A friend and I were talking a few weeks ago about the barter system and what we would do if money was somehow abolished from society.
Personally, I quite like the idea of the barter system — but only because I’m a raging conservative. See, in the barter system, you examine your skills, and trade them for things that you need. Like singing? Find someone who will give you beans in order to sing for them. Are you good at math? Find someone who will let you live in their house if you manage their business. Basically, the people who would be successful are the people who were able to determine their value to society.
Obviously the economist in me sees the problems with this. Maybe I don’t want beans.
This is why money was “invented” if you will. It allows me to trade my skills for a widely accepted medium which I can then trade for things that I do like or want or need.
Somewhere though, we lost our way. Now we have people who contribute little or nothing to society and yet are still receiving this valuable trade medium. I agree that people with legitimate disabilities should have a safety net seeing as they are physically or mentally unable to work. I’m more upset about the people who are unwilling to work.
There are a few people in my life now, who work part-time or not at all and either collect government benefits or go into debt. These are people who are 100% able to work but, because the safety net is there, they choose not to work. Granted, the money that they receive is small compared to what they could earn at a full-time job but, in most instances, these people “don’t care about the money”.
What value are these people bringing to society? If my friend gets drunk every night and gets numerous drinking in public citations, his value is that he supports the police officers’ and bartenders’ jobs. In a barter society, my friend would be obliged to find a way to eat and to clothe himself and to live. He would become valuable simply by needing to.
Similarly, people who don’t take jobs that they consider “beneath them”… When I was looking for a job, I had no issue with applying to Tim Hortons or to McDonalds because a job is a job. If someone is going to pay me $10 an hour to throw hamburgers in a bag, I will laugh at the ridiculously high rate of pay and do it. No stress, no “bringing work home” and I would, I suppose, be contributing to society in some way.
Thoughts?
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We talked about this too, and here’s the thing: some people can’t work, and have no skills they can provide. How would those people eat, live? I don’t think a civilized society can let some people just die because they can’t perform labor or make something useful.
Some people who live on government benefits will never be able to work. They will always be on assistance. If there was a barter system and they had to work or do something for their food and shelter, they would starve to death/die homeless.
I think because this system would hurt the most vulnerable members of society, it could never be properly implemented.
And I do not get the being a conservative thing. Never have, never will. Then again, conservatives in my country are basically monsters, so…you can see how I’d feel that way.
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The idea is, if you don’t have skills, you get skills in order to not starve. You must have some skills C, you just have to figure out what they are
I am NOT talking about myself. I am talking about people who are elderly. Sick. Disabled. They CAN’T work. What about that don’t you get? These people don’t have any skills, and even if they do, they’re physically unable to do anything. Do you get it now? They CAN’T work. They have NOTHING to barter with. They would starve to death.
You can’t “get skills” when you’re disabled or seriously ill. People who can’t work can’t work. There will always be those people. What you’re suggesting is that people return to the Dark Ages. No thanks.
Honestly…are you even reading what I’m saying?
If you’re being serious, then you DO act like the conservatives in my country, and this is exactly why I don’t like conservatism.
Ugh. I totally agree. Growing up, we saw more of the hardworking but struggling immigrants who needed a helping hand (and my family did too for a little while). Now, living in the area I do, most of the people I see on benefits are of the leech ilk, unfortunately. There is a welfare culture for sure.
“Granted, the money that they receive is small compared to what they could earn at a full-time job but, in most instances, these people “don’t care about the money”.
That about seems to sum it up.
Possibly the most egregious example is one of T’s siblings, who apparently used to work multiple jobs to support herself and her kids (before I met her), but hasn’t worked for years and now seems to spend most of her (limited) $$$ on substances both legal and illegal.
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Oh my God… If I wasn’t unanon I would write the longest posts about the “disabled” people in my life. SO many people game the system that it’s ridiculous and it just gets me so angry sometimes!
Yeah, and some people actually ARE disabled and can’t work, whether you choose to take their plight seriously or not (sounds like not).
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I think a hybrid system works best. That way you’re not limited just to offering your skill set. But if you can trade beans for singing lessons, why not?
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I picked the silliest example that I could think of
F.A.N.T.A.S.T.I.C. post, seriously. Couldn’t have said it better myself. I completely agree with you on every single aspect. I think the government should do a better job at making those ‘unwilling’ people to work, cut out their choices force them to do something. It’s not fair that some people who are working really hard, and still end up with less than the unwilling. I can compare myself to many of these unwilling and see them drive around with new cars because of under the table jobs or ‘screwing the government over’. I just find it unfair because here I am in college working part time and when we communicate they think my jobs beneath them, i work because I can, because I want to and enjoy the gratification at the end of a hard day. Knowing that I have a nice check every Thursday. Then again you brought up how they some how do end up benefiting some other system such as the police force.
Seriously Kudos (I dunno if people say that anymore but I do ;p) This is a great post and am sharing it like crazy!
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Thank you Amber
Also, More on the Bartering part I have actually done this before, Instead of paying my brother for chores we give him things like his favorite meal or chocolate or we let him use the internet. I’ve done baby sitting for gas before etc. It’s really a great idea but realistically it wouldn’t even work we are far gone the turning around point. Money has been our means for far too long to change. But like Alex said a balance of the both “hybrid’ system is a really cool idea. I mean as it is a lot of us do it already we just don’t notice it.
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I notice that nobody has addressed the fact that some people are truly disabled and CANNOT work.
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I specifically wrote “I agree that people with legitimate disabilities should have a safety net seeing as they are physically or mentally unable to work. I’m more upset about the people who are unwilling to work.” because I thought about people with disabilities — message me on twitter/email me if you want details but I’ve had disabled and “disabled” people around me my entire life.
It’s also not your job to decide who’s disabled and who isn’t. You’re not the arbiter of what people are.
Mental illness is a legitimate disability. Many mentally ill people CAN’T work, even on medication. Mental illness is an illness too. Many illnesses are invisible.
Honestly your attitude is disgusting. Even if people are “gaming the system” why do you care? Why don’t you worry about your own life and stop dwelling on what other people do?
You manage to insult a lot of people who are legitimately sick when you act like this.
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