The Thread For a Working Plan To Fix The World

Originally posted by radosta
How about instead of coming up with an umbrella, "one size fits all" plan, we allow individual communities do what they think is best for them. Even if - scratch that- ESPECIALLY if we disagree with them.
"Working plans to fix the world" have only ever created tyranny.
Leave me out of it. The planning, the execution, the deaths, the destruction of liberty, the emergence of a new(although probably the same) elite class. Stay away from my home with that nonsense. We don't need to be "fixed."

That sounds good in theory, but it will eventually turn into a segregated world again. Those different communities will turn into cities, that turn into states, that turn into countries, that will again wage war over differences with the "others" who are different.

I'm wondering if a one-size-fits-all is possible. If it isn't, then maybe things have been made too complicated. People need the freedom to be able to live as they choose, but if those freedoms impede on others too much, or there isn't law to protect people, then there's a problem. I see this as a real problem of proper balance and a lack of communal goals. If we're all out of "me", then we'll end up right back here again one day. But if we're all out for "others", then we might just have a chance.

Originally posted by ThirdEyeofHorus
reply to post by Gseven

 

I like the online higher education thing. Universities are already going in that direction, but it involves servers and an IT infrastructure. There is a cost associated with it. Also, I think some things need to be given special attention. For me algebra was tough, and there needs to be a two way educational program to allow for questions and working through problems. Also, to me certain technical and healthcare related things need hands on, such as learning to give IV's and taking blood, surgical procedures, etc.

Absolutely, I agree that there are some things that can only be taught hands on. But a LOT of it can be done online.

What if everyone that received a free education, agreed to teach for two years in exchange? The military already does this to some extent, with service being the mandatory exchange. Surely, there must be a way to incorporate this type of exchange with other things like education, care for the elderly, etc.

I think that schools need to be completely revamped. Smaller classrooms, more teachers, and curriculum that encompasses the arts, agriculture, community service/volunteering, and self-sustaining practices that will be infused into the younger generations.

reply to post by Gseven


How can anything be of greater or lesser value? From cleaners to physicists and all the rest, there is no job or resource that is of greater or lesser value. If you need a glass of water or a sack of potatoes or a table or a painting or whatever-it-may-be, it will have value. Why do you hold onto that idea of "greater or lesser"? There is no need for bartering or exchange at all. You do what you do because you love doing it, full stop. When your goods run out, you start again. People will learn to take only what they need and leave the rest for others. We have seven billion people on the planet. If no one owns anything, no one will keep resources from others.

Remember that this selfishness we live with now is a product of the concept of scarcity, which is purely to control people and keep them in fear. If we all had money, we could all buy stuff. Is someone with money more worthy than someone without? Not in the least. But that's how money divides us.

Change the thoughts in your head. Change them so that they come from your heart. If you see a small child who is hungry, do you ask for money? How about an old person? Are you going to slam the door in their face? Why cling to something as malevolent as that concept of lesser and greater value? Why to money at all?

Change your reality by changing your thoughts.

Originally posted by CosmicEgg
reply to post by Gseven

 

How can anything be of greater or lesser value? From cleaners to physicists and all the rest, there is no job or resource that is of greater or lesser value. If you need a glass of water or a sack of potatoes or a table or a painting or whatever-it-may-be, it will have value. Why do you hold onto that idea of "greater or lesser"? There is no need for bartering or exchange at all. You do what you do because you love doing it, full stop. When your goods run out, you start again. People will learn to take only what they need and leave the rest for others. We have seven billion people on the planet. If no one owns anything, no one will keep resources from others.

Remember that this selfishness we live with now is a product of the concept of scarcity, which is purely to control people and keep them in fear. If we all had money, we could all buy stuff. Is someone with money more worthy than someone without? Not in the least. But that's how money divides us.

Change the thoughts in your head. Change them so that they come from your heart. If you see a small child who is hungry, do you ask for money? How about an old person? Are you going to slam the door in their face? Why cling to something as malevolent as that concept of lesser and greater value? Why to money at all?

Change your reality by changing your thoughts.

I completely agree...let me just make that clear. I'm not defending the monetary system or even the bartering system - I simply see how it was meant to keep things fair. Yes, things do carry different values. Spending a year growing crops is quite a bit different than trading that for a loaf of bread that takes a day to make. In this manner, I can see how an amount of "this" is equal in trade for an amount of "that". It does take a lot of labor for certain items, and TIME, whereas other things, not so much. Are they all needed? Yes, but if they were all traded equally, then there would be shortages eventually, due to the fact that there aren't enough people producing those things that take more time and labor. But flipping from what we have today into that style of living is virtually impossible without mass amnesia. Expecting people to only take what they need versus what they will actually take, are two different things.

But I do agree with you. That would be ideal. We are, however, a LONG ways off from that. So what do we do in the interim? Baby steps....how would you propose moving back toward that way of living, little by little, without the culture shock of forcing it suddenly on the masses who know nothing else but the almighty dollar?

reply to post by Gseven


I've proposed this before but it falls on deaf ears. I think our government needs to form a new type of corporate entity that truly allows individuals to form partnerships and protect the entity itself. The new entity would have the following characteristics:

1. All people who work in the business are partners of that business
   
2. Partners are not paid wages, rather, they take an agreed upon percentage of the revenue
   
3. A partner that leaves the entity can not cash out anything from the entity, nor can they claim any right to anything the entity has
   
4. When a partner leaves they receive no benefit from the entity
   
5. Because all the workers in the entity are partners of the entity they are not subject to labor and employment laws or regulations
   

What this would allow people to do is enter into contracts with each other collectively to engage in business, without the risk associated with traditional corporate entities. In effect, this would be like a commune business model. Where a group of people work together toward a common purpose, in pursuit of making their collective goals into reality.

If you and me wanted to start a business such as this we could begin the entity, add partners as the business grew, and not be concerned with a partner leaving and taking the assets that have been built. This business model is already used in the United States but is reserved only for Lawyers, Doctors and other professionals. This model of business (known as a PLLC) should be available to common folks looking to start some business venture.

What would happen if common folk were allowed to operate this type of business model? Everyone could realistically be employed overnight.

Let's say there is a restaurant operating under the traditional partnership that exists today, that is owned by three people. These partners hire 25 people at minimum wage to keep their restaurant running. Those owners of the business do incredibly well financially while the employees are working for way less then they probably are worth. Thus many working to give these three partners a higher standard of living.

Under the new type of entity proposed, lets say a group of 25 people all with the requisite skill sets to be able to operate a restaurant open next door to the above mentioned hypothetical. These 25 people work without wages, and split profits based on agreed upon percentages at the end of the week. Obviously, different people have different skills worth more so each person might receive slightly different percentages. If the business expanded it could add more partners. If the business decreased, it could continue to allow people to work while all equally sharing in the reduced revenue. If the business decided it needed fill-in type of positions it could hire people but must comply with all the labor and employment rules.

In this way, with this type of business model. Wealth will not filter upwards. Wealth will be disbursed amongst the people, and saving passed along to consumers as the business could operate more cheaply. This is such an easy piece of legislation to write, because it is already in practice in the USA, but would essentially destroy large corporate powers that are running the show today.

I could go on and on about this entity type but hopefully this is sufficient.

Well, I'm dropping out of this thread because none of you see what's right in front of you. Send me a u2u when you get closer and I'll come back. Until then, you're just spinning your wheels and protecting your egos.

Real change requires drastic measures. You can creep into the cold water but you will just delay the inevitable unnecessarily and with a great deal more suffering than if you just jump in. How do you remove a bandage? Do you rip it off quickly or do you pull it off, hair by hair?

Let me know when you guys get moving!

Originally posted by CosmicEgg
Well, I'm dropping out of this thread because none of you see what's right in front of you. Send me a u2u when you get closer and I'll come back. Until then, you're just spinning your wheels and protecting your egos.

Real change requires drastic measures. You can creep into the cold water but you will just delay the inevitable unnecessarily and with a great deal more suffering than if you just jump in. How do you remove a bandage? Do you rip it off quickly or do you pull it off, hair by hair?

Let me know when you guys get moving!

Egos? Have you looked in the mirror lately? Kindly hop off your high horse for a moment and grace us with your presence to tell us what we're doing wrong. (sorry for the sarcasm, but the irony of your post kind of begged for it).

Seriously...just tell us what you think. You only risk people disagreeing with you. The whole point of this thread is to shift people into thinking about solutions instead of the problems. The solutions matter, but not as much as the shift in thinking. So many people in are the SHTF mode, but I think that will happen only for those who expect it to happen. I do hold the philosophy that we create our own realities by what we allow to occupy our thoughts and hearts. Whether I'm alone in this belief or not makes no difference really. We have GOT to find common ground and make a move...a choice, simply to go one direction or another.

We will never see eye to eye if we try to compare beliefs. Values, maybe. So, from my perspective, I'm looking to plant seeds in the minds and hearts of those who have that hopeless feeling that the world must be destroyed so that we can start over fresh. I don't believe it has to be. Change your thoughts and you change the world. You don't have to believe this either, but there is enough scientific evidence to support all of this. The Observer Effect is wholly dependent on what the observer expects to see. Until that moment, the particles exist in every possible outcome. How can people NOT see that the solution is this simple? Shift your thinking and expectations.

reply to post by ExPostFacto


That's a really fantastic proposal. Different, but I like different! I think this idea would also directly affect the quality of work ethic. People would no longer be working for "the man", but working for their own business share. Their performance would directly affect their income.

Two thumbs up for that one!

Originally posted by CosmicEgg
Okay, taking this a bit further: No countries. Designations are by climate only. If you want to live in a desert region, you *can*! You're a member of planet Earth! And if you're not, just behave a bit and make some friends.

Why do we have to have countries? Can someone explain it because I don't get it. When that freedom is working properly, languages will morph to follow. I was born in a desert region (New Mexico) and grew up along the southern coasts of the US. But for the past 25 years I've been in a rather arctic region (Finland) and I can see beauty in both. Just because you're born in one place doesn't mean you necessarily want to stay there, nor should you think it's somehow yours by divine right. There were others before you. There will be others after you.

Look, the key to this is to always think that if someone wanted you to do something that you were vehemently opposed to, would you like the freedom to abstain from participation in that thing or would you like to have to be subject to all things just as equally as you would require someone else to do when it were your explicit wish. If you can live and let live, there will be less hassle for everyone. We can all make our own mistakes and suffer for it or *better yet* we can help out those who have made mistakes and are suffering for it, just as we might like to have happen to us.

There's that Golden Rule again. Our grandparents were right about that.

So a one world government would be a good solution? We are human beings...we naturally will seek to put people in charge to uphold values and laws, so there will never be a free for all with no law of the land. I do think it would be nice to be able to travel freely, but at the same time, are we looking for immediate solutions or an instant utopia? I'm asking for people to give immediate realistic solutions that can act as stepping stones to that utopia. So what solutions could you suggest to gravitate slowly to that idea that you hold? Think about it...we didn't get here overnight, and we're not going to solve it overnight.

reply to post by Gseven


I was a lot like cosmicegg for many years. I wanted the utopia that I envision in my dreams. However, I realized getting to that place cannot come overnight unless all those who share in my vision joined forces. The problem I realized is that each person has their own version of utopia. So now I focus on changing the system using the same rules of the system which hold us back. I do not think we need drastic changes, but small tweaks in structures of institutions to bring them in line with a heart based society.

I proposed above one of my solutions to one small area, that would lead to a greater life for us all. However, there are many other possible paths to take to get to that utopian dream. What I see in our system today is laws that favor those in power, or with wealth. I see institutions that bend over backwards for those with wealth, and trample on the person with no power.

I see education facilities that are more interested in profits then actually teaching. I do not see a need for everyone to obtain a college degree in the fashion designed by these educational institutions, it just does not make sense to me. I think all college courses should be able to be challenged. That instead of sitting through hours of lecturing that a person who has learned the information should be allowed to obtain certification of those courses without paying money. I spent four years in college and never read a book, yet passed every course. Now how is that possible if these colleges actually taught something that I couldn't learn on my own through life experience.

I look at the credit union (not for profit) business structure as a way in which, if more business was designed around this concept, would make life a little easier to navigate. I recognize the motivation of money and the fact it causes people to take risks they normally would not take. However, I think for many people money is not the only thing that can motivate someone to invent something, or try something new. I would love to try to invent something, but have no money to sit and try. I wish higher learning and education facilities focused more on creativity and giving each of our unique capabilities to do good for all of us and provided the facilities for group projects and creative initiatives.

Okay, just glanced here... Show me where I have suggested a one world government? Show me where I have suggested any form of utopia? Show me where I have suggested anything but less government with our focus as sovereign beings to be focused purely and entirely on living according to the Golden Rule and otherwise pursuing our own joy? Show me.

You guys are assuming things that aren't true. Assumption is the mother of all f*ck-ups. Please do not put words in my mouth. I have my own.