Background information
Time Banking http://www.timebanks.org/
Intentional Communities http://www.ic.org/
Community exchange system http://www.ces.org.za/
Information from Mikos of Telos
Mikos also wanted to weigh in on the money discussion. I need time to jot down his words (maybe this will be enough), but he suggested the concept of open source is the path to the world you’re envisioning. Currently this is only done with software development, but it’s not equitable.
He suggested something similar to a neighbor workshare program that some neighbors do now.
-For example, my neighbor is a plumber, and I know computers, so I fix his computers and he fixes my plumbing. We might look after a neighbor’s dog, and they might bake us a pie in thanks, etc.
-a system needs to be in place to give credit for work done in 15 minute increments. This can be adjusted to smaller or larger as needed.
-every job is equal in terms of value. People management, ditch digging, customer service, and being President of the United States are all equal under this system.
-break time should be factored
-all products produced in this system are free and cannot be sold. Whenever possible they should be marked as such. This includes housing, vehicles, eyeglasses, clothing, etc.
-15 minutes of one job can be exchanged for 15 minutes doing another job.
-a job can be anything but demand will somewhat dictate the availability of work initially
-a feedback and review system also needs to be in place to grade the quality of the work, and provide feedback
-people can cheat the system, and this is where the feedback process comes into play. This has had success on ebay. Someone can do a poor job, and that will be reflected in their feedback. Someone can give a poor review for a good job but this will also be balanced by other reviews.
-a running tally and average time for each job should be kept, so that time estimates can be developed for each job
-initially there will be some inequity, and the old system will still be in place for now, which means that raw materials will still need to be paid for, and people will still have to keep their regular jobs for the time being.
-Mikos suggested that this could already be part of the zeitgeist movement or the venus project (I know of these but do not know them in detail) and if not it is compatible with the goals of these movements.
