Via: “Just how revolutionary is Bitcoin? Reason.tv sat down with Mercatus Senior Research Fellow Jerry Brito to learn how Bitcoin operates and what the implications are for traditional state-based fiat currencies. “Whether Bitcoin succeeds or fails is neither here nor there,” says Brito, who predicts that currencies in the future will almost certainly be deregulated… Continue reading
A report on the rebirth of Hellenic democracy in Athens
As reported on Yeshe’s blog: From Maria Skordialos in Athens, an account of her experiences in Syntagma Square on June 5: “The evolution of consciousness is definitely on in Greece – with our Greek spirit rising in a beautiful way – yet, here in Athens surrounded by people now living in Greece from different parts… Continue reading
Richard Stallman on the U.S. Government’s monitoring of the Internet
Via Russian Television, RT: “American software freedom activist Richard Stallman, better known as the author of GNU General Public License, joined RT to give his comments on modern software copyright laws, and the risks of cyber sneaking by the U.S. government.” Watch the video:
Mobilization of the precarious movement in Italy this Sunday, June 19th
Our correspondent Bertram Niessen informs us of the mobilization of Italian precarious workers on Sunday 19th, as a response to infamous remarks by the Italian minister of the Berlusconi government: “After the infamous declarations of the Minister for Public Administration and Innovation Renato Brunetta against precarious workers, bottom-up social movements are meeting in Rome, near… Continue reading
Book of the Week (3): Why we need Demurrage
* Book: New Currency: How Money Changes the World As We Know It. By Jordan Bruce MacLeod. Integral Publishers, 2009 In our third and last instalmment on this very readable introduction to the importance of complementary currencies, we attach the scribd version of the chapter on demurrage-based currencies. See the link at bottom for accessing… Continue reading
The minimum wage, demurrage and the economics of labor
What I am about to summarize or, more or less faithfully record, here is a discussion on facebook which should be available for future reference … temporary as they are those traces that remain of our social networking interactions and exchanges of ideas and views. Michel Bauwens started the ball rolling by pointing to an… Continue reading
Transforming human relationships for the p2p age
Excerpted from Yeshe: “In our transactional worldview, where the dominant economic model plays such a pivotal role, relationships are coloured by some very unconscious, unquestioned but fundamental assumptions about how the world works. In a society where the market place rules, we step into relationships on the premise that I have a need, and that… Continue reading
Updating the wave theory of social change: entering the 6th information revolution in human history
The magazine strategy+business has an interesting interview on wave-based change dynamics, with historian Elin Whitney-Smith who has spent 30 years researching and refining her theory of economic progress as a series of information technology disruptions. This interview by Art Kleiner is worth reading in full. Excerpt: “S+B: Your book-in-progress says that today’s turbulent economic events… Continue reading
The meaning of the Greek mobilizations: the emergence of peaceful popular insurrections
On the squares of Greek cities we are witnessing a unique experiment in democracy. The mass assemblies, with their very strict rules of equal voicing and collective decision that leave no room for traditional demagogy, offer an alternative paradigm of the collective processing of political demands and strategies. At the same time, they are also… Continue reading
Dmytri Kleiner interviewed on the Telekommunisten Manifesto
Excerpted from another excellent Furtherfield interview, conducted by Marc Garrett: “MG: Who is the Manifesto written for? DK: I consider my peers to be politically minded hackers and artists, especially artists whose work is engaged with technology and network cultures. Much of the themes and ideas in the Manifesto are derived from ongoing conversations in… Continue reading
The democracy that is born in the European occupied squares
Full reproduction of a original Greek-language article: “There may be no better proof of the rupture that is brought about by the “movement of the squares” other than its open, participatory, directly democratic way of organising and functioning. Within a single week it has given birth to a political culture of a different type, one… Continue reading
Book of the Week (2): The History of Stamp Scrip
* Book: New Currency: How Money Changes the World As We Know It. By Jordan Bruce MacLeod. Integral Publishers, 2009 This very well written introduction to why we need differently designed currency has an interesting review of historical experiences, in particular how evolutions after the meltdown of 1929 could help find solutions for the meltdown… Continue reading
Compilation of images and music dedicated to #spanishrevolution
Well done compilation:
Towards #participatorydemocracy
An anonymous youtube user explains the need to move from Representative Democracy towards Participatory Democracy and how we now have the necessary tools to make it a reality at our disposal.
Wikying public policy making
Excerpted form a post by Colin Hawkett: If liberty and equality, as is thought by some, are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost.’ – Aristotle Things are screwed up. There’s a process called democracy that is supposed to… Continue reading
Vertical Integration and Moore’s Law for Atoms
At Replicator, Joe Flaherty writes: My guess is that the increasing availability of small scale manufacturing tools will lead to more vertical integration. Product inventors will be able to fund their designs via Kickstarter, produce them at Protomold, create a store front using Shopify, and send products to customers using Amazons “Fulfillment By Amazon” service…. Continue reading