If I had a billion dollars... thoughts on technology and economy

[AmbientSound]

This thread was inspired by the other billion-dollar thread started by Ignazio. Since I did not want to cause digression in that topic, I felt my reply should have its own thread.

If I had a billion dollars, I'd start an institution dedicated to the development of technology to meet all of humanity's needs, which could permanently solve the problems that ordinary people in third-world countries face. Here is a work-in-progress which describes in great detail my proposal for replacing the economy with technology (sorry for the long post!):














I propose the implementation of technological advancement and development to the point of economical obsolescence in order to solve the problems we face in the physical aspect of reality, which in turn might help us remove some of the obstacles which might stand in the way of our mental and spiritual development. I base my reasoning on the limitless suffering and hardship the economy causes to people all over the world, which is written about in every newspaper, every day of the year. My reasoning is also based on the failure of those in power- both financially and politically- to implement technology that is available here and now in order to address the hardships and suffering mentioned above.

My argument/thesis is based on a number of points, on which I will elaborate:



1.) Replacing the economy with technology is necessary in order to save lives.

The economy as we know it is failing and needs to be replaced with a better, more effective system of meeting humanity's needs. How many people feel like they don't have enough money? Just about everybody who isn't super-rich- which is over 99% of the world's population. It is difficult for most people in the USA to save up enough money to buy a home. Most people acquire a mortgage as a solution to this problem. Unfortunately, as we have seen, when too many people are being given mortgages, it creates massive national debt and leads to things like massive layoffs in all fields of work. Citizens of the USA are among some of the luckiest people in the world. In contrast to the people of nations like Uganda or Rwanda, U.S. citizens are not worried about whether they will find food day in and day out. Still, anyone's life in the USA could come to a screeching halt if they lose their job. Corporations, for the most part, are not exactly kind. They were established for the sole purpose of making money.

2.) It is possible and feasible for humanity's needs to be met through sufficient development of the proper technology.

As mankind has advanced in its technology, more and more of our problems are being met with viable and very effective solutions. We have been able to create faster systems of travel, more effective systems to manufacture machines and computers, and medical breakthroughs that have offered treatments and cures for even some of the most serious illnesses and medical conditions. We have been able to reduce computers, which once took up entire rooms, to the size of something that will sit in the palm of a person's hand.

3.) Replacing the economy with technology is in the best interests of all mankind and all life on the planet.

Better technology will give us the power to do many things. Using nanotechnology, for example, some of the possibilities available to us would be bio-engineernig and construction in order to replace lost links and pieces of the ecosystem, clean up the garbage and pollution which plagues our planet, create artificial immune systems for people with AIDS, etc.

4.) Replacing the economy with technology will require the help of those who possess financial power and political power.

It is only by using the system that is currently in place that we can lay the foundations for the next. This will require the resources the current system uses: money, and political assistance. Without the cooperation of those in power, it is unlikely that this transition will ever be possible. It is in the best interests of those in power to help in the process of replacing the economy with technology.






The following is the process that I propose for replacing our economy with technology.




The process of the replacement of economy with technology will have to start with a financial institution of some kind, be it a bank or a power/sovereignty, here or elsewhere, which will aid in the cause. An account must be opened which accrues a very high amount of interest per month. This monthly interest would then be deposited into a separate account. Banks use interest as an incentive for people to keep their money in the bank. The account would remain open for as long as needed.

Once enough money was accumulated, it would be used to establish an institution or organization of sorts (the original amount of the deposit would remain in the bank, continuing to earn interest). This entity would fund technological research and development in every area, in a certain sequence, starting with food production, robotic surgery, and artificial intelligence design.

When a sufficient amount of technology has been developed, a request for a charter will be made to a government. The charter, if granted, will come with an exemption of taxes (or no deal!). In exchange, the entity provides the host government with non-military technology, for free. If an agreement is reached, a community will then be formed by volunteers. The community will exist for the sole purpose of measuring the human impact of this technology (which will, of course, only be introduced after being thoroughly tested and approved as being fit for human use and/or consumption) in a natural way and in an environment which is like the rest of society, except that people do not have jobs and do not go to work.

All volunteer needs will be met by the institution, increasingly so with the technology developed. In exchange for joining, each member of the community will have to set up an account, under the institution, with the bank the entity uses. These special accounts will earn interest, as the entity does, and will be tax-exempt via the Charter. The institution will deduct a small percentage of that interest in order to help pay for the research and development of the technologies. The rest is given to the owners of those accounts in order to compensate for them in the "real world." This is a certain kind of insurance and protection they will need, should the institution go under. As further insurance and protection to their life in the "real world," community members will be required to complete a will, and freeze their assets or have someone else take care of their affairs while they are away.

Members of the community are free to leave at any time, but must leave the technology behind if it has not passed all testing phases and disseminated into the rest of society. This, and all of the above concerning the community, will be explained in a comprehensive, understandable (and hopefully short) agreement in writing, which the volunteer candidates must sign before they can become a member of the community. Some of these points will be mentioned at the beginning of the agreement, with a warning, to make sure that the volunteers read it thoroughly. Volunteers will then go through a selection process and psychological screening. This is part of the research and is intended to discover the stresses and strains that cause the volunteers to act the way they do. Technology will then be developed to relieve unhealthy stresses and strains.

The agreement will include a lease/contract with the company, the duration of which will be set by the volunteer. The volunteer reserves the right to renew the lease before it is granted to an incoming volunteer or one who wishes to move into the existing volunteer's housing unit. Any changes made to the agreement must be done only once a year, unless emergency changes need to be made to address a direct threat to the existence and proper functioning of the institution, the well-being of the community on critical levels, etc. Due notice will be given in such instances.

As the community grows, the entity will make more money, which will enable it to better fund the research and development of more diverse and advanced technologies. Over time, I theorize that enough technology will have been developed to eliminate government and economic systems completely, worldwide. The institution itself will be no more as artificial intelligence will take over all of the tasks that humans do not want to do. When this happens, humans will be able to do what they want to do when they want to do it. This will undoubtedly open our eyes to the inner and outer stresses and strains that drive our actions and allow them to be addressed more effectively and efficiently. It will bring greater awareness to spiritual matters.

In addition, the technology will restore the environment and reconstruct extinct species. Humanity will not have to endure sociopathic methods of population control because we will simply be prevented from overpopulating in the first place. Earth and other planets eventually colonized will have a respectful and healthy capacity for human occupancy. Those wishing to do so may move to another planet if they wish to bring more humans into existence.



I welcome all questions, comments and feedback.

[Xanth]

While I agree that replacing our economy with technology is the right direction to go... there are entities in our world (corporations and such) who won't want to give up their power so easily.
There are rumors floating around that we could already give up our dependency upon oil using technology.
It hasn't happened yet because it would cause a great number of people a great deal of money.

Greed is our greatest enemy in these times.

[AmbientSound]

I have given plenty of thought to the idea of conspiracies and people who would want to bring the Institution down so they could keep their power. Since the Institution wouldn't outright start as a community of volunteers wanting to test out the products, the situation would be very adaptable. The technology would have to start off benefiting the members of the Institution, with such members being volunteers to measure the human impact of that technology.

As the saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention. The Institution would simply create the technology it needed to deal with such entities. In short, the Institution would pull the rug right out from under the power-hungry entities who would keep their power at the expense of humanity. We have to start where we are, and unfortunately, where we are is in a struggle for power, one that must be overcome with ethics and compassion for humanity. These entities would lose their power virtually overnight if the Institution reveals its technology at just the right time. Success is defined as being prepared when the opportunity presents itself. In a sense, the Institution is the entity that would have the capacity to put these people out of business very swiftly.

[Stillwater]

Perhaps mankind can change overtime, but I actually suspect that conflict and predation is the nature of the human experience, and any attempt to stifle these tendancies may work in the short term, but will eventually be overcome by the same patterns of operation.

It may be part of what we are here to experience- conflict might be intrinsic to this state of reality, and I suspect that we will never change the greater whole, but rather depart to other places as individuals when we are ready.

[Xanth]

I fully believe our destruction of the Earth due to massive greed and wealth is already underway and is quite unstoppable by now.

In other words... we're screwed, it's only a matter of time now.

[AmbientSound]

Technology can be created to reverse the damage we have done to the environment and restore extinct species. A billion dollars, wisely managed, would help. At the very least, I hope this idea saves anyone who pursues it. Hope, faith, and charity are the three greatest gifts. You give power to anything you believe (have faith) in, hope is the space in which your will can operate, and the wake of your actions is all that will remain when you pass away.

In other words, it's up to you.