There are many points in this video, some you may agree, others you may not. But the video definitely raised up a few points that we must look into if we want to continue living in this planet. So, we'll discuss some of the points raised in the video and see the bigger picture of the Current System.
These are the points that are worthy of note but not directly related to the core problems we need to discuss:
1. Linear system with limited resources.
In the Current System, profit and "survival" are the only important things. People involved in production, especially the bosses, do not really care if they are trashing the world. They need the profit to "survive". Survival used to be about having food on the table, a place for shelter when the weather is bad. However, in the Current System, the definition of survival has mutated. One has to have a smartphone, the latest fashion and so on to "survive". And hence, we mine the world more and more, just to keep us "alive".
Another thing is that people are almost always involved in only a small chunk of the whole system. How can one perceive and contribute to a circular system if all one is involved in is only a small part of the whole system? Imagine a very big circle and if you focus on 1% of the circle and that is the region where you are involved in the whole system. Do you see the circle? No, you won't. All you can see is just a curved linear line. This is a problem we call over specialisation (We hope to come out with an article on this soon in the future). And one cannot see the whole ecological impact without being more involved with all the aspects of the whole system.
2. They don't own the resources, they don't own the means of production and they are not buying a lot of the stuffs. You don't have value if you don't buy/produce a lot.
The current economic model dictates that we need to produce and purchase in order to keep the economy healthy. But then, the more we produce and buy, the more we are trashing the planet and the more unstable the economy seems to be!
This trend of taking over and exploiting external resources isn't new. It started with nations taking over nations in order to secure resources. At one point, the nations realised that war is not the most efficient way of gaining resources. Hence, they used trade and economic techniques. And with the use of trade, the suffering and exploitation of another place's resources are no longer visible and hence easily got out of hand.
3. Toxin in, toxin out.
In order to cut cost and retain profit, cheap toxic materials are preferred over expensive safe materials.
4. People have no choice but to work with toxins.
This relates to the commodification of humans. In the capitalism system, a person is considered a business entity, able to exchange its products and services for money. And a person can own businesses (read as businesses and humans). Soon, people learn to capitalise on this that they begin to treat other people as assets to generate income. Whoever has more power, capital, status and so on get to capitalise on other people.
On a side note, the commodification of animals is one of the core factor that there are incidences of animal cruelty happening in farms and slaughterhouses. People accept the animals as commodities and people expect commodities to do what they want them to do.
5. Planned & perceived obsolescence.
By getting things obsolete as fast as possible, one gets to sell more and earn more. It's all about the profit.
6. Recycling is not enough.
We can't agree more. This is a cure to one of the many symptoms, the root problem is still causing a whole lot of havoc.
Now, let's get into the main point of the Current System.
The Golden Arrow - Consumerism
The main flaw in the Current System is the assumption that we need to spend, buy & consume in order to keep the economy going & growing. Of course, without consuming, the big corporations won't survive for long. One major question is, do we need these giant corporations around? Are they truly doing us good? If yes, how? If not, why are we working so hard to keep them alive? It is this relationship between giant corporations, their interests & economy that is driving us to the direction of destruction.
Let us take a look back at this assumption.
Are we producing enough things for all the people in the whole world? We'd say yes.
Are all the people in the whole world getting these things? We'd say no.
Are all the things produced fully utilised? No, a lot are being wasted, thrown away daily.
Do we still need to consume more and produce more? Likely not. For a healthier society, we need a better way of redistributing these products & services. While in some nations, a lot of food is wasted, there are other nations with not enough food to go around with.
Why food and other necessities do not go to these people? Well, in the Current System, they are commodities to be exploited for production, hence they don't deserve high pay and hence they can't afford to buy food and hence food do not get distributed to these places. Wonderful system we have, right? (Sarcasm intended)
How is AVOFT system relevant here? In AVOFT system, we no longer have the burden to feed giant corporations that are increasingly lowering the ethical boundaries in order to profit more. In AVOFT system, no money is involved, everyone deserves food, resources, services and so on. In AVOFT system, people can work into fields they are truly passionate about, contributing in various ways they truly believe in and hence more productive. In AVOFT system, no people is exploited. The full concept and implementation of AVOFT system still require a lot of scrutinising and research. As more information and concepts become available, we will post them up.
Let us take a look at the last part of the video, saying that there are many points of intervention & that the people can take back the government of the country.
We do agree that there are many points of intervention but as long as we are running in the Current System model, none of these interventions will be effective. The corporations, the politicians & the corrupted people will still keep abusing the loopholes and the system to earn "their share of the profit". The interventions will only work on the individual symptoms but the root problems will remain strong.
In the Current System, every man is for himself. Everyone has to look after their own interests. This is how people started throwing morality and ethics away. They have to "survive". By eliminating this idea of every man for himself using the AVOFT system, we can open up to a new world of sharing and abundance.
It will take time for us to eliminate the poison injected by the giant corporations, called consumerism, but it can be done.
Last but not least. The point on idealistic. Indeed it is worth considering, is AVOFT system idealistic? Or is the hope of going on indefinitely the way we are now idealistic?
That is all for now... more soon.
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