Agreed on USD (or any government currency for that matter) being basically toilet paper. Real money is historically a physical commodity, and it’s perversion here is a function of the State. It’s nothing new, even kings in the past would debase their currency by literally shaving coins to be smaller and making more for them to spend themselves. The problem here again is the State, but I guess you probably don’t need convincing of their shortcomings, being an anarchist yourself.
I think this view of barter is a bit romanticized, and I’m not sure you are fully accounting for what a barter society can sustain. Complex production processes are the result of many intermediate steps throughout which prices in terms of a single unit of account are necessary to function. For example, computers cannot be produced in a barter society. It’s actually impossible, and that’s true of even the most seemingly simple goods. I recommend a short essay called “I, Pencil” by Leonard Reed which demonstrates this idea using a #2 pencil. Considering the hardships barter introduces, I’m actually surprised a pacifist would advocate for it. The more difficult it is for a person to get what they need to survive, the more likely it is they become desperate and violent.
I don’t think it’s possible to buy friends. Money can buy a lot, but friendship, love, and happiness remain outside its purview. You can perhaps buy the appearance of friends, but that’s a sad thing to do.
I don’t think a job is totalitarian at all. I know it’s easy to take for granted the infrastructure that we have in an industrialized society, but work is necessary to live. If it didn’t exist, you would have to procure food, shelter, and clothing on your own and then nature would be oppressing you. Work is just a fact of life, and at least we have the option to go somewhere for half a day and procure everything we need to survive and more. Obviously, some jobs are better than others, and you do actually have the option of making up your own job. You just have to provide something people are voluntarily willing to pay you for, because whatever it is you would like to do that day may not actually provide value to anyone else. Whether it does or not is revealed to you through the actions of others when they choose to give you their resources in exchange for what you provide. A job simplifies this difficulty by allowing otherwise non-entrepreneurial people to engage in productive activity (that is demonstrably valuable) without the risk of loss inherent in trying to do this on your own.
What I find to be oppressive is a third party inserting itself into these interactions and demanding a cut. Day after day, every time I would like to make an exchange, they are collecting their tribute.
Thank you for providing your perspective. I really do recommend reading some economics texts. The best work is Man, Economy, and State by Murray Rothbard which is a beast of a book, but I understand Choice by Bob Murphy is easier to digest. It seems to me we have a similar mindset - in that we want people to be better off and especially hate war. Best of luck to you, friend
Agreed on USD (or any government currency for that matter) being basically toilet paper. Real money is historically a physical commodity, and it’s perversion here is a function of the State. It’s nothing new, even kings in the past would debase their currency by literally shaving coins to be smaller and making more for them to spend themselves. The problem here again is the State, but I guess you probably don’t need convincing of their shortcomings, being an anarchist yourself.
I think this view of barter is a bit romanticized, and I’m not sure you are fully accounting for what a barter society can sustain. Complex production processes are the result of many intermediate steps throughout which prices in terms of a single unit of account are necessary to function. For example, computers cannot be produced in a barter society. It’s actually impossible, and that’s true of even the most seemingly simple goods. I recommend a short essay called “I, Pencil” by Leonard Reed which demonstrates this idea using a #2 pencil. Considering the hardships barter introduces, I’m actually surprised a pacifist would advocate for it. The more difficult it is for a person to get what they need to survive, the more likely it is they become desperate and violent.
I don’t think it’s possible to buy friends. Money can buy a lot, but friendship, love, and happiness remain outside its purview. You can perhaps buy the appearance of friends, but that’s a sad thing to do.
I don’t think a job is totalitarian at all. I know it’s easy to take for granted the infrastructure that we have in an industrialized society, but work is necessary to live. If it didn’t exist, you would have to procure food, shelter, and clothing on your own and then nature would be oppressing you. Work is just a fact of life, and at least we have the option to go somewhere for half a day and procure everything we need to survive and more. Obviously, some jobs are better than others, and you do actually have the option of making up your own job. You just have to provide something people are voluntarily willing to pay you for, because whatever it is you would like to do that day may not actually provide value to anyone else. Whether it does or not is revealed to you through the actions of others when they choose to give you their resources in exchange for what you provide. A job simplifies this difficulty by allowing otherwise non-entrepreneurial people to engage in productive activity (that is demonstrably valuable) without the risk of loss inherent in trying to do this on your own.
What I find to be oppressive is a third party inserting itself into these interactions and demanding a cut. Day after day, every time I would like to make an exchange, they are collecting their tribute.
Thank you for providing your perspective. I really do recommend reading some economics texts. The best work is Man, Economy, and State by Murray Rothbard which is a beast of a book, but I understand Choice by Bob Murphy is easier to digest. It seems to me we have a similar mindset - in that we want people to be better off and especially hate war. Best of luck to you, friend