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You're getting it. Spread the word.

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But something you fail to account for is that this positive outlook is additive. It doesn't divide viewpoints, it unites them in non-judgemental styles that are beneficial to all involved. Negativity, or the attitude that something can't be done, or can't be changed, is subtractive. It divides us by nature. Uniting under one positive viewpoint that is unconditionally beneficial to each and every one of us as a species is something that is gaining popularity, and will continue to exponentially gain popularity as more and more of us "wakes up" to the true nature of our reality. Things can literally only get better from here.

What you're describing is called agorism

/r/agorism

I've always thought about this "utopian" style of society where instead of bog sprawling cities there were small clumps of communities that supported them selves. Each community would provided their own food, generate their own power, dispose(recycle) their own waste, etc.

Of course there will be requirements for outside community sourced labour and materials, etc, but it would almost work on a barter style system. you supply us with solar panels, we supply you with a cow and tomatoes.

Taking a step back in time when things were simpler. It would eliminate this consume and dispose style society we have at the moment were resources are just wasted.

I know this will never happen and would be very complex to work out, but it is always fun to think about making it work.

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I remember a quote from someone many years ago that was something along the lines of the reason humans will fail as a society is that they change their environment to suit their lifestyle rather than changing their lifestyle to suit their environment. I think this is very pertinent in this style of concept.

More naturally? The currency system we came up with IS natural. It was created by man. We are animals all the same and we have realized whether we say it out loud or not that the actions and systems set up, is at this time the best way to spread the species and ensure our longevity. There is nothing more natural then our economic and political systems, it is our tool of survival as a species. The word you're thinking of is archaic. Sure if you want to have a small community that is fine, but survival has apparently dictated intermingling of different groups will help us survive and what we have come up with is this currency based economy. Our reason has helped us come to this conclusion but it may be wrong! In which case our reason will help us figure out why it was wrong and fix it. Nothing is more natural then failure. If our system fails then our reason will beautifully help us embrace that failure in order to progress. So far it is working because we have been able to spread our species across the planet like no other species before and eventually we will take this species off this planet to ensure survival even more. This belief based economic system is beautifully natural, its the product of something so humane and it has financed our long reach. We will find a better way, but don't stand in the way of the future. Just saying

It will take a generation of people to wake up and see what needs to be done. Think we need to spring up some more Hippy Communes and find some land to start a few villages.

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Fair enough, I was thinking of a plot of land combined with http://opensourceecology.org/ have some people with some skill sets that will benefit the village, and presto! You get your organic gardens, eco houses, etc.

I've thought about this idea as well. But I don't think it is entirely impossible. However, I will agree that it would be incredibly complex to accomplish.

I also think we are already on that path. Everything man-made that manifests itself in our reality had to begin as an idea (cars, computers, the internet). It all began as an impossible lofty dream. The fact that more and more people are beginning to share the same dream of a better society shows you that that is where we're heading.

There is an increasing realization and desire to share new perspectives that shed light on the faults and absurdities of our current way of life, and the lack of responsibility and accountability by those who exert the most influence over our lives. This realization often leads to another one--That nothing short of a radical change can effectively put us on a better path.

We are also taught to fear radical change. We are told to accept the current system as being the best and only system. I think this is far more dangerous than change. Especially when the change we all want is to create a better life experience for us all and not just for those who can afford it.

Change should not be viewed as a threat. It is the only thing that ever has and ever will stop a select group of people from obtaining too much power. What we should really fear and feel threatened by are those who do whatever they can to stifle this necessary pursuit.

Maybe it would be a simplistic lifestyle at first, but I think we are meant to bloom into so much more. We can't open our petals if we're being suffocated.

This is so true, you could imagine everyone looking down their noses at those that took up that lifestyle. That's not to say it isn't happening at the moment (most likely called a cult)

The Venus Project looks awesome. It almost seems futuristic.

Don't be sorry, it's a great idea. I would love to see what would happen to society if the concepts of money and capitalism was suddenly worthless.

I agree with the abandonment of currency in its current form, but I think you would do better by taking several smaller steps to get there.

Since dollars are so prevalent and partners so rare, I think you would be better off suggesting a more effective distribution of the little capital we plebs have. By spending your dollars on things that will allow you more freedom in the future.

A small example would be fruit trees and a garden. By spending dollars on these today, you can have a persistent food-source that, in the future, will allow you to eat without dollars.

Again, utilize dollars today to implement solutions that no longer require dollar inputs.

There are local restaurants in Santa Fe that accept Bartering as a form of payment for food.

Well, for example.. There's a place called Upper Crust Pizza.. I traded 3 grapefruits for a Chicken Salad and a drink, last Saturday..

0_O. WOW! That is AWESOME!! That there is a place that does that sounds absolutely AMAZING!!

I think the first step is everyone grow their own food, then come together as a community to share and trade. Here is my business plan for a potluck community restaurant (supper club)... Everyone that joins must first have their grow op checked out (and monthly checks) to make sure it meets healthy standards. Once you are a grower in the club here's how it works... You can cook as many dishes as you want as long as it is 1pound per person in your group (I pulled the 1 pound number out my ass its basically whatever one person would eat in a meal) so five people in your group you bring 5 pounds of food. Everyone puts out their dishes buffet style and we eat! Now if there are leftovers whoever made the food is entitled to their leftovers or you can enroll in a program where your leftovers go to sponsoring a needy family aka a family that doesn't have the resources to grow their own food.

I feel that if these sprung up across the country we could put a nice dent in hunger, unite communities and take a huge burden off families money wise

Take the best of both worlds... You're asking if everyone could learn to cooperate...

What if people took care of each other, fed each other, housed each other, etc., would people in power turn our power off and let us all suffer?

Under such circumstances, TPTB couldn't react in the manner you wondered about here because enough of the individuals that would be banning together and helping one another would also include their own family members.

I really like the hypothetical you posed here, and I often wonder the exact same thing myself, but it seems that there are simply far too many stupid, brainwashed human sheep on this planet for everyone to band together as one. Doing so would, additionally, involve the vast majority of humans giving up their religious indoctrination...and most simply have no interest in doing such.

There's too much deeply-ingrained brainwashing it seems that has taken place. I personally just try to improve MYSELF as much as possible within the context of the putrid waters we live and swim in.

I would love for your suggestion to happen, however. Definitely. Indeed is it my own feeling as well.

i often wonder what would be if more peaceful civilizations were somehow able to have thrived and the war-like nations were dismantled or assimilated. then i realize that this is not how history has played out and that is for a reason. we live in a world where the strong do crush the weak. we are descendants of conquerors and killers. this starts from conception, actually. so maybe, life is meant to have suffering and injustice. This could be for reasons beyond our comprehension at this time or it could just be for no real reason at all. it just is.

my point is MLK got murdered. so does just about everyone else who tries to 'make a change'. look at the natural world. animals kill baby animals daily without any remorse. its not an evil act really either. it is in their nature to kill any possible competitors, mate as often as possible and find food and shelter. humans basically do the same thing in more complex ways. i think that progress is reality however, i dont think there will ever be a world without pain, suffering, evil, murder, etc.. i believe it is because those things are part of the experience of being alive. we can improve our living conditions however, we must always live within the human condition.

The general energy of your thought seems valid to me, but - if I may nitpick/say so - I'm not super sure about some of the initial thoughts posted here.

what if it's our responsibility to maintain the Earth so it is livable for everything? We're the only species with enough intelligence, wouldn't that answer the question of achieving the ultimate balance within our universe?

I really wouldn't give humanity anywhere near this much credit honestly. This is not to say that humanity cannot still achieve great things. I feel humanity can. However, it is also not only important to understand what this species REALLY is and is not (various ancient documents noting that humanity is little more than an ancient slave race genetically modified in haste to be little more than a working mule by vastly greater beings that eradicated various different "versions" of the race on more than one occasion), but to also understand that even within the context of terrestrial beings, there is evidence showing that humans are not as intelligent as they think they are.

You and I are on the same page in that the race DOES indeed have the ability to become MUCH greater than it presently is. This much is definitely true. However, I certainly feel that humanity has a long, long way to go as a species, and we are scarcely the equivalent of 6th grade adolescents in a cosmos that's full of beings with doctorates and PhD's.

I definitely agree that we're not anywhere near where we should be. I think it is because of being controlled.

I agree. We as a race and civilization are DEFINITELY very much controlled.

Just think of the doors that would open with free energy. That itself would virtually change the whole world as we know it; free energy also doesn't pollute.

Ha. That's exactly why TPTB keep them very much tightly closed.

Why do the people in charge want us to suffer so much? Why are they destroying every single resource we have on Earth, rather than just allowing free energy already?

There are various reasons. This right here is one that I find very, VERY interesting and fascinating to say the least. Further explanation of what's in the link here.

What happens when all of our water is contaminated?

TPTB will likely start charging for unpolluted water - leading to that much more control over the masses.

What happens when most of the Earth's soil isn't usable?

TPTB will turn into the only ones with the "clean patch" of soil that all others have to pay to eat from.

The people in charge don't care, they're taking all humanity down with their greed.

It would certainly seem so. Read the links I provided. Whether they are correct or not correct, they at least provide a very interesting perspective to contemplate.

do you eat meat?

Exactly.

how could you possibly talk about compassion and making the world a better place when you take part in the meat/dairy industry?

i havent eaten meat in 10 years- been a vegan for 8. trust me- once you get over the initial difficulty, you will feel so much better.

the world can never have peace, love or compassion as long as down the road, behind closed doors and out of sight, scared and helpless animals are being abused and slaughtered only to become trash thrown away in a happy meal.

It will never happen.

The fact of the matter is that people are selfish. What your scenario requires is the abandonment of the human condition i.e. transhumanism. If you have realistic expectations about what is possible, then you can work within the system to change things for the better.

"Realistic" is a subjective term. What seems impossible to you may seem quite possible to someone else. Case and point, this.

What you're describing is the exact reason we havn't been able to find a solution for the world's problems. You can't solve a problem from inside a broken system, and you also can't see outside the system while you're still stuck in it. I dont see people as inherently selfish, or evil for that matter. I see them as misguided. They've been taught that reality had to be a certain way, "just because", and they never questioned it. Realistic, to them, is only what is possible inside this system, while realistic to someone like me is infinite possibilities, limited by my own creativity and drive.

Well, tell me people aren't inherently selfish or evil after you're born into a favela. The fact of the matter is that we're stupid fucking naked monkeys who care more about the amount of zeroes at the end of a paycheck than about one another. Once you eschew your optimism about the human condition, then things start to make sense.

Which tribes? Sources?

Glad to see you remembered :D

You just changed your grade from a check minus to a check with this persistence. I'm impressed.

Make sense to you, maybe, but I see no logic, rhyme, or reason behind a species contributing to its own unhappiness and eventual downfall. Why does supressing optimism about that situation suddenly make it acceptable?

Because you realize that you're no better than anyone else and learn how to get more for yourself. You're not going to change the system.

Not with that attitude you're not ;)

To answer that question you should look into the liberation of Libya and murder of Gadaffi.

Africa and the middle east have long been under the thumb of western powers. Economically dominated and their people ridiculed. Gadaffi had made huge contributions toward a new Africa where education was accessible and agricultural projects were undertaken.

He even helped establish a council on African affairs which was rapidly moving toward adopting a gold standard currency that could not be easily manipulated every time some foreign power needed to buy rare mineral resources from an African member nation.

Then suddenly, even though Gadaffi had voluntarily disarmed Libya of their nuclear arsenal and allowed the UN to transport the arms to Oak Ridge TN to be professionally decommissioned, Libya was promised to certain islamic religious groups and the wealth of Libya and it's substantial gold reserves vanished.

Now Libya is a pool of shit and religious intolerance, being black is enough to get you hanged by your feet and skinned alive by a crowd of islamic racist fundamentalist.

So what can they do? Any thing they want. What would they do? They would call you terrorist or branch davidians and twist the thoughts of the ignorant against you. And when they were ready to annihilate you they would have an army of willing soldiers who have never met you or heard what you speak, who are convinced that you are the embodiment of pure evil. They would murder you and the world would celebrate your demise having never heard a word you actually speak. You would go down in history as a psychotic cult of violent nonconformist that had to be put down like a rabid dog.

Just saying.

Lybians had some of the best standard-of-living benefits I've ever seen. They had a home as a basic human right. When you got married, you were given 50,000 dollars to buy a house. Electricity was free, and all loans were government sponsored and had zero percent interest rates. Healthcare was universal and done well also. Very very far from the picture mainstream media paints of the place.

It's happening in Greece. People are back to bartering now and ignoring the imaginary debt of fiat currency.

Well if you want to return to that economy, be my guest. When you can't trade your earrings for bread, let me know how that works out for you.

They would just murder us. Simple as that. 1,000, or 1,000,000, doesn't matter.

Trade local. Use metals instead of fiat currency. It's easier than it sounds.