Excerpted from Richard Hames: “The dilemmas facing humanity have become so complex they can only be resolved by comprehending the situation from a higher level of collective consciousness. Once that new state of awareness has been reached, however, we will be able to choose a profoundly different evolutionary path to that recently pursued with such… Continue reading
Date archives "July 2011"
On the necessary concept of ‘transition’ to get from here to there
Excerpted from Christian Arnsperger: “What exactly do I mean by the word “transition”? It is supposed to be a third way between two other options: on the one hand, revolution which involves a very particular view of political and social action (namely, a wholesale “turning-around” of all institutions at once, usually through the intervention of… Continue reading
Mapping out the value exchange universe (1), a quadrant view from Gregory Rader
Interesting attempt by Gregory J. Rader, to map out and distinguish different kinds of exchanges such as the market, the gift economy, etc .. We present his “Mapping the Value Universe” in two parts. The first explains the following diagram just below, while the second part applies it: Gregory Rader: “Now for the let-down…the outcome… Continue reading
The basic orientation of p2p theory towards societal reform: transforming civil society, the private and the state
This article aims to be a summary of the very basic orientation that I propose for social change. I start from the classic division of human society in three basic aspects: civil society, the private sector, and the state. 1. The transformation of civil society I think it is safe to say that in the… Continue reading
Introduction to Transfinancial Economics: Part One, The Core Concepts
Robert Searle: “What is presented in this series of articles is a new paradigm known as Transfinancial Economics, or TFE. The word “Transfinancial” implies innovative funding which goes beyond (ie.trans) our present conventional understanding of money. TFE is not only an abbreviation for Transfinancial Economics, but also implies a genuine scientific dimension to the subject… Continue reading
Collaborative Change? – Commons, Networks, Exchange
Collaborative Change? – Commons, Networks, Exchange Thursday 14th July, Wood Quay Venue, Dublin 2 This one-day symposium, co-organized by PhotoIreland and GradCAM and supported by the City Arts Office, Dublin City Council, investigates emerging possibilities around collaboration, sharing and exchange and collective models of production, consumption, and ownership across a number of arts and… Continue reading
Book of the Week: Charles Eistenstein’s Sacred Economics is out!
Every new epoch needs its adapted spirituality. A good candidate for a positive affirmation of a p2p spirituality is this book from marvelous author and speaker Charles Eistenstein, whose earlier The Ascent of Humanity offered a most profound critique of the current system. Here, he describes the positive alternative. * Book: Charles Eistenstein. Sacred Economics:… Continue reading
Creativos Conecta2 – Promoting Free Culture
Creativos Conecta2 is a recently launched Spanish language project aiming to promote free culture and become an information and education channel for creating free cultural and artistic products. It also aims to increase the use of free culture licensing such as Creative Commons, Copyleft and others. Creativos Conecta2 promotes work by artists using such licenses… Continue reading
Al Jazeera and Jerome Roos expose the corporate media’s myth-making on Greece
We’re a bit late with this, but the Al Jazeera documentary is still worth watching. Jerome Roos, who appears in the program, explains why this is a must see: “Al Jazeera is without a doubt the best source of news we have on the ongoing economic and political crisis in Europe. With its overwhelming experience… Continue reading
Amy Goodman, Slavoj Zizek, and Julian Assange: the great Wikileaks debate
It is a great blessing that digital media have again diversified our media diet, bringing us gems such as this. Spend a well worth two hours watching the following video:
#15M Spanish protest movement – 47 evictions stopped
European Revolution reports on the #viviendadigna movement: The outraged movement in Spain has already prevented almost 47 evictions, according to the Platform of People Affected by Mortgages (PAH in Spanish http://afectadosporlahipoteca.wordpress.com/), which aims to defend the “right to housing”. From their website they are constantly making to ensure that families with financial problems avoid becoming… Continue reading
Five variables that are creating a social movement ‘with no name’
Excerpted from Aaron Peters in OpenDemocracy: “The Variables that Make the Movement: To my mind the movement is being catalysed by a number of identifiable variables. Firstly, the failure of neo-liberalism. Economic conditions in most OECD economies are worsening and are set to continue that way for the best part of a decade. The inertia… Continue reading
Openwatch – turn the tables on surveillance
We are all subject to scrutiny and surveillance – on the part of governments and corporations. It’s time to balance that very one-sided state of affairs and put surveillance at the service of the public. It can be done now with OpenWatch, a software that allows your mobile phone to do the recording, and to… Continue reading
Reasoned Localization and Selective Deglobalization
Excerpted from Christian Arnsperger: “Most authors I draw my inspiration from are keenly aware that domestic or very small-scale self-sufficiency is a thing of the past, linked to poverty and destitution and lack of access to basic capabilities — and they argue, at best, for a deliberate and reasoned selectivity in trade to replace today’s… Continue reading
Saving Fukushima’s Children from Radiation
A moving message from Japan, via the Fukushima Network for Saving Children from Radiation:
The emergence of a movement against corporate personhood in the U.S.
Via CommonDreams.org: Move to Amend is a movement fighting (in the U.S.) against the damaging legal fiction of Corporate Personhood. Excerpted from Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap: “Throughout the country … (are) … organizing against “corporate personhood,” a court-created precedent that illegitimately gives corporations rights that were intended for human beings. The movement is flowering not in the… Continue reading