Bud-backed money: Cannabis herb affects people very differently. Some don’t feel much at all. Some just get sleepy. Personally I had massive insights in the beginning. I saw clearly how insane our alcohol-tobacco-pharma system was, and realized how amazing society could be when we bring this central plant ally on a large scale. I mean, it’s been in the center of human civilization for ages – material, medical, spiritual. It’s seeds are an amazing food source, it’s fibers were probably used for much of the first clothes, tents, sails, papers, ropes, etc. It’s time our governments, and the industries that have been built around the war on hemp, end the war on this plant and we embrace it’s gifts fully.
The endocannabinoid system is involved in all disease. Hemp has over 100 cannabinoids in it; most of them unresearched; and these are an untapped gold mine of healing. There has been science for decades to back efficacy in epilepsy, cancer and much more, but the drug war policies also largely kept a lid on truth regarding this potential.
You know how gold used to be money? Then banks deposited gold and gave certificates for deposits of gold, and how these certificates in circulation could be made more of than there was deposited gold, as long as people didn’t demand their gold all at once? And, now we’re in a position of almost all money in circulation being tied to/backed by debt, oil trade and military power?
Well, I would like to suggest one parallel system – hemp-backed currency.
As hemp can be used for tens of thousands of everyday items of every kind it has something akin to universal value. So, why not processing plants, factories and stores for hemp products? The whole production chain could be fairly local, starting with the small- and big scale farmer. Anyone could bring a load of hemp – herb or industrial – to the processing plant, get it assessed, and get currency in return, to spend in the connected stores.
Time-based money: Time-based money is not a new idea. There are plenty of organizations doing this around the world. It could be brought to the next level though. A few years back I had this idea of an app on which anyone could open an account by confirming one’s identity. With this account one would get something like 2 h (to begin with) of time to spend on other’s labor – services or products. One hour would equal one hour of basic, fairly unskilled labor – perhaps cleaning, mowing the lawn, etc. Anyone could price their labor as they wish though.
In any case, if one spends f this 2 h and falls below it it would automatically return it to 2 h at the end of the week. So, there would be this kind of guaranteed basic income that would also be the only money-creation method. It needs to be small to begin with, but as the economy grows so could the minimum amount. This system could be very useful in small local settings at least. I’m not sure how it would scale up, but along with the bud-backed currency I think it’s one of the most concrete and just money systems. It leaves no room for woo-woo wizardry as the backing is easily understood by anyone.