your own car you want to DESTROY THE PLANET. Here's a link to the article, and a link to an article on Agenda 21. You can find agenda 21 stuff on the UN's own site too. I mean, man, it's got to be obvious the power grab that's going on here! (I'm heading to Yakima tomorrow for the rest of the week, so when you respond back it might take me a while to get back to you. But I'm interested in your take on this and how scientific debate is being silenced by the urgent push to seize control of our lives in the name of "we've got to do something- and we'll tell you what it will be. And you will pay us to do it." http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/19/epa-ponders-expanded-regulatory-power-in-name-sustainable-development/?test=latestnews
…and Agenda 21- http://www.sovereigndistinction.com/globalization.html
…and the UN Eco Power Grab:
http://climatedepot.com/a/14072/Exclusive-UN-Climate-Draft-Text-Demands-New-International-Climate-Court-to-compel-reparations-for-climate-debt--Also-seeks-rights-of-Mother-Earth--2Cdeg-drop-in-global-temps
Exclusive: UN Climate Draft Text Demands 'New International Climate Court' to compel reparations for…
*************************************************************
I did visit all the websites and articles that Alan mentioned above, and found some very interesting things.
To start with, I'd never read or listened to anything from Fox News, so it came as something of a surprise to me that the article on the Environmental Protection Agency by George Russell (Executive Editor of Fox News) displayed less blatant editorial bias than many comparable pieces from liberal/progressive/green sources. I also watched a couple of Fox News video clips, and thought they both gave a pretty even handed perspective on the issues they covered.
Next I visited the Sovereign Distinction site, and read some of the article from December, 2010 by Donna J. Holt on [United Nations] Agenda 21, Private Property and National Sovereignty. While I thought the overall tone of the website and the article more strident and partisan than Fox, I was impressed by the careful research, attributions for information sources, and links to sites for "see for yourself" confirmation of what was being said.
Then I followed the link to www.climatedepot.com, and found what I judge to be bare-knuckled conservative polemic typified by statements like "The contents of this document, turgidly drafted with all the UN's skill at what the former head of its documentation center used to call “transparent impenetrability”, are not just off the wall – they are lunatic." and "The draft, which seems to have been written by feeble-minded green activists and environmental extremists, talks of “The recognition and defence of the rights of Mother Earth to ensure harmony between humanity and nature”."
Setting aside the issue of editorial bias, what impresses me about all three of these sites is the validity and importance of the concerns they are raising.
I did go directly to the United Nations website and scanned their posting of UN Agenda 21, and I think a good case can be made for it being Old Guard Socialism marching under the banner of Sustainable Development.
40 years ago, I would've said "Right on, Brothers! Power to the People!"
20 years ago, I would've said "Gee, I'm all for helping Mother Earth, and I think these people are trying to do that, but I'm having a hard time understanding what, exactly, they're doing…"
Right now, in the last couple of days of 2011, I'm still all for helping Mother Earth, and still think the UN people and their allies are trying to do that.
What has changed for me is that I no longer believe that a just and sustainable world can be created by anything like Agenda 21, which in it own preamble states that "Its successful implementation is first and foremost the responsibility of Governments."
What I'm seeing is that the same combination of pork-barrel politics, bureaucratic arrogance and self-service masquerading as public service that helped create the military-industrial complex and endless war, the medical-industrial complex and endless health care costs, the oil-industrial complex and endless pursuit of the next barrel of crude, can now help create an eco-industrial complex and endless justification of any kind of power grabbing and coercion in the name of sustainable development.
I believe that the creation and implementation of any just and sustainable socio-economic system, whether at the regional, national or trans-national level, is first and foremost the responsibility of the people who live within that system, and that it must be based on mutual respect and cooperation, not mandated by an elite of and then implemented by force.
I also believe that to do that we must let go of the "enclave mentality", in which we insulate ourselves from a world of conflicting values and opinions by respecting and listening only to people whose opinions agree with our own, and dismissing and disrespecting people whose opinions disagree with our own.
I am as guilty of this as anyone, as I found out when I visited the websites that Alan recommended, and found much truth there that I had previously dismissed because I "didn't like the politics" of the people who were presenting it.
Respect does not always equal agreement, disagreement does not always mean disrespect.
In order to authentically agree or disagree about anything, we must first respect and pursue the truth, regardless of who tells it or how inconvenient it may be.
If we commit to telling and hearing the truth regardless of how disagreeable or inconvenient it may be, and we honor that commitment in our speaking and listening, that is respect.
Where there is respect, there can be trust.
Where there is trust, there can be cooperation.
Where there is cooperation, all things are possible.
Next up: "On The Nature Of Truth And Democracy"
Monday, December 26, 2011
Yes! It works!
Check out this ABC News piece (if you haven't already,) on the power of buying American!
http://cdnapi.kaltura.com/index.php/kwidget/wid/0_04vzdsr5/uiconf_id/5590821
We can do this in a thousand different ways across the country...
http://cdnapi.kaltura.com/index.php/kwidget/wid/0_04vzdsr5/uiconf_id/5590821
We can do this in a thousand different ways across the country...
Monday, December 5, 2011
Fractal Economics
After reading Parke Bostrom's excellent critique of my post on Entrepreneurial Humanism, I looked up "anarcho-capitalism" on Wikipedia, and I agree that there are some very close parallels between the two.
Most particularly, I agree with the statement attributed to Murray Rothbard, a leading philosopher of anarcho-capitalism: "…the capitalist system of today is, indeed, not properly anarchistic because it is so often in collusion with the state."
This cuts to the heart of my deep distrust of capitalism as it exists today.
The way I see it now, when corporations reach a certain level of assets and cash flow, their power over the government (through lobbying and campaign contributions,) and over the marketplace itself (by muscling through legislation that favors their interests,) creates Mussolini's definition of Fascism: "Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power."
But even if we could make laws that reduce this corporate influence (which I doubt, given just how much power the corporations really do wield,) it would at best only limit the corruption, not solve any basic problems.
I truly believe that we must come to grips with the basic human conflict of individual vs. collective good, and that this can only be done through self knowledge, self discipline and conscious cooperation, not legislation or other forms of coercion.
Reaching the point where enough people have resolved this conflict to create a culture of cooperation will, in my belief, be as great a leap in human evolution as the emergence and success of the Cro-Magnon brain that replaced the Neanderthal brain.
It will require re-defining what terms like peace, prosperity, well being and contentment mean to us as individuals, re-structuring how we connect and interact with people in our daily lives, and re-structuring the social and economic institutions that create the larger landscape in which we live.
In creating a socio-economic system that supports this evolutionary leap, I believe that the workable answer to the corporate capitalism/fascism we have today is "fractal economics": an economy based on small to mid-sized businesses applying a common set of ethics and principles, operated by employers and employees who are applying these same principles in their daily lives, and serving a customer base also applying these principles in the use of their purchasing power.
[I'm using the term "fractal" here as an interpretation of fractal geometry: " 'A fractal has been defined as "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity.' " (Source: Wikipedia) In fractal economics, I'm reversing and expanding this definition: "An individual unit having a certain shape and properties, which combines and interacts with other units having similar shapes and properties, to form a larger unit with the shape and properties of its smaller units. This larger unit can combine and interact with other larger units, with each larger unit embodying the basic shape and properties of the smallest units."]
Obviously I've presented this in sweeping and idealistic terms. I think it's important to do that at this stage, to allow ourselves to be inspired by the possibilities of real change - fundamental change - rather than slapping more bandages on the systemic cancers of our culture.
Turning these ideals in something that actually works has to start somewhere, so I'm putting this model forward in expectation that others will help to identify its strengths and weaknesses, contribute new ideas, and pull it together into something that we can put into action.
The vision I'm seeing is composed of three interdependent components: pro-active consumerism, fractal business design, and fractal money. These three components also represent phases of the implementation of entrepreneurial humanism through fractal economics, each step creating the foundation for the next step.
Pro-active Consumerism
This is the absolutely essential core of fractal economics, without which no other component can function.
It is dependent upon the following hierarchy of assertions:
1. If we are to divest the power to control our lives from government and corporations, without creating other institutions that do the same things and then complaining about how they control us, we must take up that power ourselves.
2. In taking that power, we must also take personal responsibility for doing the beneficial things that government and corporations are doing for us now. This means that most of us are called to invest time, energy and money differently than we are currently investing them.
3. In order to create an economy that works for most of the people most of the time, we must invest our time, energy and money in re-creating the marketplace from the ground up. This means moving from a 'push-based' to a 'pull-based' market.
The push-based market is dominated by corporations dedicated to generating profit without regard to the impact on human beings and the world in which humans live.
Products are created on the basis of their ability to generate sales, and then a lot of creativity and money goes into convincing the public that we need this, we want this, we have to have this, it will make us feel cool, sexy, smart, powerful, beautiful, connected, loved, etc., while ignoring, denying or minimizing the consequences that using or consuming the product actually brings.
(The soft drink industry is perhaps the quintessential example of this. According to information found at http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/soft-drink-consumption.html the National Soft Drink Association reports that average per-capita consumption of soft drinks in America has reached 600 12-ounce servings (56 gallons) per year. In males between the ages of 12 and 29, the average is 160 gallons per year. [When I attempted to verify this information at the NSDA website, I found that it's a closed, members-only site, as is the American Beverage Association's site.] The official website of the US Dept. of Agriculture provides a report strongly linking soft drink consumption by middle school children to obesity and type 2 diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, 8.3% of Americans have diabetes, and almost 25% are pre-diabetic, with the numbers still rising.)
The ethos underlying this mode of operation is some variation on "Hey, we're here to make a profit, that's what business is about, it's not our job to decide what's good or not good for people, or the world. We sell, they buy. End of story."
And in my belief and judgment, most of that ethos is absolutely correct!
It's our job to decide what is and isn't good for us, our job to decide what we will and won't buy, and why we do or don't.
In the pull-based market, consumers do take responsibility for what we buy and from whom, for the impact of our spending/consuming habits on our own lives and those around us.
In fractal economics power must always be accompanied by responsibility (and vice versa,) because the properties of the larger structures always equals the sum of the properties of the individuals involved.
If we want an economy that works for most of the people most of the time, we must have a majority of individuals who work for most of the people most of the time - not to the exclusion of their own profit, but in ways that recognize a level of mutual inter-dependence.
I propose that we (consumers) establish a network of affiliated organizations specifically to bring together, educate and empower consumers in taking control of, and responsibility for, our economy.
I propose that we call the parent organization the American Consumers Union, the local affiliate the Humboldt Consumers Union, and that we create and copyright/trademark logos for them right away.
I propose that we link these names and logos to copyrighted documents titled "The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the American Consumers Union" and "The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the Humboldt Consumers Union".
I propose that these documents be similar to the following:
The members of the American Consumers Union are agreed that the corporate-dominated American economy of the 20th and early 21st centuries is unstable, unjust, and hugely benefits a small minority to the detriment of the vast majority.
We are also agreed that changes needed to bring about a more stable and just economy (one that meets the needs of most of the people, most of the time,) cannot be legislated or coerced. It can only come about through the cooperation of citizens who recognize that what we buy and from whom impacts everyone around us. We must be willing to purchase carefully to make that impact a positive one, and willing to pay a higher price (and where necessary, to make do with less,) in order to bring about a more stable and just economy.
We declare the following rights and responsibilities, and declare also our determination to put them into practice:
1. We have the right and responsibility to organize and consolidate our power as consumers, to set standards and specifications for the goods and services we desire, to cooperate with businesses to deliver these goods and services at a reasonable profit, and to reward businesses that do cooperate with our customer loyalty and support.
2. We have the right and responsibility to purchase products that are well made, designed to be durable and repaired rather than discarded, and to pay a reasonable premium for this quality and durability.
3. We have the right and responsibility to purchase products that, throughout the cycle of manufacture, use and release, are supportive of the planet on which we live and depend, and to pay a reasonable premium for these products.
4. We have the right and responsibility to exercise a hierarchical preference in purchasing locally, regionally and American made products, to support family, small and mid-sized businesses over large corporations, and to pay a reasonable premium in giving this support.
5. We have the right and responsibility to purchase from businesses that pay employees a living wage, provide health care and retirement benefits, and to pay a reasonable premium in supporting these businesses.
6. We have the right and responsibility to do business with local credit unions and banks, to keep our money within our communities rather than exporting it, and to accept that sometimes we will receive a lesser short term profit from investing in this way.
By recognizing that how and what we buy as consumers directly impacts how and what we earn as employees or entrepreneurs, by cooperating with other consumers and businesses to achieve a workable balance of personal and community prosperity, we create a very different marketplace from the existing, winner-take-all, corporate-dominated killing fields.
By doing all this under the banner of a clearly defined set of rights and responsibilities common to all, and linking these rights and responsibilities to clearly recognizable logos, we can tap into the deep and powerful desire for change that has been building up in the shadows of America until the Occupy Movement gave it voice.
I think it's vitally important to keep two things in mind at this point:
First and foremost is getting something in motion as soon as possible, rather than trying to hash out every possibility and detail before we start.
Secondly, the purpose of taking the first few steps isn't to make the changes we want happen right now. It's about creating the framework and momentum of cooperation, getting face to face with consumers and businesses, making incremental changes in our own spending/purchasing patterns within this framework, and documenting and publishing the results - however minor those results might seem.
The biggest hurdles in creating positive change are always inertia and skepticism.
Inertia is why it's so important to go from doing nothing to doing something, however flawed it may prove to be, as soon as possible. (Also because the widespread discontent expressing through the Occupy movement will turn toxic, ugly and violent very quickly if it isn't given a positive outlet.)
Skepticism is why it's so important to document and publish. Every small success builds the confidence to produce more small successes. A small group showing the world five small successes will almost certainly become a larger group, and will show the world five larger successes.
Where to start?
Something do-able, something non-threatening, something that lends itself to business/consumer cooperation.
Example:
I'm a big fan of Casa Lindra salsa, made in Arcata (Northern Humboldt County, CA, six miles north of where I live.) The cupboard under my kitchen counter is filled with stacks upon stacks of plastic Casa Lindra containers, which we use for food storage, but we still put stacks and stacks of them in the recycle bin each month.
I think it would be relatively easy to organize a group of Casa Lindra customers who would like to buy their salsa in bulk, and to approach Casa Lindra with a proposal to make this possible.
I also think that Casa Lindra would be receptive to approach by a group of customers who are already buying their product regularly, who have come up with a plan, and are pledged to do their part in making the plan work.
This, to me, embodies the very heart and soul of pro-active consumerism: Consumers deciding what they want and how they want it, coming up with a plan, approaching business(es) with the plan, and committing to doing their share to make it work.
With this humble beginning, I can imagine a functioning network of local chapters affiliated through the logo and the The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the American Consumers Union in two to five years, and a functioning national organization in 10 to 20 years.
As the numbers and clout of the organization grows, I see the ability to support small and mid-sized businesses in providing good pay and benefits for employees becoming a reality, and this mutual support and cooperation leading to…
Fractal Business Design
This phase of fractal economics is less thought-through in my own mind, but it starts with a trademarked/copyrighted logo and mission statement similar to the bill of rights and responsibilities above, to be adopted and used by each participating business.
The most crucial aspect of this concept is to have statements equivalent to the following included in the core mission of the business itself:
1. The commitment of this business is not solely to provide profits for its owners, nor solely to provide living wages and benefits for its employees, but to provide both in mutual cooperation and support.
2. The commitment of this business is to provide products and services that meet authentic needs, do what they're supposed to do, and to work closely with customers to ensure that this is so.
3. The commitment of this business is to provide our products and services in ways that support the planet on which we live and depend.
The general idea is that businesses with very closely aligned mission statements will be better able to cooperate, with each other and with consumers. (Especially consumers with a closely aligned mission statement of their own!)
As the movement grows one benefit will be that affiliated businesses can employee/recruit people who belong to the American Consumers Union, which will not only provide an unusually cooperative and aware work force, but also an unusually cooperative customer base for affiliated businesses.
As growth continues, and the cooperation between consumers and business increases, it will be possible to create businesses with a list of products and services desired, and a list of customers waiting to buy them. This will reduce or eliminate the need to allocate a significant part of cash flow to advertising, and reduce losses from unsuccessful products.
This level of business and consumer cooperation will also make it possible create consortiums of small to mid-sized businesses, which will reap the benefits of economy of scale and the bargaining clout of large corporations, without their inflexibility.
For example, with a loyal customer and disciplined customer base, ultra-efficient cars could be produced using parts from relatively small contractors, assembled in relatively small local/regional plants, and pre-sold to customers who know exactly what they want. The price to the customer might be somewhat higher than the same car produced in one gigantic plant in Michigan, but the customers aren't just looking at the bottom line. And if customer demand drops off, the participating businesses can cooperate with each other and with customers in scaling back production, and/or creating and providing different products. This is all supported by customers whose loyalty is to the companies and their core values, not just the products.
Obviously there's a lot yet to be worked out, and I'm going to take my own medicine and post this for feedback rather than trying to hash it all out first.
Blessings to all,
Bob
Most particularly, I agree with the statement attributed to Murray Rothbard, a leading philosopher of anarcho-capitalism: "…the capitalist system of today is, indeed, not properly anarchistic because it is so often in collusion with the state."
This cuts to the heart of my deep distrust of capitalism as it exists today.
The way I see it now, when corporations reach a certain level of assets and cash flow, their power over the government (through lobbying and campaign contributions,) and over the marketplace itself (by muscling through legislation that favors their interests,) creates Mussolini's definition of Fascism: "Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power."
But even if we could make laws that reduce this corporate influence (which I doubt, given just how much power the corporations really do wield,) it would at best only limit the corruption, not solve any basic problems.
I truly believe that we must come to grips with the basic human conflict of individual vs. collective good, and that this can only be done through self knowledge, self discipline and conscious cooperation, not legislation or other forms of coercion.
Reaching the point where enough people have resolved this conflict to create a culture of cooperation will, in my belief, be as great a leap in human evolution as the emergence and success of the Cro-Magnon brain that replaced the Neanderthal brain.
It will require re-defining what terms like peace, prosperity, well being and contentment mean to us as individuals, re-structuring how we connect and interact with people in our daily lives, and re-structuring the social and economic institutions that create the larger landscape in which we live.
In creating a socio-economic system that supports this evolutionary leap, I believe that the workable answer to the corporate capitalism/fascism we have today is "fractal economics": an economy based on small to mid-sized businesses applying a common set of ethics and principles, operated by employers and employees who are applying these same principles in their daily lives, and serving a customer base also applying these principles in the use of their purchasing power.
[I'm using the term "fractal" here as an interpretation of fractal geometry: " 'A fractal has been defined as "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity.' " (Source: Wikipedia) In fractal economics, I'm reversing and expanding this definition: "An individual unit having a certain shape and properties, which combines and interacts with other units having similar shapes and properties, to form a larger unit with the shape and properties of its smaller units. This larger unit can combine and interact with other larger units, with each larger unit embodying the basic shape and properties of the smallest units."]
Obviously I've presented this in sweeping and idealistic terms. I think it's important to do that at this stage, to allow ourselves to be inspired by the possibilities of real change - fundamental change - rather than slapping more bandages on the systemic cancers of our culture.
Turning these ideals in something that actually works has to start somewhere, so I'm putting this model forward in expectation that others will help to identify its strengths and weaknesses, contribute new ideas, and pull it together into something that we can put into action.
The vision I'm seeing is composed of three interdependent components: pro-active consumerism, fractal business design, and fractal money. These three components also represent phases of the implementation of entrepreneurial humanism through fractal economics, each step creating the foundation for the next step.
Pro-active Consumerism
This is the absolutely essential core of fractal economics, without which no other component can function.
It is dependent upon the following hierarchy of assertions:
1. If we are to divest the power to control our lives from government and corporations, without creating other institutions that do the same things and then complaining about how they control us, we must take up that power ourselves.
2. In taking that power, we must also take personal responsibility for doing the beneficial things that government and corporations are doing for us now. This means that most of us are called to invest time, energy and money differently than we are currently investing them.
3. In order to create an economy that works for most of the people most of the time, we must invest our time, energy and money in re-creating the marketplace from the ground up. This means moving from a 'push-based' to a 'pull-based' market.
The push-based market is dominated by corporations dedicated to generating profit without regard to the impact on human beings and the world in which humans live.
Products are created on the basis of their ability to generate sales, and then a lot of creativity and money goes into convincing the public that we need this, we want this, we have to have this, it will make us feel cool, sexy, smart, powerful, beautiful, connected, loved, etc., while ignoring, denying or minimizing the consequences that using or consuming the product actually brings.
(The soft drink industry is perhaps the quintessential example of this. According to information found at http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/soft-drink-consumption.html the National Soft Drink Association reports that average per-capita consumption of soft drinks in America has reached 600 12-ounce servings (56 gallons) per year. In males between the ages of 12 and 29, the average is 160 gallons per year. [When I attempted to verify this information at the NSDA website, I found that it's a closed, members-only site, as is the American Beverage Association's site.] The official website of the US Dept. of Agriculture provides a report strongly linking soft drink consumption by middle school children to obesity and type 2 diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, 8.3% of Americans have diabetes, and almost 25% are pre-diabetic, with the numbers still rising.)
The ethos underlying this mode of operation is some variation on "Hey, we're here to make a profit, that's what business is about, it's not our job to decide what's good or not good for people, or the world. We sell, they buy. End of story."
And in my belief and judgment, most of that ethos is absolutely correct!
It's our job to decide what is and isn't good for us, our job to decide what we will and won't buy, and why we do or don't.
In the pull-based market, consumers do take responsibility for what we buy and from whom, for the impact of our spending/consuming habits on our own lives and those around us.
In fractal economics power must always be accompanied by responsibility (and vice versa,) because the properties of the larger structures always equals the sum of the properties of the individuals involved.
If we want an economy that works for most of the people most of the time, we must have a majority of individuals who work for most of the people most of the time - not to the exclusion of their own profit, but in ways that recognize a level of mutual inter-dependence.
I propose that we (consumers) establish a network of affiliated organizations specifically to bring together, educate and empower consumers in taking control of, and responsibility for, our economy.
I propose that we call the parent organization the American Consumers Union, the local affiliate the Humboldt Consumers Union, and that we create and copyright/trademark logos for them right away.
I propose that we link these names and logos to copyrighted documents titled "The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the American Consumers Union" and "The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the Humboldt Consumers Union".
I propose that these documents be similar to the following:
The members of the American Consumers Union are agreed that the corporate-dominated American economy of the 20th and early 21st centuries is unstable, unjust, and hugely benefits a small minority to the detriment of the vast majority.
We are also agreed that changes needed to bring about a more stable and just economy (one that meets the needs of most of the people, most of the time,) cannot be legislated or coerced. It can only come about through the cooperation of citizens who recognize that what we buy and from whom impacts everyone around us. We must be willing to purchase carefully to make that impact a positive one, and willing to pay a higher price (and where necessary, to make do with less,) in order to bring about a more stable and just economy.
We declare the following rights and responsibilities, and declare also our determination to put them into practice:
1. We have the right and responsibility to organize and consolidate our power as consumers, to set standards and specifications for the goods and services we desire, to cooperate with businesses to deliver these goods and services at a reasonable profit, and to reward businesses that do cooperate with our customer loyalty and support.
2. We have the right and responsibility to purchase products that are well made, designed to be durable and repaired rather than discarded, and to pay a reasonable premium for this quality and durability.
3. We have the right and responsibility to purchase products that, throughout the cycle of manufacture, use and release, are supportive of the planet on which we live and depend, and to pay a reasonable premium for these products.
4. We have the right and responsibility to exercise a hierarchical preference in purchasing locally, regionally and American made products, to support family, small and mid-sized businesses over large corporations, and to pay a reasonable premium in giving this support.
5. We have the right and responsibility to purchase from businesses that pay employees a living wage, provide health care and retirement benefits, and to pay a reasonable premium in supporting these businesses.
6. We have the right and responsibility to do business with local credit unions and banks, to keep our money within our communities rather than exporting it, and to accept that sometimes we will receive a lesser short term profit from investing in this way.
By recognizing that how and what we buy as consumers directly impacts how and what we earn as employees or entrepreneurs, by cooperating with other consumers and businesses to achieve a workable balance of personal and community prosperity, we create a very different marketplace from the existing, winner-take-all, corporate-dominated killing fields.
By doing all this under the banner of a clearly defined set of rights and responsibilities common to all, and linking these rights and responsibilities to clearly recognizable logos, we can tap into the deep and powerful desire for change that has been building up in the shadows of America until the Occupy Movement gave it voice.
I think it's vitally important to keep two things in mind at this point:
First and foremost is getting something in motion as soon as possible, rather than trying to hash out every possibility and detail before we start.
Secondly, the purpose of taking the first few steps isn't to make the changes we want happen right now. It's about creating the framework and momentum of cooperation, getting face to face with consumers and businesses, making incremental changes in our own spending/purchasing patterns within this framework, and documenting and publishing the results - however minor those results might seem.
The biggest hurdles in creating positive change are always inertia and skepticism.
Inertia is why it's so important to go from doing nothing to doing something, however flawed it may prove to be, as soon as possible. (Also because the widespread discontent expressing through the Occupy movement will turn toxic, ugly and violent very quickly if it isn't given a positive outlet.)
Skepticism is why it's so important to document and publish. Every small success builds the confidence to produce more small successes. A small group showing the world five small successes will almost certainly become a larger group, and will show the world five larger successes.
Where to start?
Something do-able, something non-threatening, something that lends itself to business/consumer cooperation.
Example:
I'm a big fan of Casa Lindra salsa, made in Arcata (Northern Humboldt County, CA, six miles north of where I live.) The cupboard under my kitchen counter is filled with stacks upon stacks of plastic Casa Lindra containers, which we use for food storage, but we still put stacks and stacks of them in the recycle bin each month.
I think it would be relatively easy to organize a group of Casa Lindra customers who would like to buy their salsa in bulk, and to approach Casa Lindra with a proposal to make this possible.
I also think that Casa Lindra would be receptive to approach by a group of customers who are already buying their product regularly, who have come up with a plan, and are pledged to do their part in making the plan work.
This, to me, embodies the very heart and soul of pro-active consumerism: Consumers deciding what they want and how they want it, coming up with a plan, approaching business(es) with the plan, and committing to doing their share to make it work.
With this humble beginning, I can imagine a functioning network of local chapters affiliated through the logo and the The Bill of Rights & Responsibilities of the American Consumers Union in two to five years, and a functioning national organization in 10 to 20 years.
As the numbers and clout of the organization grows, I see the ability to support small and mid-sized businesses in providing good pay and benefits for employees becoming a reality, and this mutual support and cooperation leading to…
Fractal Business Design
This phase of fractal economics is less thought-through in my own mind, but it starts with a trademarked/copyrighted logo and mission statement similar to the bill of rights and responsibilities above, to be adopted and used by each participating business.
The most crucial aspect of this concept is to have statements equivalent to the following included in the core mission of the business itself:
1. The commitment of this business is not solely to provide profits for its owners, nor solely to provide living wages and benefits for its employees, but to provide both in mutual cooperation and support.
2. The commitment of this business is to provide products and services that meet authentic needs, do what they're supposed to do, and to work closely with customers to ensure that this is so.
3. The commitment of this business is to provide our products and services in ways that support the planet on which we live and depend.
The general idea is that businesses with very closely aligned mission statements will be better able to cooperate, with each other and with consumers. (Especially consumers with a closely aligned mission statement of their own!)
As the movement grows one benefit will be that affiliated businesses can employee/recruit people who belong to the American Consumers Union, which will not only provide an unusually cooperative and aware work force, but also an unusually cooperative customer base for affiliated businesses.
As growth continues, and the cooperation between consumers and business increases, it will be possible to create businesses with a list of products and services desired, and a list of customers waiting to buy them. This will reduce or eliminate the need to allocate a significant part of cash flow to advertising, and reduce losses from unsuccessful products.
This level of business and consumer cooperation will also make it possible create consortiums of small to mid-sized businesses, which will reap the benefits of economy of scale and the bargaining clout of large corporations, without their inflexibility.
For example, with a loyal customer and disciplined customer base, ultra-efficient cars could be produced using parts from relatively small contractors, assembled in relatively small local/regional plants, and pre-sold to customers who know exactly what they want. The price to the customer might be somewhat higher than the same car produced in one gigantic plant in Michigan, but the customers aren't just looking at the bottom line. And if customer demand drops off, the participating businesses can cooperate with each other and with customers in scaling back production, and/or creating and providing different products. This is all supported by customers whose loyalty is to the companies and their core values, not just the products.
Obviously there's a lot yet to be worked out, and I'm going to take my own medicine and post this for feedback rather than trying to hash it all out first.
Blessings to all,
Bob
Saturday, December 3, 2011
The piece below is from a friend, Don Allen, who had trouble with the "Comment" widget so I'm posting it for him. Bob Olofson
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A digression on Bob’s thought-provoking piece on Fractal Economics:
Bob’s exposition of a roadmap to a different (maybe better) way of dealing with material goods in human society is very well thought out (as usual for Bob) and lots of fun to play with. But what really grabs my interest – and what I see to be the key to anything that might be done – are four critical notions that he sets forth in the first dozen paragraphs of his article.
The first three are sublimely interconnected and are the key to all effective social change.
- There’s a perceived difference (Bob says "conflict") between our notions of individual and collective good;
- The resolution of this difference necessarily happens within the individual – i.e., it can’t happen anywhere else than within the individual; and
- In order to resolve this conflict, the individual must redefine (for oneself) such terms as "peace, prosperity, well-being and contentment."
The fourth critical notion – fractal theory – offers a useful metaphor for understanding the mechanics of human society (economics and everything else, as well).
I completely agree with Bob that when there’s a perceived difference between individual (personal) and collective (societal) well-being such difference can only be resolved within the individual perceiving the difference. For all practical purposes, the difference only exists – if it exists at all – in the individual’s perception of it.
Here it’s useful to pick up the fractal theory bit. Perhaps it makes sense to view individual humans as fractal segments. String a bunch of us together and you get society (or a society, or a corporation perhaps). And when you stand far enough back from the society you’ve gotten, its shape is pretty much the same as any of its fractal segment components, which are in turn pretty much indistinguishable from each other.
Okay, maybe it’s a bit of a stretch. Fractals seem to be concrete "things," and we’re talking about behavior. But consider the value of applying the fractal metaphor to the individual/society link-up. If the larger segment reflects the shape of the smaller segment, then maybe it’s useful to use this metaphor for thinking about behavior of the larger body. Does it make sense to say that the behavior of the larger body reflects the behavior of the individual components? That’s how it seems to me.
So, even though Bob’s outline of an action plan is well considered and elegantly presented, my attention is drawn more to the question of how individuals change themselves in order for society to manifest benefit for all. Said a bit differently, if we don’t like society’s behavior, the right place to look for change is in our own behavior.
Again (because it’s so important): there’s only one platform from which any individual has leverage to change society, and that’s within that individual. Change yourself and you change society. It’s that simple.
Check it out in the converse. Have you ever successfully changed another individual? Be honest. Really probe this notion. Where – in all the universe – do you have the power to change anyone?
Lest we despair, fearing our personal inadequacy and ineffectiveness, check this out too: how great is your power for change? If you really look at it, I think you’ll find that it’s enormous. It’s downright godlike. You have infinite power to change yourself. And what happens when you change yourself? Examine that through the lens of the fractal metaphor.
I like to remember a motto I once read in the Last Whole Earth Catalog: "We are as gods and might as well get good at it." Words to live by.
It’s a reasonably good bet that if you’re reading this you’ve been on your own personal quest for change for a long time now. Blessings on your journey. If you’re inclined to check some more stuff out, here are some links to resources that have been (and still are) really useful to me.
For an interesting insight into fractal theory at work in the market, scan the Wikipedia article on Fibonacci retracement.
For a sweet angle on the Occupy Movement, watch this video.
I’ve received inspiring and highly useful insights along my path from these folks:
- Abraham;
- Byron Katie;
- Robert Scheinfeld (especially his Busting Loose… books);
- Eckhart Tolle;
- Gangaji;. And
- Jedda Mali.
The Passion Test can be a useful tool for effecting personal change.
And if you want to plug into lifelong support in an approach that’s guaranteed to change the way you live, check out Balanced View. Listen to the two talking heads on the home page. Then, if you’re still interested, listen to more of the teachers and download/read the free books. I can vouch for the efficacy of this outfit and their trainings. Wow!
Much love to all, --d.
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