People are natural problem solvers.
This is grounded in dualism. We didn’t experience a problem until we started to see ourselves separate from the rest.
With that came to urge to manipulate our surroundings to satisfy humankind’s two most fundamental problems:
- avoid suffering
- satisfy desire
This in itself is not really a problem. It’s human nature and it’s part of evolution. Solving problems is what we love to do.
So what is the problem?
Money.
Well, actually money is not the problem. Our relationship with money is the problem.
Money is a means to exchange energy and is very convenient in principle. For example, I don’t have to look for food or build a house myself, instead, I solve problems that I enjoy or am good at solving for somebody else and instead of that person solving a problem for me (as I might not have a problem at that specific moment that needs solving or that the person can solve) we use money to exchange so that I can pay someone else to solve another problem that I don’t feel like solving or I’m not good at solving, or I can’t solve myself.
The problem is that business, that we originally created in order to organize ourselves to solve problems more efficiently collectively, are not about solving money anymore, but about creating and accumulating money.
This we call profit.
If we could just get rid of the urge to accumulate money, privetize profits, and use money again for which we innitially created it, than we can solve THE big problem of our time namely poverty, inequality, polution and the unsustainable society that we created.
Easy in idea, hard to make reality. Why? People.
This article will be continued.
I’m looking for answers by trying to understand better our neo-liberal capitalistic economy and its alternatives. Herefore I’m studying especially the work of Kees Klomp and his book ‘Thrive’ and the works of the Purpose Foundation and the concept of ‘Steward Ownership’
I’m also trying to understand better humanity and love to draw inspiration from the works of Rutger Bregman and his books ‘Humand kind, a Hopeful History’ and ‘Utopia for Realists’
To understand better the global problems and the transition I am studying the work of Jan Rotmans who wrote the book ‘Embracing Chaos, how to Deal with a World in Crisis’.
And I have a lot of other books on my ‘to read’ list.