Imagine a Money-Less Society, Can You?

The most important response to this question is that is MUST start with having a vision! This is the largest hurdle that most people, including me face.The reasons are because we have been programmed throughout many generations believing that this idea is NOT possible, and therefore our DNA genes have been shut down!
It's my aim to awaken these shut down genes through story telling. By writing predictive vision of a different society I myself can awaken the genes that are within me and therefore share it.

• Would they give their full concentration to what they love doing?
• Would they go out to help anyone without thinking about making any money?
• Would they like to travel anywhere?
• Would they like to live anywhere?
• Would being money free force equality throughout society?
• Would they like to share with no regard to if they could ‘afford’ it or not?
• Would they co-operate with others wanting to make this world a better place?
• Would they like to work together with anyone who has the same interests as themselves?

I feel that most readers would say YES to most of these questions.

Without money there is no need for most of the violence of our world, leading to less fear and a more content community. Money is a symbol of value given our consent; remove the consent, we remove the value. The cashless society reverses the current societies. Instead of taking it would be a world of giving.

There would be no more bills, banks, loans, financial crises, corruption, unemployment, crime, war, passports, terrorists, pollution, prostitution, hunger, poor, homeless....and the list goes on. The whole structure of control would collapse as soon as you remove the support of financial power.

In South Africa Michael Tellinger the founder of the Ubuntu party holds just such a vision. Look at the video and you will understand why we all need to shift our perceptions about money. What is Money anyway?

When people in general are not motivated by money and profits, then surely they would look for another way to earn a kind of abundance. Then it would be the skills people have that become their exchange value. I’m sure that it is possible if a merit based system was introduced.

A merit system would reward those that put more effort into benefiting society and as such allow them access to greater opportunity to acquire more exclusive goods. In an abundant society of ease, if one wanted to raise ones standing in the eyes of the people, it would be out of the merit of one’s life.

Through a story, I have imagine communities around the world where people learn to live together by participating in a sovereign society. Anyone who signs a contract to serve a community carries the personal liability to be able to prove their actions are honorable. Total transparency is the only thing that can prevent deception.

In a moneyless society, people have the incentive to help society to the best of their actual abilities. Money doesn't stop them from being a scientist if they are really that fantastic in that field. People could work less, and reasonable needs provided even with less work as a whole.
Having a moneyless society does not mean that people would not want to work. People need to keep busy in one way or another. That is a part of being human.

First, by creating an alternative currency. This currency is called “Talents”. When a Local currency is spent among the people within that community, this will create a spirit of involvement. From there on communities will trade with other communities. This trade can be in the form of skills and talents, goods or an exchange in art, music or other creative activities.

Several alternative currency societies can be found throughout the world. I only know of one that started in Cape Town.

During 2003 we were a group of twelve people that came together to discuss setting up an alternative way for people to barter with each other without using money. Instead it was the skills people have that would be seen as the currency. Everybody has a skill. To give an example: babysitting, house painting, cooking, gardening, product creators, professionals like doctors or dentists, electricians, authors and book publishers (in our case) to name a view.

So long as anyone can offer something of value, any person can receive from the community goods and services of like value.
Join the Community Exchange System and start getting off the 'money grid'

To establish a completely moneyless world, we all have to travel back hundreds of thousands of years. Even ancient civilizations exchanged items for economic purposes.

What is our today's world heading towards when everything is based on the things that we acquire? How did we fall in the consumerism trap? How can we change?
Once I decided to drive home just by visualizing my destination and ignoring local signposts. My peripheral vision and automated reflexes took over and it was the smoothest, fastest journey I ever had. I was home before I knew it. Same with the world situation, I hold an image of where I want to go and know that, since there is no time, I am already there and anything I do will be an expression of my journey towards that reality.

The kibbutz (Hebrew word for “communal settlement”) was founded some 40 years before the establishment of the State of Israel (1948).

The ‘halfway house’ in the novels needed to become self sustaining. I was very influenced by Atlas Shrugged a novel by Ayn Rand that I read in the seventies. The destruction of the profit motive that is clearly leading to the collapse of society today reminded me of Atlas Shrugged, although my plot is very different.
Toon’s communities around the world offer a mutual aid and a socioeconomic system based on the principle of joint ownership of property, equality and co-operation of production, consumption and education. With the current financial and ecological weight of power production removed, I imagined a wine farm with a guesthouse including a permaculture garden and a publishing company made for a basic backdrop in my novels.

Several cottages were built where people who lived in them would start the whole new community living setup, but not without the problems that arise when people do not what to be part of the global system anymore.

The act of planning these communities in itself was part of the structure that I used as the backdrop to my story rather than a rigid structure that still happens today. To imagine a new society, by the coming together of like minds acting in harmony, creates great waves of energy which will change the nature of society as we see it as easily as water flowing downhill.

As people are getting tired of the need for manufactured objects, with their perceived value, many would turn to a community living and see the value of the unique art and craftsmanship

When I came across an amazing website by fluke. I was totally flabbergasted. What I had written about did indeed already exist! That same year (2007) we had booked to go to the Frankfurt Book Fair, so we hired a car and drove to the Republic of Damanhur in Italian Alps and about 80 Km from Torino.

Damanhur is a Federation of Spiritual Communities located in Italy, in a valley that is still green and clean. 600 citizens of Damanhur living there have given rise to a multilingual society, open to exchanges with the world and to different cultures and peoples. The Temples of Humankind, is incredible. What so uncanny was that what I wrote about as pure fiction was close to being already manifested! Not that I described the underground tunnels in France like the construction that was excavated by hand by the citizens of Damanhur. My story carries a more ancient history.

That the core of my story would lead to an explosion of creativity as people strive to express their individuality free of constraint had already being proven to work, then Damanhur is proof of people being who they want to be and enjoying it can create a moneyless society where each individual can practice their passion in exchange for an abundant life.

Namasté

Nadine