What would this world be like without money?

Just imagine. For a minute that there is no such thing as money. Just bartering goods. Would the world be a better place? Many of the tragedies that occur in this world are because of money. Drug dealing, stealing, murdering, etc etc. Then again, there is no motive to work, to invent, to think ahead and make the world a better place unless this person happens to be a perfect angel with a perfect heart and intends to make the goal of his/her life to make life easier for all peoples.

That about sums it up.

Cliff

I wouldn't say that tragedies are due to money, they are due to people wanting what they don't have and not having the self control to do without or get in another way. Get rid of money and you will still have theft and murder.

Mags said:

Just imagine. For a minute that there is no such thing as money. Just bartering goods. Would the world be a better place? Many of the tragedies that occur in this world are because of money. Drug dealing, stealing, murdering, etc etc. Then again, there is no motive to work, to invent, to think ahead and make the world a better place unless this person happens to be a perfect angel with a perfect heart and intends to make the goal of his/her life to make life easier for all peoples.

Click to expand...

In a few million years, after a few life-times on many new planets
to explore... I guess // I'll be more like an angel

I don't think anything would change. If money was taken out of the picture, people would be killing each other over goods to barter. Heck, they're already killing each other over athletic shoes.

"..motive to work, to invent, to think ahead and make the world a better place ..<snipped> .. to make life easier for all peoples..."

I'm no angel but I feel (without the motivation of money) this urge within myself quite a bit, and sometimes/often act on it -- don't you?

It feels natural and so feels good. The mind bestows it's own rewards..

Money is just a medium of exchange that facilitates commerce. Some commerce we don't like, but most is good. If money didn't exist, we would have to invent it. Without money how would you buy food, clothing and shelter, not to mention flashlights? It would make it harder for the <expletives deleted> in power to collect the huge amount of taxes they collect today. I like that idea.

I guess depending on the definition, you could say we don't have money. At least not the money we had in the US for almost 200 years. When I was a kid, money was gold and silver. It is specified to be so in the constitution. That kind of money had intrinsic worth. There was no such thing as inflation then. If we could eliminate inflation, that would eliminate considerable crime and a lot of confusion.

Money is just an abstraction for people to track the consequences of their actions (and luck). Without it, the consequences would still be there, they'd just take more room to see.

There's a line in a Star Trek movie (where Picard goes back in time to fight the Borg) where he's explaining to a person from his past (us) that in the 23rd century, there's no such thing as money. If he had said that to me, my first question would have been, "Why isn't this ship larger, then?"...

Even without money, there is no free lunch.

the problem with money is that it becomes the objective instead of the by-product...

What eluminator said.

Mags said:

Just imagine. For a minute that there is no such thing as money. Just bartering goods. Would the world be a better place? Many of the tragedies that occur in this world are because of money. Drug dealing, stealing, murdering, etc etc.

Click to expand...

What have these to do with money? Each is a political/social problem, which could exist just as well without money. Drug dealing, FI, exists because of politicians, lust for control, and fear. The dollars just happen to move around--they are not the problem.

Then again, there is no motive to work, to invent, to think ahead and make the world a better place unless this person happens to be a perfect angel with a perfect heart and intends to make the goal of his/her life to make life easier for all peoples.

Click to expand...

But there still is motive. If not treated poorly, a person will have no reason not to do "good work." People will invent, perfect, tinker, etc. because they are wired to feel rewarded by it. If allowed to pursue their goals, be it to make some tool that makes a task easier (or more efficient, etc.), or to write a play that captures your heart, they will do it.

However, even in such a circumstances, there is still greed. Whether learned or genetic, some people want power, and need to validate to themselves that they are in some way superior to others. Removing money merely removes one abstract tool.


Finally, (1) why would an angel be considered perfect, and (2) why must anyone have a perfect heart to want to make the world a better place? Is the latter not a normal, fundamental, desire (provided it does not involve sacrifice of one's own life or health)?

The United States essentially has it right now, we haven't had real currency in quite some time... just imagine a world without fiat money, now you're talking

Give me two pigs, your best cow and your daughters hand in marriage and I'll tell you!!

MScottz said:

I wouldn't say that tragedies are due to money, they are due to people wanting what they don't have and not having the self control to do without or get in another way. Get rid of money and you will still have theft and murder.

Click to expand...

Quite true. The same can be said for guns. If guns didnt exist people would still kill each other one way or another. Money and guns dont cause crime, it is greed, jealousy and human nature that do.

Generally speaking of the American perspective, life would probably become more taboo. What I mean is you most likely are going to have to do things that will seem wrong and barbaric.

the problem with money is that it makes it easy for capitalists to make big pools of it in the wrong (least helpful) places..

Money isn't the root of all evils. It is a tool.

Just like a dinner fork. Just because it can be used to puncture carotid arteries, do you think we should not have dinner forks?

And a world without money? Sure, just as soon as you can make antimatter engines so that everyone will have virtually limitless and free energy, and replicators so that no one needs to farm, and intelligent parents so that their children grow up upholding ethics, then you can talk about utopia.

Can it really be done? Not likely, but we should keep trying, right?

If money were removed, we'd possibly see history repeat itself. People of low reputation would attempt to circumvent the barter system. They may use forceful ways to get what they felt was of value. Organizations/gangs would also become much stronger as collective type middlemen dispensing goods, services and probably protection.

I would think people would figure out ways to improve the system. There will be motivation to develop new technologies-products. People will want better because they will tire of a particular existsence at some level.

"For the love of money is the root of all evil."

eluminator said:

When I was a kid, money was gold and silver. It is specified to be so in the constitution. That kind of money had intrinsic worth. There was no such thing as inflation then. If we could eliminate inflation, that would eliminate considerable crime and a lot of confusion.

Click to expand...

Gold and silver have no more intrinsic worth than anything else people decide is a rare commodity.
Inflation and deflation has been a fact of life in all economies, no matter what they use as currency for at least all recorded history.
This covers a small portion of a complex process.

As for only having a barter system. This would work in small communities with limited resources but how do you barter for a flashlight made in China when you live in America? You have to barter for the ability to communicate with the person and transportation of the flashlight as well as the transportation of the bartered material.
The flashlight is worth 1/2 a pig to you.