The Only God Is Earth — 1st Draft

[BOOK DRAFT]

Nov 2021

This was a book [draft] I was writing about BUXBE in action. People always tell me they want me to write to explain it: book, 1 page, elevator pitch … if it is a movie, a novel, a bullet point …

It is really boring to be kept being told how you want it. By these statements, I don’t think anyone understands money and how to change it to incentivise creating sustainably. I do my best.

00

It began with architecture.

Here I was in my Masters in Design degree, told sustainability is key to a strong future, learning about cradle-to-cradle resources management, while award winning designs were anything but.

I asked myself: what is the key to making sustainability not just cool, but also profitable? And what kind of profit are we talking about?

I finally figured out the problem was usury currency, this stupid, destructive, commodity-centric measure of wealth that has no direct connection to the work of people. Usury means any interest on money, not exorbitant interest, as we have been misguided to believe. This recent change is a covert means to persuade you into thinking that a cost on currency is normal. It is not, nor need be.

The politics of capitalism or communism doesn’t matter. Both are corrupted by usury, which always devolves to some type of totalitarianism. Trump, Nixon, and Putin, as well as continual business scams like Wirecard, Theranos, Bernie Madoff, many more, all are perfect examples of the corrupt nature of usury currency, compromising any coherent, empowered, synergy in cultivating Earth.

We forget that whatever we do playing the alpha to win, the true alpha is always Earth. It will always win. We can learn to be empowered with that, or keep doing the same thing we are with a pathetic wealth measure that has no connection to self or nature.

Humanity can choose what game to play, one of disempowering fear, as we do now, or empowered love. We may think fear is essential to own resources, but this foundation takes away what we could achieve so much more collaborating and connecting through abundant education and creativity.

Being known to identify that usury and commodity of currency is the problem is meaningless without having a solution. That is not empowering. Many advocate that money is simply energy, but forget how such energy is created. We hear constantly whether people follow their integrity or money, but why we live in a system that makes that choice is not explained, or natural. Instead, we stay in this duopoly as a fundamental of decision making. Why not look at a better way that connects wealth and cultivating Earth at the same time as a monism that expands human identity and existence? Saying this is not possible only panders to the weak belief pattern so many follow, continuing on wayward paths of perpetual destruction. There is little point exploring new planets to sustain human life if we are bent on destroying planets for meaningless pursuits simply to prop up an economic model that has crashed so many times. We need to overcome our learned helplessness that we are stuck within such a disempowering framework because human nature is fundamentally flawed.

I am evolving a solution towards empowered sustainable change to address this dilemma instead of accepting that human nature is a war-mongering idol of power desperate to own and rule with dominion. We are far more powerful than people want you to know. It has nothing to do with power, ownership, or conquering. It is all about the empowerment of self to cultivate, blossoming, and letting go. I call it BUXBE: Be yoU eXchange Bank. It has no cost of any type, no fees, interest, or tax, and it pays for community projects and pays people to be educated.

My intention was never to write a book, but it seems my shorter articles as snippets to address the increasing shorter attention span of people is not enough. People either want the one minute elevator pitch or the book. My plan is to offer both.

01

The Usual Suspects and How We Are Dealing With It

We’ve heard it all before: the tragedy of climate change, environmental destruction, nuclear energy production, exploitation of employees, rising and irrelevant defence costs, political ineptitude … and many issues brought to our attention, but no effective means to resolve them. We try to fight to change the system that puts us in such an appalling position with the same processes that put us there in the first place. We do this, and have been doing this, over and over, for generations. We accept a learned helplessness that this is how it will be, always, and making that struggle the meaning of life. Add the people selling a connection between money and empowerment, and we are in perpetual cycles of hope but achieving nothing new. I can say doing the same thing the same way receives the same results, as many have and do, but few expand the framework for when this is authentically effective.

Whether hope is through religion or life coaches or startups, all are bound in an economic model that combats ethics for profit. We idolise those that overcome the travesty of currency, yet cannot avoid to use it. These hopes become wishful thinking. People accept this helplessness of where we are, even when people become so influential, fight with them, until they sell themselves or are arrested or assassinated. Think JFK, MLK Jr, Nelson Mandela, Gandhi, Bernie Sanders, Osho, and Julian Assange as examples. There are many more I could say, especially in politics, religion, cults, and business. You have heard them all before. We keep going through these cycles, hoping for change, but nothing changes, because we are not looking big enough to make change where it matters: usury currency.

From what built in belief do we accept this dichotomy? Why do we accept the cutthroat nature of human nature to rule with a model that imprisons you to compromise, and dream of something different?

We idolise authors extolling freethinking, individualists, changemakers, throughout their journeys trying to empower these traits, but there are blips in a long trajectory of cycles that never change. Beginning with Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring in 1972, there have been cycles of books by the likes of David Suzuki, Elkhart Tolle, and Anthony Robbins, to more contemporary icons like Kate Raworth, Daniel Christian Wahl, and Jacques Fresco, as well as reactionary journalists, loud musicians, and revealing documentary film makers and creators, all are reduced to bromides for the massive mind shift change that we never want to face, afraid we will lose too much, even to the point of war, where all lose. We are reduced to wealth in a box that we feel is no other choice, created that we accept and you are best to live with.

Pointing out specific issues of change: environmental issues, energy issues, water issues, financial issues, racial issues, health issues, hasn’t helped change any of them very much. They are left as conversations that change nothing. Even now in this pending economic doom, we accept that this compromise is an inevitable part of human nature. We take the history of dominion before us as proof that human nature as tragedy is absolute, in the meantime offering accolades to change makers that we claim are not doing the same thing the same way for the same result. Even that statement that we say Einstein said has become commercialised to mean nothing.

It’s perplexing that we believe that human nature is perpetually inherently combative seeking dominion and needs to be commanded to be better. That ethics is the only answer to overcoming the base nature of humanity. And yet, the worst leaders to achieve than other ones that end up in power to compromise everybody else who hopes to trust their communities and countries. And even as failures, they are glorified as leaders in name alone, irrespective of what they did. If it’s bad, we make it more viral than any good, self-aware being. Our solution is we find the means to buy it.

I’ve noticed how many people are now gravitating towards presenting the will of the people who overwhelmingly want to do good. Who wants to give love. Who wants to empower who they can. And yet, the one fulcrum point for change that no one addresses effectively is the currency we value these things on.

For all the things that go wrong and that we fight for to be right, money seems to always be the centre of the problem, not human nature. And while we try to correct the ill-definition of what we think human nature is, we accept usury currency is the only absolute to offer value and wealth. We don’t question money itself, or design different ones with similar parameters, offering no real means for change. We blame people for their transgressions, not the money they use to try to do well, and eventually fail.

If changemakers really want to do something different for an empowered future in synergy with Earth, we must be honest with all aspects to inspire change and change all tools at our disposal to make it possible. Valuing quality with a quantified currency is inherently problematic, so we must find a way to change that.

This is what BUXBE aims to achieve. My solution points directly at usury currency, It’s flaws in that leverages currency as a commodity and its disconnection of creation vs what wealth it can effectively buy. it realises we do not have to accept cycles of armageddon, small or large. I find a different means of exchange that values the quality of wealth and what this means to our empowerment of self, communities, countries, and Earth.

This book is not going to be 90% of what’s wrong and then make faith in some community or people or politically-based desired solution without a means to get there. This will explain what works and ask if we are prepared to face our fears and act on it.

02

First Principles Frameworks Shifting

Before I get into the core of what BUXBE is, there are some universal beliefs humanity has accepted that I need to address for the rest to make more sense.

0201

People are the real money. Without their will to create, no currency would exist.

0202

Money can’t measure abundance when its value is based on scarcity.

Therefore, empowerment can’t be bought with a scarce measure of wealth.

0203

The amount of money in the world far exceeds what can be bought with it. It is not a case of volume, but distribution, that compromises people to gain access to goods and services. It also shows how much money is an illusion of a measure of wealth. Most quantities of money are never actually spent, just held. When banks are printing money, they are doing it as the expenses of the masses, not the 1%.

0204

Usury means ANY interest. Changing the definition to exorbitant interest is a way to fool people that there has to be a cost on currency, reinforcing the commodity of it. If exorbitant interest was a true definition, then what defines a ‘non-exorbitant’ interest? OK interest!? Such a definition is a sham, more that we accept because it’s easier to do this than fight. Sadly, the people wanting power over us know this. If we really want change, we have to fight; not politically, not violently, but with agreements to empower all, and know this is not against our self-interest. People get angry at me that I frame this around self-interest. Self-interest isn’t bad. It is the framework this works in that defines whether it is empowering, or not.

0205

Humanity can do anything. This is the basis of our multiple cultures created within environmental isolation since Sapien inception; even before, if we decide cave paintings are made by older human species. So why do we pick fundamental routes around disempowerment, division, and glorifying war as capable? This dichotomy framework we base everything on is inherently disempowering, and one we will never overcome, even when monisms are framed against dichotomies; that is inherently the same thing. Monisms are a reframe that connects diversity dynamically and creatively in reference to different environments to be in synergy with all. It isn’t against a weakness. It is exercising excellence, irrespective of the object of dichotomy or monisms.

0206

People want to create. This is how we set ourselves apart from others; our true means of competition, but this does not mean we do not prefer to collaborate. We want to be authentic and connect. This is our human instinct. We also adapt to our environment to survive. If the frameworks demand that competition is the final way to succeed, then we will do this. If there is more incentive to collaborate to succeed, we will do this. We take the path of least resistance to achieve the greatest status we choose to rise to. It is a difficult fight to overcome the quantitative rules of currency that the powers that be have enforced us to accept, especially when they have been used across civilisations in times when war is glorified. This is an oxymoron. How can war be overcome by investing in it? This only establishes and reinforces the disempowered side of human nature.

0207

Human nature is not bad, as game theory would want you to believe. Rather, it adapts to environments, synthetic or natural, to survive, thrive. It’s surprising that we think that our economic cycle of life is considered empowered survival. Human nature sets ourselves apart by how we create to live. How well we do this increases our chances to be remembered for our legacies. What we do for this is dependent on the environment we are in, whether it empowers or not. It is the holistic endgame of the framework of what is created that defines which it is.

0208

The human condition is something different to human nature. Some people think it’s the same or parody other definitions. What the core of it comes down to is we do not know how to love ourselves as much as we choose to love others.

0209

Money is not meant to be created separately from work. Because it is, and has an independent cost to it, making it a commodity, not a medium of exchange for commodities, those that own money own the people creating something for it. That’s why the most wealthy are those who own banks. They technically create nothing, but own those that create something. How wealth became the capacity to buy nothing, as there is no way what is available to buy covers what money is out there, blows my mind. That we waste so many resources ‘making’ money through financial services alone is the most inefficient use of resources possible. Costs for defence are second.

0210

In contrast, the people who make the most useful resources for survival: food, clothing, shelter, IT, healthcare, transport, are the least supported industries, reducing many to fail in business, despite how essential they are for sustained human, and nature’s, wellbeing.

0211

Most money is wasted on those that create, or empower, the fewest people. It’s designed to be so. Governments are renowned for being a total waste of money and wasting money, unbalancing a free market that could decide better what to create if empowered, with the right exchange, to do so. As wealth is measured by an unbalanced exchange model, no true free market can possibly exist, hence why markets are perpetually corrupt, and will always be so while money is a commodity.

0212

Banks are not meant to be independent agencies to make profits. This is an oxymoron while people create experiences to buy. Accessing this is wealth, with no need for a bank as a profit seeking industry. A true bank is simply a ledger of exchanges, thereby showing who actually creates something worth buying. This could easily be run by the government if currency was owned by them to manage. Banks themselves create nothing, and therefore can’t, and don’t need to, create profit.

0213

Homo sapiens are the only cognitive species that has been able to command nature. Therefore, unlike nature or the universe that just does what it does to survive and change by chance more than anything else [natural survival of the fittest], we created a synthetic economic model to fit into this instead of a model that best supports our creative abundance. Humanity is, and has been, well past any news to fight for resources to survive. We waste so many resources supporting this synthetic model, turning Earth into a bin, instead of creating an empowered model that values wealth creating experiences sustainably, to redundancy, which means we have evolved so much using resources to keep making something that doesn’t empower us is stupid. This is very different to obsolescence, where failure is designed into experiences to sell more.

0214

What is truly abundant is creativity. The tool to empower that is education. Education is priceless and abundant. If an economic model can’t support education to be free, then it must pay all involved to be educated in whatever interests them. This follows the abundant nature of knowledge.

0215

We think that the dichotomy of good [empowering] and bad [disempowering] are absolute objects to navigate for life. They are not. It is the arena, the monism belief, that these play in that defines what is ultimately an empowered trajectory or not. The Prisoner’s Dilemma is supposed to represent the ultimate game theory to win: be good or be bad. But who said we are prisoners? There are also game theories that demonstrate who we choose to make empowered collaborative decisions in the right framework. But this doesn’t sell, and won’t while our wealth is based on disempowering someone, and discussing the same, but changing nothing.

The greatest heroes create exceptional experiences [XQ] that interest us to empower the most people [E] in the most sustainable way possible [S], to redundancy: no longer required as its potential has been superseded. Any economic model must support this. What we choose can change over time, as a servant or master, in synergy with others’ creations, always in service to Earth, as compromising Earth only compromises ourselves. That’s not empowering for self or anyone.

03

The Elevator Pitch

There are 3 points to answer in an elevator pitch:

What’s the idea?

Who and how it will benefit people?

Why am I the guy to deliver it.

This will be different depending on who one speaks to, and while the elevator pitch is a nice schematic, it is important to understand the issues of who BUXBE is being discussed with. Nevertheless, the core for why to change will always be the same: how empowered do you want to be to become the best of your self as possible, being supported by others as you will be supporting them, and leaving a legacy of empowered love for others to follow and expand?

The idea:

I have designed a new exchange model that will shift status for people to create sustainably. It’s completely free to use. No fees, no interest, no-tax. As a non commodity currency, it allows wealth to be valued on qualitative sustainable ideas, not cutthroat quantitative ones. It literally makes people the money.. It allows the idea of profit to be created with a lot less stress and bullshit than what we do now.

The benefits:

BUXBE is based on the labour of people, which fills demand until no longer required. The bank doesn’t own anyone. It is a creation of the work of the people as they see fit. It allows people to build status in creating experiences sustainably to empower the most people until it becomes useless to create anymore. As people are paid to be educated, no one is orange by their vocation. They can choose to be the best in anything they want to do for themselves as much as for the community.

Why me?

Why me:

No other currency expert understands currents and beyond the current framework of commodity. Even currencies like mutual exchange have costs attached to them overtime, and cryptocurrencies are incredibly misunderstood for the scope they can be applied for substantial sustainable evolution.

04

The Conversations

In general, the points to cover, without sounding like an evangelist, are:

Are you happy with what you do?

Are you doing it for love or just financial security?

Are you happy with how you empower people?

How would you like to empower them more?

How would you like to empower yourself more?

Would you like to be paid to be educated, to know what interests you most rather than fumbling for what you may never love doing?

Would you like to be paid to share your knowledge to empower as many people as possible, safe in increasing your security, not be in fear you are sharing too much to undermine yourself and your family?

If an economy allowed, would you prefer to be known for the increasing quality you create, and want to know others for the same reason, that this would be your community of peers?

Can you trust others enough to make such an economy possible, if they have the same tools as yourself? Would you like to?

Can you trust yourself to be a part of making this happen?

Remember, you’re the money, not a bank.

0401

0419

The Coder

‘Hey! Are you interested in making productive, empowered, change in the world?’

‘You mean giving power back to the people? Sure am!’

‘ Then I need your help.’

‘What’s up?’

‘I’m designing a new free currency which values creating sustainably, and need to build a website, app, and blockchain to handle transactions. I call it BUXBE. I’ve got no usury money, but can pay you in the currency you are helping me make accessible.’

‘What is the point of making yet a new currency? So many are being created.’

‘They are created the wrong way. For them, it is about being the next get rich quick scheme. Nothing will change until we take out the commodity and costs of currency, and revalue wealth in creating sustainable quality. There is no cost in using BUXBE, no interest, fees, or tax. And people are paid to be educated. This is set at B60 per hour for the teacher and for every student participating.’

‘Where does the money come from to pay for education? For any of this?’

‘By an agreement of the people involved to use BUXBE. For you, it comes from BUXBE itself as it is a community project. The BUXBE model also pays people for community projects, too.’

‘So that’s how I’ll be paid?’

‘Yes. B60 per hour for how long it takes to get it off the ground and maintenance.’

‘That’s a lot of work to be paid in a crypto that might not get traction.’

‘Honestly, it is inevitable it will take hold. We are all in a tough time dealing with usury currencies. People are trying to find a political solution to the issues so many people worldwide have, investing in anything other than money to avoid the consequences of a crash, but what’s really needed is a sustainable one, and the right exchange model to incentivise this. The key objective is in what way can we allow people to default to create experiences in the most sustainable way possible to redundancy. Having the right currency to make this possible is fundamental. If it was possible in usury currencies, we wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place. I’m offering a cost-free currency that has no fees, interest or tax, and pays people to be educated. The whole emphasis of BUXBE is to focus on the people, not the bank. All the bank does is record transactions.’

‘So you can’t make money on money? There is no way to have savings?’

‘Of course you can save money in your account, but it will not warm interest. Doing that commodifies the currency, and then everything will fall to pieces.’

‘Will a stock market exist?

‘No. Speculating on what business you value comes from working for that business. That shows they uphold the parameters of creating sustainably.’

‘Why limit the amount people are pid to B60 an hour?’

‘There is no need to earn more to increase purchasing power. As exposure to BUXBE increases, it is likely that pricing of products and services will default to a business owner getting the equivalent of B60 once profits are figured out, but this is only a guideline. IT could be more, and maybe should be more, but this is dependent on market demand. The real profit is the reputation of people creating the best experiences to empower the most people in the most sustainable way possible, to redundancy.’

‘I get the feeling I am going to hear that last bit a lot.’

‘That’s the whole point of making BUXBE exist.’

‘How about having a BUXBE UBI?’

‘That’s possible. I am not hard and fast on how to get BUXBE out there, but the advantage in using a no-cost currency that pays people to be educated will become obvious once we reach critical mass.’

‘When will that be?’

‘When these key industries are covered to be accessible in BUXBE: education, energy, food, clothing, shelter, technology, healthcare, and transport.’

‘Yes. That would just about cover it. What about art?’

‘That is certainly part of it, but don’t think these initial 8 sectors lack creativity. Everything is an art form in their own way.’

‘Fair enough. But why would a no-cost currency make such a difference?’

‘Because it shifts wealth away from quantity owned to quality given. The currency becomes neutral as a measure of wealth and focuses on why a certain person or business is supported in their quality creation. With a neutral currency, it becomes all about how sustainable one is in whatever they are making.’

‘This is going to shake up some industries.’

‘Industries worth shaking. Many industries are about how the overcome disempowering industries like insurance, brands, defence; any industry that chooses to take advantage of you versus industries that empower you.’

‘Do you honestly think people will overcome their comfort zone to take this on?’

‘There are many people this can empower from the get go: activists, volunteers, the UN, but the key industries to target are farmers and miners. Nothing will work until these 2 industries adopt BUXBE. That is where my focus is to start with, and it will go from there. Once I get those on board, others will come, and then I can make BUXBE through SMS transactions in third world countries.’

‘Two things: you need a telecom and an electric source to use BUXBE.’

‘I can access first world countries with the electrics people use at present. I’ll pay for the website hosting until I get someone on board to cover that, the app will be free, and I’ll approach telecoms for SMS exchange for developing countries if smartphones are not available for them to use.’

‘So what is your minimal viable product?

‘The transaction blockchain and an app that can load in the same app style on desktop computers.’

‘That’s still a lot.’

‘But essential, and it will be worth it as people join. People will know this is serious.’

‘OK. I am in. Give me some design cues and we can go from there.’

0402

The Volunteer

‘You are the most overlooked, but necessary, sector in economics. Fire rescue, lifesaving, interns, humanitarian support. Business can’t exist without you,’ I said.

‘Yes. We are overlooked for what we do.’

‘I’ve been thinking of a currency that will give you money outside of usury currencies. I’m looking at the UN to apply the currency which will make it easy to access, but this is not essential. It can be a distributed volunteer currency. We might call it V Coin if that works. Would that interest you to use?’

‘It sounds promising, but is this real?’

‘Yes, it can be, but only if you use it.’

‘How would it work?’

‘There are options simply exchanging through SMS or on the website or app.’

‘Where does the money come from?’

‘It is created by your work.’

‘Couldn’t people just fudge it?’

‘No. Work has to be verified by who you are volunteering with.’

‘But that could be fudged, too.’

‘There would be no point. Because there is no cost to the currency, you are not trying to beat others to pay back a loan. What you borrow simply has to be paid back, and the bank is not an institution trying to make a profit. There is no idea of wealth through the amount of money one has, but what can be bought, which will inherently be more sustainable products and services that will be cheaper to buy as BUXBE/V Coin scales.’

‘I am not really educated in economics so really not sure what you are talking about.’

‘I understand. The key points to know is the BUXBE model is free to use, and the bank pays for community projects/infrastructure and for people to be educated.’

‘It pays people to be educated?’

‘Yes. Anyone offering something that people find interest in being educated about pays both the teacher and all students B60 an hour. This is part of the model to overcome the tragedy that people have not been able to have access to education because they do not have the money.’

‘That’s insanely cool!’

‘’Absolutely! It is essential people can access education in what interests them. Creativity and education is abundant, and so the currency model has to be able to leverage that,’ I smiled.

‘OK, I am in!’

0403

The Farmer

‘You guys have it very hard.’ I said. ‘Without you, very few people would survive.’

‘Yep,’ he replied, ‘owned by someone somewhere who has no idea what we go through, but if we go along with the latest and greatest government project, we are subsidised very well.’

‘But these projects destroy the land, correct?’

‘Yes, it does, predominantly, and the ecosystems that would normally sustain it.’

‘But then you would not get the yields you need to sell to keep your farm.’

‘Well, we have to grow a lot more to have satisfactory product retailers want to sell. Nature has no idea of economic markets. But it would be nice to be able to use what we don’t sell another way.’

‘Have you thought about permaculture and have the land work for you? Have you looked at the yield possibilities and leverage work hours? You know there are many qualified permaculturalists out there waiting to exercise what they know at scale.’

‘It’s not something I am familiar with enough to change and we have to pay the banks.’

‘I’ve an idea. With any fallow or forest land, have a permaculturalist turn it over inside 2 years. This will take some hands on deck to make happen, but you can pay them with a free currency called BUXBE for them to use. Sell part of the produce in BUXBE to other permaculturalists and sell the remainder to organic markets at a premium. As your yield increases and the BUXBE community grows, your bank debts reduce and you grow a community with a currency that costs nothing to use. Have the people working on the land build tiny houses that they can own or swap if they move between permaculture farms. Then you will be debt free. You will have a lot less wasted food, and your farm can slowly leave destructive farming practices behind and shift wholly to a permaculture farm with as good or even more yield with more permanent living people here on the farm that cost you only their wages as they can live freely with the produce they grow.’

‘This is going to take some thinking to figure out, and who else is using BUXBE, and I am not sure I care enough to change.’

‘I am building the communities to use BUXBE. You are one of many farmers, if not all, that need a new way to work where you are not owned by others. You should be at the top of the pyramid, not banks. And if you don’t care enough to change, then you will always complain of what you want but will never have: freedom. I’ll contact the permaculturalists and find out who is willing to build a community inside your farm. They all want better places to live with a more healthy, chemical- free, life. People are wanting change but do not know how to. That’s why I am here: to help get that change happening without being combative or an icon talking but not doing. You will be in a growing position of empowering others to live with a much greater connection to Earth. This is why you are a farmer, too, no? Let me figure the best system and we go from there.’

‘What about land ownership?’ he wondered.

‘The houses belong to the people working the land, but the land is yours. People are free to leave if they are not happy, so there is an onus on you to make it worthwhile for them to be there. There are an abundance of chefs out there who are not in a position to practice what they want. I suggest having one full-time to use the produce you do not sell and make food for the workers, and also have weekly celebration feasts for fun. You are buying the wine!’

‘OK, get back to me when you have a team and let’s see what we can do.’

We both smile at the possibilities ahead.

0404

The Permaculturalist

‘There seem to be so many of you, but few get to practice it at any scale, if at all,’ I said.

‘Yes. Many are certified. It gives a great grounding to be connected to the land, but the economics and incentives do not lend themselves to practicing commercially, unless it is for niche farming, and this few and far between. Most farmers also think we are just hippies, but there are highly learned people in the permaculture space pioneered by David Holmgren and Geoff Lawton and adapted to environments by the likes of Joel Salatin, Peter Proctor, and Peter Andrews who are anything but hippies.’

’And they’ve been able to make a living, yes?’

‘Money talks. Systems around monocultures are spread far and wide. The Walmart of farming. In the end, it will bite everyone in the ass. It already is: reduced nutrition in produce, increased waste, depleted soils … you get the picture.’

‘What of farmer suicides?’

‘Yes, this is the worst part. Farmers give food for the world, but are treated like slaves to banks supporting industries that squeeze them so hard, they can’t produce any more, reducing quantity, starving people in developing countries, even developed ones, while those with money waste so much more. There seems to be a wealth status in how much we waste. It assumes sustainable practices are for the poor. It makes no sense.’

I agreed. ‘There is a huge disconnect between natural qualified wealth and artificial quantified wealth. What of under-utilised land? What about converting these farmers pushed to make a living? Why don’t they use permaculture methods as a way out?’

‘They are pushed trying to make payments to the banks, not to mention paying companies who have patents on seeds that bind farmers, increasing their debt. GMOs were meant to be the holy grail of easy farming, but nothing is further from the truth.’

‘Well, if the GMOs aren’t working, would this not be more a reason to switch to permaculture. It is not like they are able to make their payments, so why not?’

‘Easier to say than do. Most are too scared to shift. Better the devil you know. Learned helplessness.’

‘Always the money’, I say.

He nods.

‘I’ve an idea. What if farmers can access a different currency, a free one, to be able to buy your services? On your agreement, of course. No exchange model is accepted without agreement. I am already speaking with farmers about how to incorporate sustainable options, have permaculturalists be the creatives, the architects of food creation, and sustain an alternate method of farming while they look after usury debts. This begins and scales the values of permaculture. It also takes out the new age concept of it and presents it as a grounded platform for sustainable creation, and the qualitative status behind it as a means towards valuing qualitative wealth.

‘Even if I thought this was possible, permaculturalists are very much individuals doing their own thing.’

‘The point is where are they doing their own thing. You are all being educated for change but do not collaborate or leverage what you all learn. Being a permaculturist is not a badge of honour to be a part of a new age group living on the fringe but not scaling change. Are you all talking or really want to do it? There is a lot of land, both owned and dormant, that needs your attention. Without relevant farming practices that increase access to nutrition, and leveraging an economic model that allows the social model of empowered change to happen, nothing is going to change. Farming is the core of all humanity, of all life considering the command we have over it now. Change is not going to happen lauding opinionated egos. The world needs you, more than ever. Be empowered to act together, get the resources and people you need, and be the leaders you trained to be.’

‘No one has thought of it this way.’

‘Not even yourselves, it seems. You have some fantastic pioneers who have acted once they got the land. That was their way. This is now. Let’s capitalise on under-utilised land and get you all off the ground. Organisations like WWF should all be working with you, too. They will not get what they want without you, either. Work with that.’

‘Big dreams.’

‘Dreams worth doing. I’m talking with the farmers. Come with me. Let’s figure this out on a community scale and go from there.’

You’re a challenging bastard, aren’t you?’

‘When it is relevant to be so.’

‘OK. I’m in.’

0405

The Miner

‘Ever wondered how much of what you mine gets wasted?’

‘I can’t. No money in it.’

‘Interesting word, miner. Very possessive. Yet so much wasted in how we manufacture. You are not kidding about the money.’

‘Are you familiar with how the many diamonds are mined but held back from the market to raise their cost?’

‘Yes, and how ships are pulled apart on a beach in Namibia. Sad.’

‘No money in being sustainable.’

‘Should I ask if you are happy with what you are doing?’

‘Without my work, people would have a very difficult time building and doing what they need and do, and this helps me with all the things I also do when I am not mining.

‘Mining. Another non sequitur.’ I had to smile.

‘World needs us as much as farmers.’

‘I agree. You provide the resources for creatives to act and make life better, easier, offering more experiences, to discover new things. No question. What I am questioning is the how. Resources are extremely valuable so why not change relevant economic and social models to afford they are not, and value the people for their creations that empower us, yourself included.’

‘That is going to take some work.’

‘Beats living in learned helplessness and waiting for the next apocalypse, when there are tools to do something about it. That people think this is the only option, for money over sense, blows my mind, but there are people out there who want the change, but can’t see how. That’s why I am developing BUXBE.’

‘Which is?’

‘A currency that has no costs. No one is beholden to a bank. Money has no commodity, just exchange value, and is based on the work people do. That is the commodity, not money.’

‘So how is this going to help me? Help me support my family?’

‘You are perpetually in debt to a bank. You are always in service to stockholders at any cost. Mining is responsible for a huge amount of destruction of land, and most of what you mine is tossed into trash. All of this is in service to an economic model built in usury that can’t be sustainable to make it run. BUXBE has no one to pay back to. You can use it to start an alternate business handling recycling. Most people want recycling, but do not know how because there is no usury money in it. But BUXBE can empower to make the changes everyone wants. As this scales, you have less need to rely on usury to support your family and can shift what still needs to be mined to BUXBE, but there will also be less need to do that. What you will mine will change, too, as the focus of industries using BUXBE will shift to more sustainable solutions. People with sustainable innovations that usury kills have far more support in BUXBE as people care much more, and profit from these ideas that promote less work without losing purchasing power. What you earn in BUXBE is yours, made by your work. BUXBE exists because of your choice to be paid in it, not that I create it to distribute for you to take. I do not own you. The bank can’t own you. Only when currency is based on the labour people choose to do for the love of what they do can currency be stable and focus on empowering others. That’s why I am doing this.’

‘That’s a lot to take in. But 2 things that come to mind: how are you valuing quality with a quantity, and what occurs to me is how do I profit while I have to charge less to keep/gain market share but hours are less and prices are dropping?’

‘Both very good points. Savvy you picked these up. People are used to pricing for something, used to buying, so I designed BUXBE to be neutral and allow the free market to decide what sustainable creations work best. Instead of being the more expensive choice, BUXBE makes these choices far more affordable as sustainable creators who were marginalised with usury are more competitive in BUXBE. As people get to know each other in similar industries, they will begin to feel safe to collaborate together to make their creations more sustainable. Need for resources competing becomes redundant and can be used for something else. Hours to create might go down, and what is earned may be numerically less, but purchasing power is going up despite prices falling. Prices can fall while purchasing power increases because there is no bank to pay interest to. They are the bank, as you are the bank. So you will start ‘mining’ materials to recycle to compete with others, but you, too will collaborate with others as it makes no sense not to. You will find you gain, not lose, security to look after your family. You can offer them better choices. Your stress will reduce. You will have more people to cover your back. You will LOVE your work much more because it connects to the empowerment of others, as much as they are empowering you. There may be a time where BUXBE will no longer be necessary and the resources that were used for this get recycled for something else, but if not, it’s OK. It is far more efficient, and authentic, than all the structures that support usury currency. BUXBE takes out all the gambling to attain purchasing power at the expense of others. We are the smartest species on Earth. Living in fear with so much command of it is a pathetic existence, no matter how qualitatively ‘wealthy’ we may become. Going through monetary cycles to sustain disempowering cycles is the worst way to show any sense of empowerment. Many people work for us to enjoy the experiences they create. They should be honoured. Banks create nothing. Time to wake up and move on.’

‘You were running away there.’

‘Yes, I was, but have I answered your questions?’

‘A lot to think about.’

‘There are key industry sectors that are necessary for people to buy what they need in BUXBE: food, clothing, shelter, IT, healthcare, and transport. None of these exist without farmers and miners, and they run on energy and education. BUXBE pays all involved in education. This allows people to find their niche in these main sectors and then exchange in BUXBE. So, you are key in this transition. Please don’t ask me generic questions like what can you buy with BUXBE. All new ideas start somewhere, but they all start with agreements. Usury currency did, with fear and learned helplessness; very different energies to what BUXBE is based on.’

‘You’re a passionate man, and I wasn’t going to ask what I can buy. It seems that BUXBE is actually based on education more than labour.’

‘Good point. I did not think of that.’

‘You brought up learned helplessness. Humanity follows the path of least resistance. You have a tough mountain to level out.’

‘The idea is to keep the mountain. Earth doesn’t care what we do. Humanity needs to ask if it wants to think going through cycles of boom and bust, and think the collateral damage of this is better than finding more cohesive, but still individual, paths towards empowerment. Self-empowerment is not an end. It’s a beginning. Anyone who is empowered will see creating with love is far more powerful than fear.’

‘A lot of people will want to stop you.’

‘And so I’ll be another salmon who didn’t make it up the river. But there will be ones that will, and do. Reminds me of the book Illusions by Richard Bach. Worth a read. Anyway, this is all conjecture. What matters is the present, and empowering you. We are here today. The choices we make today affect tomorrow. Do you want the same, or do you want something different, that others want, too, but just aren’t empowered as you are to act. Even fringes need centres.’

‘You really want me to have a free choice.’

‘Of course. I am not responsible for your decisions. And you have to face your own fears to decide what to do next. This may be my one obstacle: that I do not use a tactic to sell, but being authentic is the only way. The strong empower. The weak just want power.’

‘Geez, what a mindfuck. But an honest one. I am going to need your help navigating through this to switch.’

‘That’s why I am here. I will connect you with others who have ideas on sustainable recycling, and I’ll get you familiar with BUXBE and how to use it on the fly once we have some concrete ideas on where to go next.’

0406

The Developer

‘I will not listen to anything where I lose ownership of my land. I am not listening to a communist,’ he said. Straight to the point.

‘I am not here to compromise security. Not here to be your guru, push an alternate agenda covertly. I am not here to rule politically another way. I rule what I do, You will rule yours, but we do it together with one concept in mind: what will we create to empower the most people in the most sustainable way possible, to redundancy? That’s all that matters. Whatever we do, Earth always wins. Earth rules, not us.’

‘OK. I’m listening.’

‘My objective is to have the right land be utilised to its greatest purpose. This does not mean using all land to grow an economy. It is more than resilience. It is about regeneration, rejuvenation, true empowerment of land to then empower us. Completely both physically and mentally. We can do nothing without land. Therefore, we must apply models that honour it, not abuse it, hold it, and later destroy it, ESPECIALLY for an economy, an illusion of wealth that doesn’t exist. We know what amount of money is out there far exceeds what can be bought with it, which makes no sense. How we abuse land is a consequence of this artificial scarcity. Yes, resources are scarce, but our creativity is abundant. Any real wealth is based on creative abundance, not resource scarcity.’

‘Get back to the point.’

‘You have a lot of land wasted in the hope of return of investment, but the centre of all you do is a bank. They own you. You create places for us to live, but a bank creates nothing but an exchange mechanism, created outside of your work, because they, for whatever reason, have been given permission to. I want the empowerment of what you do with your land to return to you.’

‘How?’

‘Rent your properties out to people using BUXBE. Do it at 1:1 of what the current value is in usury. Numbers are growing, but all are under the thumb of rent in usury. Opening up your vacant properties alleviates this part of their debt to a debt to you with BUXBE, which takes the interest they would normally have to pay back to a bank.’

‘What about my debt to the bank? They will not accept BUXBE to pay off my debt, right? So what is going to happen if they foreclose on me for not paying what I owe them?’

‘Yes, true. BUXBE and usury are not exchangeable. It really depends on how much you are leveraged. You will still be getting rent in usury while they are not using BUXBE. They are also using usury and BUXBE at the same time, but will shift more to BUXBE as its market increases. The idea is to shift your business all into BUXBE where you do not have any overheads to any usury institution. The closest connection to banks are those that borrowed to buy land and/or develop on it. It’s possible. Without taking ownership rights of land from the bank, it will be a tough road ahead. But I will be speaking to the banks, too. Banks are filled with people who do not want to be there and have other hopes and dreams. The market of usury will shrink. People will not want to use it as they understand and use BUXBE. The only way is by force, but what got, except a fully corrupt one, would support going against a movement that is only growing, AND supports the government to do what it was really meant to do?

‘Sounds like a tricky balancing act.’

‘Well, that’s the key triangle on the usury side: banks, govt, land in debt. But on the other side are an increasing stream of people working their way towards using a neutral currency and letting the debt and disempowerment of usury go. This will set not a revolution, but an evolution that can’t be ignored. This movement is going to lead to you. I need to be sure you are OK to handle the transition and we do not get in a war of ownership with banks. If it goes there, I’m realising that if they took ownership, there would be little market for anyone to buy with usury, but could offer BUXBE. This would bring the people in the bank over all the more, as the bank would have no choice but to pay employees in BUXBE as usury dies. That will lead to realisations of what was wealth and what is. A crazy time. But all of this is better than accepting an apocalypse. Every economic bust is a version of an apocalypse.’

‘Man, this is very heavy, but I will start with offering properties not moving in the usury market to BUXBE. There is logic in that.’

‘That’s terrific. A great beginning. I’m always on hand to help with transition, so you won’t be stranded for what the next move will be.’

0407

The Industrialist

‘What would you want to change in how you make what you do now?’

‘I’d really like to see some more options for more educated people that I can employ and be inherently savvy. More possible employees are really not thinking out of the box and caring about their work as much as I would like. However, I also have to make ends meet so it is always a compromise of being able to do quality work while keeping costs and time down. In a weird way, it seems the economy is moving to do a thing twice, not once.’

‘I have noticed with some council pothole road repairs that the first time it is done, the resurface doesn’t last weeks, and resurfacing is less than 6 months before potholes appear. It seems no one seems to care about doing quality work the first time and moving on. Do you think doing it twice is a reflection of getting away with what you can, or timing it so it has to be repaired at a certain time?

‘We do our best with the education we get to then give back.’

‘And there are loads of people educated in what you need that just can’t get a job, leaving you not to serve as many as you could. If I could offer a way to have you access more employees that want to make a difference without raising your debt, would you be interested? It’s radical, but you will see the benefits once you wrap your head around it.’

‘Anything where I can do a better job to increase market share is worth looking into.’

‘OK. You are governed by your debt, which may be large or small, but there is almost always something. But as you succeed, someone fails, so on a large scale, the collective debt of industrialists always increases. This wastes resources that, if the most successful industrialist handled it, there would, could, be much less waste. However, your market will eventually reach a saturation of redundancy, so you build in obsolescence to keep the wheels turning, so there is still waste. Even if you did not have debt, you would be hard pressed to drive your business to redundancy, unless you can have a really adaptable manufacturing system, and this can be a very tough thing to manage. Do you think or have you ever been in a position where you have ever run your business without debt?’

‘All businesses start with a huge amount of debt, startups included. There is a promise to pay dividends and this plays into the perpetual debt cycle. There is an expected ROI from all investors. So even if there is no actual monetary debt, unlikely, there is always a debt of honour. At least this is the case with the people who value their reputation, which is most people. Scammers are the minority, but this is increasing while making ends meet becomes more difficult.’

‘One thing that many manufacturers miss is resources are scarce, but the imagination and creativity of what to do with resources is limitless. The dilemma with the game we play this in is that all financial models, and human beliefs, are all based on prioritising scarcity. We need to get past this and build gaming, so to speak, on abundance frameworks, selecting the best mechanisms that empower the most people while using resources to their greatest efficiency. Humanity is wasting too much on old models that no longer serve it.’

‘Some questions: the difference of redundancy and obsolescence, and how will we value wealth with abundance? Wouldn’t that mean it’s worthless if it is easily accessible?’

‘By obsolescence, I mean you build in that a product/service is not the very best, otherwise you will not be able to make a profit. So your framework is technically the least quality you can make with minimal resources for the highest profit. Redundancy means you have the capacity to make the best so it is no longer required, and you are in a position to then do something else that interests you. That is why you are paid to be educated in the BUXBE economy, so you are not squeezed to do something that may not appeal to you for the sake of making money. Makes sense?’

‘I can see where you are coming from. You are valuing intrinsic wealth on the abundance of creativity, not the objective wealth of scarcity of resources. But all civilisations have been based on wealth as objects to own. People need to own things to be safe.’

‘Sure. I am not taking away owning things. But what to own for a wealthy life will change. Owning is not about having something and not using it. It is about cultivating what one has, using it, to empower self and others. Yes, the rules of wealth will change, but this is necessary if we are to reconnect and cultivate earth. You are aware we are destroying it for a meaningless economy which makes our lives meaningless, and we are propagating this by not accepting this. Humanity has the empowerment to do anything if it wants to. This is how we develop cultures. We need to not be afraid to evolve cultures to empower. So far, all changes are futile if we do not change the value measure that supports empowered change.’

‘So what are you proposing for me and my business to change?’

‘I would like for you to introduce BUXBE as part of the payment of existing staff. The percentage is up to them. I also have people that are willing to be paid 50/50 as they are leveraging buying from BUXBE creators. The farming and mining sides are expanding further to scale manufacture into the model. Tell your resource line that you are getting into BUXBE as further incentive to leverage it as this will also travel back to farmers and miners, where everything comes from anyway. Education is the seed that propels everything as the bank pays all involved equally out of its pocket. People can buy your product in turn by either usury or BUXBE, depending on their choice. The price of your product between usury and BUXBE will be different as the two are not transferable and mean payments are very different between them. As an example, the usury rate for people is between $20–50an hour but in BUXBE it is B60 per hour. You will find that while you are looking for as much pricing as possible in usury currency but paying people as little as possible, prices will fall substantially in BUXBE, yet purchasing power goes up. It is not about the zeros you earn; it is what the zeros buy that matters. You will still be able to pay your debts using usury for as long as you need to then shift over to BUXBE completely. you will see how people will be using BUXBE as a means to never be in debt again, and therefore, you do not have to be in debt either.’

‘How is this different to other currencies out there, crypto or otherwise?’

‘All other currencies are based on commodity, separate from the work of the people. It is simply created by legislation and authority, with no real backing of the work of the people. Basing a currency on a raw material like gold is stupid and empty. This is why Nixon separated gold from backing any currency; there wasn’t enough to go around for this current economic model to function. it keeps chasing the carrot going. To continue with the carrot, now people are decentralising commodity currency creation, which solves nothing. Instead, it floods the market with options, again based on nothing except gambling. Bitcoin has one saving grace: it has a hard amount limit, but using it becomes pointless when it takes more energy to mine it to validate transactions. I am sure the creator knew there would be an inflexion point, but instead of seeing this, people want to say there is more available because it is infinitely divisible. This is nonsense. That is saying I can split 1c into 1000 pieces, so there is more. It blows my mind how blinded people can be trying to hold onto a currency model that doesn’t work.’

‘You are after a massive change. How can you think people would be capable of this?’

‘If people really want change, to hold on to what they have instead of living as much as they can before an apocalypse, it is mandatory. People are awake, and waking. We need a model that values our innate value to trust, not trustless models that are meaningless and actually not what human nature is. Human nature wants to trust. It is only then that we will be on a path towards empowerment.’

‘I get where you are coming from. It is just going to take a lot of work.’

‘A lot of work worth doing. No other path is worth taking except any based on a neutral currency. That is the only way.’

‘So how do you profit from this?’

‘By basing my work on BUXBE. I do not need anything else. You, like me, only need an account. Your purchasing power will be far greater in BUXBE than you can imagine. The same is for me. We are paid to be educated. Even in this interaction, BUXBE will pay us each B60 for the hour we have been here together. We simply record it on the app. It is that simple. The bank doesn’t care if it is in deficit as this directly shows the amount of work being done to empower people. The bank does not need to balance to zero. Even the current model doesn’t, either, but there is no need for BUXBE to try to. It is not a commodity currency, so you are not a commodity either.’

He looked at me intensely. I could see the wariness, but I could see he realised it is worth a shot. ‘How do I find out who is in the BUXBE communities?’

‘It is all in the app and on the website. People, communities, locations. What they do, what they want. Some things are always essential and these people are valued most highly, but this takes nothing away from those that invent how to access those essentials more easily. And this is where people like you can perform at your best, making everyone else better, as they are doing for you, too.’

‘It’s nice to know people have my back, too.’

‘That’s the plan. Everyone has everyone else’s back.’

‘OK. Let’s get this going. And I am being paid for this, too, right? Like you are.’

‘Yes. Let’s set you up and get this going.’

He smiled, assured.

0408

The Politician

‘Do you remember why you exist?’ I asked.

‘What a facetious question!’ he retorted. I knew his mask was up.

‘Let’s be honest. So few governments actually support the people, while many are full of leaders fighting for power of their own self, owning and controlling people to their bidding, and in hindsight are still glorified for the sake that they were leaders, destroying to take dominion over others. Nothing sustainable about that. The best leaders cultivate, not destroy.’

‘Countries need resources to survive, and it is a contest for who controls those resources that succeed and flourish.’

‘Yet here we are with the globe a mess, wasting resources making trinkets, selling the fiasco that startups are the empowering way forward, when the real controller is the finance, defence, mining, and pharmaceutical industries. And you think you don’t exist without them. You gave your power away to win a war. And therein lies the true problem.’

‘We have countless programs evolving new energy systems, to help, save, and empower people. Just look at all the work we are doing.’

‘These are wonderful sentiments, but over you are industries that spend big bucks on you being in power for them, not you in power for the people. If this wasn’t true, we would be in much better positions being sustainable than where we are now. I do not mean to sound like an activist, but when and where can you find a government that supports its people? The only one I can think of that does it’s best with the current framework is Uruguay.’

‘People vote for who they want.’

‘Tell that to the people wanting Bernie Sanders as president. People are left to vote for charisma, hope, not what really can be done. How many leaders go back on their word is ubiquitous, not to mention how corrupt most governments are against their people. Governance in general is a total sham. And yet people try and hope for someone honest, but are always left with failure. The idiocy is obvious, but so far there is no other option. Do you want to change this, or just keep jumping hoops like a circus animal? Because you know that is what you are doing, in the same way those that pay you for support are, too.’

‘You are asking for a lot of change in a very little time.’

‘You have not answered my question. Time we have been wasting for anything progressive to happen. What I am saying is if you really want to be popular by empowering, you have to get out of a financial system that owns your ass. So if you have an option where you can be the honest governance people want, will you take it?’

‘You are asking for me to accept something not proven.’

‘What you are doing now is accepting a proven model that doesn’t work. Do you want to try something new to be the honest governance people want or not?’

‘We are trying new ideas.’

‘You are going around in circles.’

‘It is hard to accept something without any proof.’

‘What you are really saying is you are scared shitless of losing what you have and do not know another way to keep it. I am pressing to you a model where you grow from where you are, not lose anything, but evolve into something new where you are far more safe than the illusion of it you have now.’

‘OK, what do you have in mind?’

‘Many people have been working on complementary currencies, but they lose their way because their commodity foundations make them all corruptible, so they change nothing. Instead, they flood the market with possible currencies that waste energy guessing what will take off. Only the WIR in Switzerland has a community backbone, but fails to scale because it still has a commodity framework and does not play on the competitive games humanity likes to play. The BUXBE difference is it has no commodity value. It is valuable solely for exchange. I have people using this but it needs you to back it for it to be accepted en masse. It will take you to explain and encourage how the people who pay you to not do anything can use this to compete to empower, not disempower. It will eventually reach the banks, but like anything in a real free market, anything that doesn’t serve humanity will become obsolete, and this is the case with all usury, commodity, currencies.’

‘And why would I do this?’

‘Because you will be known as a pioneer for effective, empowering, change. You will empower people to follow their creative streaks with a currency that pays people to be educated. You will pioneer that resources are not wasted, corruption becomes meaningless, and that people of all classes and ethnicity will be accepted for their cultural capacity, not political identity. It will take an artist to achieve this, but only an artist will be recognised as capable of doing this. The only thing that stops any substantial change is no one has another option. Now you do.’

‘How do you expect the more despotic leaders to take BUXBE on?’

‘So many politicians are rulers as more as a means of self-safety and self-glorification, accessing wealth by rank that actually doesn’t belong to them at all. This offers a chance for the same narcissism to work with the people, not against them. This is rule without the need for dominion, but by self-awareness. Doing anything else will be painfully clear to all involved, but the need to control for power becomes redundant. The need to sell charisma against the people becomes redundant. Above all else, such people will be safe to empower themselves with honour, not as an exception, but as the norm. No one owns another person, but there will be no need to any more as a means towards living.’

‘You are dealing with huge egos and I do not think you will succeed.’

‘You are not thinking deep enough. They, like you, are owned, capitalising on self-preservation through power over others. They, like you, adapt to the circumstances to succeed. Politics is the most corrupt means to achieve this if all you have is personality but only within a usury world. But in a BUXBE world, as I have pointed out, personality can do other things. Those who only had politics as a means for validation now have education at the tip of your fingers to be something else, someone different, where you are not at odds with the masses to secure your safety. So many of you are scared, overwhelmed unsupported children. BUXBE offers a new way to lead, where you can truly be true to your identity. With others, not against them. You are not free in a usury world. In a BUXBE world, freedom is inevitable.’

‘What you are really asking is to face my personal fears and not be afraid.’

‘As it is with everyone. Including myself. But in BUXBE, disempowerment doesn’t rule. Empowerment does, in any direction it may take you.’

‘I do not think you will make it.’

‘Man, if the depth is too much, just remember this is a free currency that supports and pays people to be educated. This is simple enough. Let the natural dynamics take it where it goes, and you will see how powerful the BUXBE model is.’

‘Yes, I can say that. I will need you to talk to more people about this so the details make sense in application, since I, as you say, am just the personality!’

I smiled. ‘You do not have to worry. It will all make sense, and you will be safe. And the people will love you for it.’

0408

The Banker

‘You have had a long run for a long time,’ I said. ‘You’ve sold the Prisoner’s Dilemma mindset extremely well. It’s a tragedy humanity doesn’t listen to those who ask ‘who said we were prisoners?’.

He evaded the barb. ‘Usury is the only civilised way to exchange.’

‘If that were the case, the world would not be wasting so many resources on disempowering jobs that make people unhappy while we stain a lifestyle that compromises so many people, and Earth. And banking wastes the most resources of all.’

‘If we had something better, we’d be using it now.’

‘Do you honestly think we live in such a free-thinking world?’

‘Of course.’

‘The last time we had something better was the alternate currency in Wörgl, Austria, near the end of the Great Depression. Before it could scale, the Bank of Austria shut it down the next year. And need I mention that the sales pitch for the Federal Reserve Bank was to stabilise economies. Instead, it’s become a gambling den that crashes so far it needed to be ‘bailed out’, and now, even though there was so much money to alleviate the bottleneck, you pocketed most of it. Now money is being distributed at negative interest; a forced demurrage that helps no one because you are creating the money anyway to get it out there, so it doesn’t matter? Honestly, I can’t fathom how it all works, especially even now with modern money theorists saying there is no such thing as debt, but all this clearly has no connection to what society really wants to do: exchanging what quality they can with each other. How they do that is dependent on how they exchange, and you are on a run that only the learned helplessness of human nature sustains.’

‘Usury currency has existed for as long as humanity has traded. It appeals to the desire of greatness humans want to achieve. It appeals to the Darwinian mantra of survival of the fittest. There is nothing better. Usury is the bastion of a free market.’

‘I hardly think where international trade partnerships exist that oppose free markets is a measure of one building a monoculture of unhappy people left to figure out how they can’t get out of what they are doing, or programming them to be there and deal with it. Learned helplessness. That’s not empowering. And Earth is suffering for it. Rather, we are, because we live substandard lives based on fear-based paradigms, just like Prisoner’s Dilemma game theory. Who said we were prisoners? And Earth won’t care if we are gone.’

‘We live the best life we can, and let go at the end.’

‘At the expense of others. How does what you do value creating sustainably?

‘Sustainable industries are being invested in …’

‘… And thwarted by the government.’

’Talk to them.’

‘I will, but who runs the government?’

He was silent.

‘You do.’ I stated.

His smile could not be concealed.

’It must be amusing watching people spiral around, quantifying themselves with a currency that’s created separately from the work they do.’

‘People need a carrot to follow to do something.’

‘Tell that to volunteers like the Life Savers and Rural Fire Service and all the other volunteer groups out there who are fighting against an inherently flawed model of exchange. It is interesting to note that police are not a volunteer service. It is more important to evaluate what carrot is worth chasing that empowers the most people in collaboration with Earth, not against it.’

He rolled his eyes in reply.

‘What was your dream to be growing up?’ I asked.

‘What I do now.’

‘That sounds like your fear-driven adult talking.’

‘I always wanted to be an entrepreneur,’ he emphasised.

‘OK, cool. Nothing wrong with that, but what type of entrepreneur? One that empowers or disempowers?’

‘Any entrepreneur does it to empower others within the frameworks offered.’

‘Yet we have economic cycles that further take away from entrepreneurs who fight so hard to support their families, putting them in crisis, while those with the power to control money just add more zeros to their name that can buy nothing, zeros that lay dormant. And you are the man in the middle who profits regardless of who wins or loses.’

‘The ultimate entrepreneur,’ he gloated.

‘Rather, a warped one.’

He was getting angry.

‘What do you think will happen to you as less people use the usury currency you are peddling?’

‘Most people will use the easiest path to create the least ripples to their lifestyle.’

‘And more people are learning that it isn’t the path you have been enforcing for so long.’

‘The government enforces this.’

‘Two things: as stated, you own the government, and we are talking about enforcement; already the wrong word to manage truly empowered societies.’

His lips got thinner, but he said nothing.

‘The point is, you do not have to keep the usury model going to support what you think is an empowered lifestyle. Empowerment has nothing to do with ownership. It is about access and trust. You have built power based on fear, which is not true wealth. And you know this, but you do not know better. I am here to present to you a new model before it falls from underneath you, as it will, and is. I am not here to be against you, but offer you an alternative to utilise your capability a new way, where you are safe, and overcome your fear of being empowered and trusting people.’

He looked confused.

‘I ask again: what did you want to do when you were younger, when you were growing up? What was the seed of empowerment that you wanted to give to people, not take away from them.’

He paused. ‘I do not remember.’

‘Many alpha-type people think fireman, policeman, something where they control. Was this something you were thinking about?’

He nodded no. ’No. I think I wanted to be an artist. But there is no wealth or power in being an artist.’

‘You are mistaken. Granted, wealth is not abundant to artists within the current usury economy model we are in, and much art is based on derivatives of conflict that usury creates, but change the model to a no-cost one, a non-commodity one, and we create qualitative wealth, which is far more empowering than the model you are in the middle of now, master of it or not, and we create new relationships to explore that art can explore. See, you are not a master of your destiny in a usury currency world. You are always a prisoner, no matter what position you are in, including yours. And you subconsciously know this. When are you not thinking that someone is going to take you out, who wants your position? Even at the top, you are a prisoner, because you own people, not leverage setting them free.’

‘I have not known any other type of currency than usury, and we have been using this for eons. I have no means or knowledge to be a master of anything else.’

‘I am your chance to know something different.’

‘You are being as egotistical as I am.’

‘But you will see that my I is based on a whole different framework that redefines ‘I’ as a soul that only wants to empower others. You do not lose your I in BUXBE. ‘I’ becomes the true self-actualised person you always wanted to be. Being self-actualised is not an end. It is a beginning.’

‘You are asking for a massive change in human psychology.’

‘And an inevitable one if we are to escape this apocalypse mindset, based on usury currencies that, as I said, you are peddling. That apocalypse will also affect you, the ultimate of fear that people can escape if they base change on a new no-cost currency. You know this in your subconscious, too.

‘I am listening.’

‘Good. There are a lot of wasted zeros held in you and many other hands that can buy nothing. They are for a rainy day that doesn’t have to happen. I have a model to introduce BUXBE to supersede usury. This has nothing to do with managing debts owed to you. This is about redistributing EXCHANGE, to the benefit of all people, rich and poor. It allows people peddling fear-based industries to let go. There is no need or desire to force ownership of property away from those who have earned it, no matter how they got it, but there is a need for already affected land to be utilised effectively and you can let go of owning property when you feel safe to let it b used more efficiently, either under your ownership or not. A lot of what usury owners have is used extremely inefficiently and has no foundation of what wealth is in the BUXBE world. You will be able to use your expertise in a new way applying your skills to truly empower, which only increases your own empowerment. Only when people achieve this are people truly free.’

‘A lot of words that I still see no foundation in.’

‘To put it simply, even for you, understand I have a better exchange model where you are empowered to follow your creative interests, and this is the basis of true wealth.’

‘I am worried I am following an evangelist.’

‘The difference is I am not playing a mystic to put people through levels of empowerment, owned by me. It all starts with you, and BUXBE is there for you to do this, founded in being paid to be educated.’

‘Paying you to be educated?’

‘Yes. People have been suffering, and disempowered, by not being able to be educated. Look at how many political leaders have burned books and libraries in the quest for leadership by loyalty, not choice? I have no interest in this. Education is key. The BUXBE model affords that people are paid to be educated. This is fundamental for any empowered change.’

‘So I can be paid to learn to be an artist? To find the medium of art I wish to explore?’

‘Absolutely!’

‘How on earth would such an exchange balance?’

‘Do you think they balance now? You know better. Why do you think you have economic crashes every decade? BUXBE won’t crash, but it doesn’t need to balance like it is an institution to balance. Instead, it is a record of the work being done, in the most sustainable way possible.’

‘So what do you want me to do now?’

‘Think about what you want. Connect me with those in your exchange groups to explain and apply the model. It is essential to get educational institutions on board to have them accept BUXBE. Of all institutions, these are the least that should be in debt, as they are the seeds of creativity. So are farmers, which are marginalised the most despite the fact they feed us to exist. These are the true pinnacles of a pyramid, not banks.’

‘OK. OK. I get it, but farmers need chefs to make beautiful meals.’

‘Which only you and others like and supporting you have access to, but think how much ingredients is wasted on poor quality food that marginalises people’s health to support pharmaceutical companies, and how many educated chefs are not practising their love to create good food to give to more people, respecting the creators and the sources it comes from? You get it? This is why BUXBE is so important. It exists to empower those who are not practising their chosen expertise, let alone those that did not access education to know what that is. And it supports those fighting so hard for empowered change which usury fails to do.’

‘Have you got the app and infrastructure to run this?’

‘Not yet, but I am working on it, but I can’t do this without people interested to apply BUXBE. I could use some of your network connections to fit that altogether, though.’

‘OK. I’ll see what I can do.’

‘Cheers. Thank you!’

0410

The UN

‘You have a lot to deal with trying to create peace in the world.’

‘Yes. It is an ongoing struggle to get resources to people in poverty and overcoming the ravages of war.’

‘Given you are the largest not for profit in the world, have you ever thought of creating your own currency to give to people in need, say, instead of people going to Grameen Bank for low interest loans?’

‘We are not in the business of being a bank.’

‘I want to give you an idea. You can offer a free currency for people in poverty to access. You can do this for free. You could call it UN Coin, and have an area to manage this in the UN. Your employees can also use it. You are fully dependent on other countries giving you alms. If you create your own currency to alleviate poverty, you could eventually tap into using it yourself, and even have people not in poverty, too.’

‘How would that work?’

‘Simply introduce the UN Coin to be accessible. Offer UN Coin as a UBI. Let people trade as they do. With that input, resource industries will also tap into the market to support those marginalised people. This will build an economy to move all out of poverty. Make the currency free to use through an SMS on a mobile phone. Pay the supporting telecom for their servicing these transactions in UN Coin, not the currency of the countries where they are. As an example, the M-Pesa is a transaction platform that adds a fee in SMS translations, but in UN Coin, it would be free. UN Coin would be the same as the currency I am developing called BUXBE, so it would be interchangeable with the BUXBE economy. You can just say you are implementing BUXBE, but I think having a UN coin would be much more accessible and will have better take up. It’s up to you. Just giving you options, but as UN Coin is the same as BUXBE, you can call it either way.’

‘There would be an advantage to just say the UN is using BUXBE, for simplicity’s sake, or you can give up calling it BUXBE and just call it UN Coin.’

‘It could be the case that saying the UN is using BUXBE affords people in all aspects of economics will use it, but if it is just UN Coin, it will be always considered as on the fringe. Either way, there is an advantage in the UN releasing a coin for your work, and this can become a global alternate currency for people to use.’

‘Distributing BUXBE as a UBI is different to how you plan to apply this is with first world countries. Wouldn’t that but BUXBE out of balance?

‘Applying BUXBE in first world countries is not finalised. It could be a good idea to introduce BUXBE as a UBI in first world countries, too. I am not sure yet.’

‘It’s an interesting idea. Can you set this up?’

‘Sure, with your help, if I can access your IT team.’

‘OK. I will discuss this with the UN management team and introduce you to them.’

‘Excellent.’

0411

The Philosopher

‘Despite the abstract and objective nature of philosophy, and many do it more for a career than actually changing anything, do you find current philosophers have any meaning in this day and age?’ I asked.

‘We have understood human nature for centuries. It will never change, otherwise it would have already.’

‘That proves my point. You talk to want to overcome the fears of human nature, but do not think it is actually attainable. What frameworks do you define human nature and the human condition, and do you think they are two different things?’

‘Human nature has the capacity to overcome its fears given the right mindset.’

I waited. No more being said. ‘Is that it? That’s all? Nothing about how to get there?’

‘That’s the journey.’

‘OK. So this implies that human nature is something to overcome. Correct?’

‘Do not put words in my mouth.’

‘I am only trying to ascertain what exactly is the framework to begin the journey, so I am asking you what do you perceive human nature and the human condition to be before the journey begins, because you know many will not, within the current framework. So, what is it that humanity needs to overcome?’

‘Look, you bring up a good point, but I guess the current framework is we live without empowerment and the idea is to overcome the obstacles that stop people from reaching their true potential.’

‘OK, cool. I understand that this is a personal journey, but have you thought about the framework that makes the path towards what it is, that if we change the framework, we change what that path becomes?’

‘Man, you are getting super heavy.’

‘Necessarily so. I honestly believe humanity has been blinded to a learned helplessness that the paths towards empowerment we are so familiar with are the only paths available. We do not look at human belief pattern frameworks enough to know what other options are available. So let me offer you a framework: human nature is simply adapting to the environment to succeed. The human condition is we do not know how to love ourselves as much as we choose to love others.’

‘That is an interesting framework to deal with. However, there are many people who love themselves but do not love others.’

‘These people do not know what love is. True love only empowers.’

‘Few people know this.’

‘Everyone does in their soul. And that is your objective, no? To have people realise this, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘My objective is to offer you a different framework, a different understanding, for this to be achievable, beyond the mindset that humanity is inherently a prisoner of itself. And how to make this framework accessible so people can pick different paths to exercise joy, love, empowerment.’

‘How are you going to change millions of years of humanity thinking like this?’

‘Man, we are capable of anything. We are capable of following fear, or love, and our environment defines the path mainstream will take. I look at children and all I see is love. Why does this change to fear in order to survive, live, conquer? Philosophers are very good and cut things up into little objectives to follow as processes and rules to abide by, sold as a means to freedom, but all you do is kill freedom. It is the same as killing an alien to understand it. People learn very little this way, and are left to hope in a bubble they fear losing while others suffer for us to be in that bubble. This is not honest, or empowering. If we are to be truly safe to love, grow, empower, we have to not just say we have to stop killing Earth, but find empowered means to act on it, and know we will be OK in the process.’

‘So what are you proposing?’

‘What do you think is the biggest problem humanity faces in its journey to realise self?’

‘That it doesn’t know how to trust itself, or rather that it cannot find a means to trust to move forward?’

‘Nice one, but the core of that flaw is we put a price on ourselves. We learn to accept this as normal, and accept being helpless to warrant anything else. That is why we value those who find a way to work against it, but the majority just follow the path of least resistance, and most leave it to just hope for change. Or complain about it like that means something. The fundamentals of measuring value has to change. Everyone complains about it, how money is something to work against, yet we need it to exchange, so the key is to change quantitative exchange to qualitative exchange. To move from some arbitrary price to a real exchange model that shows what we create is truly of value, inspires trust, and lets us grow to love ourselves again.’

‘You want to change money? That’s your fulcrum point?’

‘Not just money, but the framework for how we value who we exchange with.’

‘No one before you has done this before. How do you propose to do it?’

‘I beg to differ that no one has changed so much of the world so quickly. Follow any corrupt politician that changes the rules to never go out of power. Look at Hitler, who was just an insecure guy. Honestly, what a loser, that smart people fell for because they did not love themselves enough to know better. Conversely, look at how quickly The Netherlands converted from using coal to gas: a decade. Look at how quickly we could have used electric vehicles, but are stalled with taxes and different plug-in standards that block any coherent infrastructure to take over. With a different framework, leaders can implement strategies that are far more sustainable for the greater good, as is their purpose in the first place. So change can happen quickly if there is enough incentive to do so. And the incentive to shift to being more egalitarian is changing the exchange model to be based on the work of the people, using a neutral currency exchange that has no speculative capacity. Only until humanity adopts a qualitative exchange model can any effective empowered change take place.’

‘But you are replacing one type of currency with another. How is that measuring quality?’

‘People are used to exchanging through a quantity of some sort, and there is a quantity measure of some sort even using qualitative frameworks, but the idea to not use a currency that is built on the framework of owning you, but that all create though exchange, if they are worth it, based on the quality of how you empower in the most sustainable way possible, to redundancy.’

‘People only create with incentive, otherwise they will create nothing. Look at all the innovations that have been made because of the incentive of profit.’

‘Look at all the things we have lost because we limit creation to profit. Look at how many people validate themselves that they are following their integrity in spite of money. Look at how many people have to make a choice for love or money. How many times this is brought up every day, and still, people like you advocating fighting to achieve an identity within a money model that doesn’t really want you to have one, making it exceptional for a few that do create one, but we forget how much infrastructure makes that possible, and how many do not have access to that.’

‘The internet has made expressing self more accessible to many more people than ever before.’

‘Is that the only type of identity you are advocating for? Only in tech-based freedom? Again, this ignores all the infrastructure that makes that possible. Walking on a lonely trail, driving along an isolated road, a tiny hotel to refuel with food and water after a long day, a working bathroom and kitchen, a home to live in… who remembers all the people that worked so hard to make these things so accessible? I am not denying that the internet is a boon to access knowledge, but it is also loaded with contradictory information, and much is still only possible through sponsorship for those making content that is truly trying to make interesting content. And still, those that do well the most are those that just talk about themselves. There is so much more that could be possible with a different framework that inspires authentic truth. That is what you really want, correct?

‘I am doing my best to empower the most people I can. With what I have.’

‘Wonderful. And all I am presenting is a way to have your work reach more people, beyond your need for a debt-based, commodity, currency.’

‘This will need to be utilised en masse for it to work.’

‘It simply tales 2 people and their spreading the word to present something more freeing than what they are using now. If we build it, they will come. And they are. I am already speaking to the fundamentals of where we access infrastructure: the farmers and miners. I am already talking to CEOs and the government, and even a banker. They get it, but we all know it will take work, but if we are to survive on Earth, we need this. And even more crucial than all this is knowledge. The exchange I am talking about pays people to be educated, both the teacher and all students equal amounts, the mean price being B60 an hour. There is no loss here. There is no need to warp what you want to give for money. BUXBE doesn’t care. It just wants you to live in the best way you can, every day of your life.’

‘As a systems thinker, I do not think this is possible unless you change human nature.’

‘This is what I do not understand about people like you. You start with a belief, and then stick to it like you can never be wrong. You want to think differently, quoting doing the same thing the same way will lead to the same results, but do not think differently about what you think human nature is. You start with humanity being in a prison it needs to overcome, which is the framework of Prisoner’s Dilemma game theory, and then write volumes about how to, hopefully, overcome it. Buy your book for info. You’d like me to speak at your event I hear? Sure, no worries. Etc etc. And then the book is gone for a new person to make the rounds hoping for change, and the cycle continues. How many decades have you seen this happen? Centuries? And the two things people do not think differently about are human nature and usury currency. I think people feel they will have no story to tell on achieving self-actualisation, but like most things people get wrong, being self-actualised is not a badge of honour, but the doing of being self-actualised. It is much easier than what people think, but it does take creating a trusting universe. I watched a film recently where the lead character realised that instead of thinking you have to love yourself before you can love others, learning to love others is crucial before being able to love yourself. I also know a man who answers his phone saying “Hello, I love you”. Isn’t that amazing? That always makes me smile. What courage! We are inherently attracted to love, when we believe in it.’

‘Love is an all-encompassing life force that we all benefit from.’

‘And you can see where money compromises love in any empowered context.’

‘I can see that money is a problem, but so far there is no alternative.’

‘I have an alternative.’

‘So what do you want me to do?’

‘Learn more about what I am talking about, and offer your books to be sold in BUXBE. That’s all. On a 1:1 price to what you sell it for in usury currency. See where that takes you. I’ll set you up in the app, and we can go from there.’

‘OK. Cool. I’ll do it.’

0412

The Innovator

‘Tell me, what is it you are trying to get out there to empower people, and therefore the world, into a better place?’ I asked.

‘I am involved with 2 projects. Solar power infrastructure and charging, and reusing plastics integration.’

‘Sounds fabulous. How is the uptake?

‘Lot’s of interest, but slow going scaling. I am playing more the scientist with a wishful idea than an entrepreneur with truly amazing ideas that all people can benefit from.’

‘If you have the tech to really drive the reuse of plastics, you are on an incredible winner. Same with solar, if you have adequate energy storage backup.’

‘We have the tech, but there is a whole fossil fuel and food industry that are subsidised by the government, so there is no interest for the tech to go mainstream. The change is too great for people to accept, so it seems.’

‘It seems the world would rather stay blinkered to accepting a catastrophe that they hope someone will solve for themselves, than actually doing towards empowered change.’

‘Yeah. Being on the edge is hard work.’

‘I presume you have gone the crowdfunding routes, crypto, whatever. I’ve an option for you. I am establishing a currency called BUXBE. It’s free to use and the bank pays for people to be educated. I have farmers, miners, and some prospective governance involved, but it needs exposure. BUXBE and usury currencies are not interchangeable; one doesn’t buy BUXBE with usury, but you can decide if you want your work to be paid in BUXBE and therefore have prices for your innovations in BUXBE. You begin by backdating all the hours you have been doing this for and charge yourself -B60 per hour. B60 is the mean rate in BUXBE for work, or 1:1 to what you are likely to be paid in usury. You can decide either way, but B60 is an easy and simple rate when comparisons are flakey. Do the same for everyone else involved in the projects. No need for seed funding or whatever. All your time is covered. Then you can sell to other people using BUXBE, which is still growing as more people take it on board. You can still sell to those using usury, but you would benefit more by introducing buyers to BUXBE as you sell, as you are not owned by a bank to pay debts to. I’m trying to keep this short, but do you get what I am saying?’

‘You are giving me free money? Wouldn’t that just flood the market with something useless?’

‘No, but at least that shows you are thinking. You may have zeros under your belt, but all these zeros you all hold are simply BUXBE belonging to all those using BUXBE. I may have created BUXBE, but all I own of it is the bank account I have in it. But this is all I need. My reputation is priceless, however, so people know to come to me for help using BUXBE to be empowered in whatever they are doing, and as I say this is education, not trade, you and I are paid by the bank. But how many zeros you and I have do not affect the price as it would in usury. Prices in BUXBE naturally deflate, but the B60 mean is the same. The volume of BUXBE out there doesn’t affect the price for things. I am known for my quality outside of BUXBE, but I use it because it is an easy way to exchange, and not be left to gifting; even though that would work, too, but that takes some high self-actualisation people have to grow into. But when they do, BUXBE is arguably going to become redundant, like all quantified exchanges will. I am getting ahead of myself, but the bottom line for you is there is a different economy you can access to sell, and scale, what you are doing.’

‘How do I tap into that?’

‘Easy. Sign in on the app or website. Add to your profile what you are doing, how you empower people with what you are making, how you use and recycle resources and your own recycle plans, anything and everything that demonstrates the quality of your work. If this is something communities want, you can borrow money as you require, and pay back the principle as you sell what you are making.’

‘So the bank will just give it to me if I ask?’

‘No. You need to prove how well your business will empower people in the most sustainable way possible, to the point where what you make or offer is no longer required, redundant, if that is applicable. You put what you are doing out into the community and see if you have people in support of what your project offers. Some of the people who like the project will be your staff, and it develops from there.’

‘Can you give me some examples?’

‘Sure. If you want to be a cafe owner, you present to the bank all aspects of the business: what you are presenting, where you source the product, where it will be. This will be an ongoing business so redundancy doesn’t matter. You can put to the community what you want to do and where, and if there is support by them, you can borrow the money you need. No fees, interest or costs. Just pay the loan back as you earn money. If you are making a car, then this, too, is presented to the bank and community what you have in mind, the processes, resources, uses, flexibility, the difference to what already exists. Governance will connect you with existing businesses if there are any to see if you can collaborate with them, in the interests of being as efficient as possible with resources. If not, then you can show the community what you are doing, get support, and then loan money to get it off the ground. Pay the loan back, and the profit is yours. If you want to build a bridge, then you put this to the community why, the opportunity it offers, what design options you have considered, and how the bridge will help with resource and communication, etc. Governance will put it to community voting, and if it all looks good, you can go through all the processes to find the right designer for the best bridge. As this in the service of the community, the bank will just pay you and all involved directly the mean rate of B60 per hour for each person. Make sense?’

‘I just find it hard to understand how I do not need to pay for the loan. And it seems to be socialistic as I always have to talk to some government.’

‘Money is not a commodity in BUXBE. It is solely a means of exchange. You can’t invest in BUXBE to make more BUXBE. It is only created by your work and choice to use it for your project. This keeps it stable. Going to the government is to facilitate communication to the community about what you do to empower the most people in the most sustainable way possible, to redundancy. Governance will know if you are cloning an idea that is already out there to let you know who else you can connect with to differentiate what you do instead of just competing. Opening a coffee shop is easy to say yes to as there are so many differences and people have different tastes. Building a car is a whole different ball game as it’s probably better to connect with an existing manufacturer and collaborate and partner with, or just join their team and get B60 an hour, working to become a partner and profiting that way. It is your choice. Or you can run your own manufacturing business but use their infrastructure. There are lots of ways you can do something, but the objective is just to present how sustainable you are so resources are not wasted. It could be that building your vehicle separately is the way to go, and, again, if the community finds it useful, you can start your business.’

‘And there is no cost on the BUXBE currency.’

‘None.’

‘You know, there are some things here I find really difficult to get my head around, but I guess the best test is just to try it, and see what happens. It would be better to try the BUXBE model than get caught up in using usury.’

‘Exactly.’

‘OK. I want to discuss my project in detail with you and go through the processes to get this going.’

‘That’s totally fine. Happy to help.’

0413

The University

‘How is education these days?’’ I asked.

‘To be totally honest, it is not so good. We consistently need money to function, so there is a need to find students who pay for education. Even outside university, I find there are many students accepted because they pay. Even technical education is affected, and I am not seeing good results.;

‘How do you mean?’

‘I notice how roads are falling apart and the repairs do not last. There is a propensity to do bad work to then do it properly, making it necessary for the government to give more money as alms, and then they ask for more money from the banks through bonds. It is an increasing depreciating cycle. Look at how so much money can be printed, butmost goes to those at the top, soaking up money that could be for the people, but this doesn’t happen.’

‘It’s planned this way. Money goes to the top, but they can’t do anything with it. It is just numbers, So they might be considered wealthy because they have billions, but they can’t actually use it for anything. Fine to have savings for a rainy day, but how much is that meant to be? Unfortunately, people are used to ownership as wealth, not accessing experiencing, and there only enough experiences one can buy, and while this will be a nest egg for their future generations, there is nothing sustainable in the usury game. Such people would learn more about themselves through their creation capacity, and share experiences that connect creatively. This is where real wealth is, and it opens doors to experiences, and quality of life, with other people.’

‘But scarcity is real. Someone has to suffer for others for the wealthy to live as they do.’

But what kind of life is that? Sure they can buy and own things, but for what? How many things are wasted, are owned but never used? It’s great to open a museum of rare things, accessible to all, not buy and hoard them. Needing to do this is a consequence of usury currency: that all things are scarce, and we must own things. This is stupid. Better to make the best as we are capable of, and share it.’

‘If only this was possible.’

‘It is. We use the wrong currency to empower people, so I have designed a currency that returns power to the people, and the core of it is that people can access education to be their best, and share it, being able to create with sustainability in mind. Only then can people be free because they are earning a living in a creative capacity they love to do, with the education they were paid to do. This is why i am here.

‘I’ve been wondering why you are talking to me.’

‘Hahaha! I’ve created a currency where people are paid to be educated, but this requires a place to be educated in. Nothing is more necessary than the education you offer, so I’d like to propose your university use the currency. It’s called BUB. it is free to use and it pays you to be educated, both teacher and student. The base rate is B60 an hour.’

‘But how would the currency run if teachers are not paid with a currency they can;t spend anywhere?’

‘Of course they will be able to spend it. Allow people in the BUXBE community to attend classes. You can even introduce this to all other students on campus to spend within the university. The teacher is also paid normally AND in BUXBE. Everyone who attends classes gets B60 per hour. Let people on campus know you are using an alternate currency with the commercial stores. As it develops, you can connect with people who have the resources you need and let them use BUXBE, and as this develops, let other universities know you are successfully using BIXB and they will get on board. As this scales, eventually there will be no need to use usury currency. Education is the centre of the universe in the BUXBE community.’

‘That would take a lot of time to achieve.’

‘Time worth spending. It will avoid you and others having to reach out for money to run the university.’

‘I still can’t be prejudice to those who have the money to come’

‘I am not asking you to do that. What matters is that all students are paid in BUXBE, to use on campus. The idea of a zero cost currency will begin to make sense as you use it. When it takes hold, you will have no need to use usury because BUXBE has exposure to you and others.’

‘What about the government?’

‘I am speaking to them as well to use the currency so they too can be free of being in continual debt.’

‘But where does the money come from in BUXB?’

‘From the actual work of the people. Money doesn’t have to come from a pot of gold, as usury thinks it does. It comes from your actual work. This is what stabilises the BUXBE currency.’

‘But if all people use BUXBE, and it is based on the work of the people, wouldn’t that have the effect that everyone will say their work is better than others and prices will skyrocket?’

“No. The opposite is true. People who think that are worth a fortune will price themselves out of the market. This is why education for all involved is B60 an hour. Also, people not able to work in their profession now will be, so the price will go down, not up. I assume that pricing will be the work of the people all working at B60 per hour.’

‘Really, do you honestly think that will happen? Wouldn’t people take advantage of this currency that comes from thin air?’

‘Yes. easily. And it doesn’t come from thin air. It comes from the actual work of the people. People are more honest than you think. Instead of a trustless currency, BUXBE is a trust-based currency. This is where it’s true power lies.’

‘It sounds extraordinary.’

‘It is extraordinary.’

‘And what do you gain out of it?’

‘I gain an account like everyone else that has access to things I didn’t have before. Spreading my work is what I am paid for at the moment, but others will as well, and they will be paid B60, like me. When BUXBE becomes accessible worldwide, I will do something else, if I live that long.’

‘It really sounds amazing. Something to get my head around.’

Yed, that will be the case for many people who think that money comes outside of themselves. But wealth is really based on the people’s work. This is what BUXBE is based on. That is stable. Usury currency isn’t stable even at the best of times. While currency has a cost to it, the debt cycle will never change. For every winner, there is always a loser. BUXBE transcends this, being stable, despite the number of hours people work. BUXBE is about the people, not about money. It values creating sustainably and being renowned for that. Spending time working, and getting less as generations get older is not life. Humans want to create efficiently, so using a currency that allows purchasing power to increase while people design creatively to work less is the key. I hope that BUXBE becomes redundant and people will just exchange for free, but if that doesn’t happen, it is OK. BUXBE will be stable and everyone is happy.’

‘I find it hard to see if that will work, but it is interesting to put it to the test.’

‘Excellent. I could use some help in creating the app and website. Would you mind letting people in computer and blockchain design know about this and we can create these so the currency is more accessible. Of course, they will be paid in BUXBE.’

‘It sounds interesting. Sure. No problem at all!’

‘Thank you so much!’

0414

The Lawyer

‘How’s work?’ I asked.

‘Overwhelming,’ she said, exhaustingly.

‘Have you found any consistently in law to be truly honest and empowering?’

‘It is a game to be won, based on knowledge and experience of the lawyer.’

‘Do you think AI will help?’

‘Certainly to access cases that can be useful to win the case.’

‘What do you find cases are mostly about?’

‘Money and power.’

‘So, if I introduce a currency that changes the framework of what money and power are, would you feel better about it? As people use the currency, there will be less conflicts and cases to win.’

‘I’d love to believe you, but I find that hard to comprehend.’

‘I am introducing a new currency that will change the focus of what is important, what wealth and power are. There will be a lot more collaboration as a consequence of the currency model, and legal decisions will be decided in different ways that value being more cohesive. Measuring wealth will be quite different to how we presently perceive it.’

‘How on earth are you going to get that off the ground?’

‘People are owned by debt using usury currency. Because the distribution of money is owned, therefore a commodity, that you need to overcome. In BUXBE, your work creates the currency, so the bank is owned by all the people that participate in it.’

‘What’s in it for you?’

‘Peace. Stability. Self-empowerment.’

‘And the money?’

‘I have an account like everyone else. As I am educating you about it, I get paid as this is covered by the bank. If you decide to join, you will be paid the same amount. That’s B60 an hour.’

‘Is that the same for everyone?’

‘For education, yes, as this is the mean rate, but this can change for business enterprises, but B60 is a nice median to work with, or it can be 1:1 with what usury prices are, but that is only if there is a demand for that salary in the industry. If you want to start a law firm, you can borrow what you feel you need and pay the same amount back in the future.’

‘Is there a time limit?’

‘No, but the debt will always be in your name, like in any loan.’

‘That is quite liberating.’

‘That is the point. Not to be owned by a debt and stress you out.’

‘What if I do not want to have a business and work solo?’

‘Then you would make your services available at a price you want to charge, and offset your costs for the profit you make.’

‘Wouldn’t prices go perpetually up?’

‘No. The objective is how efficient you are at what you do. Further, people who were not able to work as lawyers before due to scarcity of jobs or whatever have a chance to run a business using BUXBE and really make a go of it. That increased supply will reduce what lawyers are paid in the usury market, but understand there will be an increased supply across the board in all industries, so purchasing power actually increases, so you are not losing wealth by charging less. Everyone is looking towards being more sustainable, and these industries will be supported and those that don’t fall away.’

‘Fascinating. What if I want to ease into it?’

‘No problem at all. Not everything will be available in the BUXBE economy as it takes off and you will have needs that usury has, so I suggest splitting your time between what you earn in usury and BUXBE. As the BUXBE economy scales up, you will find the means to let your work in usury go and be fully supported for everything you need in the BUXBE economy.’

‘OK, sign me up. At least I can give it a shot as I meet people in the BUXBE community and see where it goes.’

‘Excellent!’

0415

The Auto Tycoon

‘You are doing a fantastic job with the innovative vehicles you are making. It has cost you a lot, but you made it!’

‘It’s been a long road, but we are getting there. The innovation has been exceptional and uptake excellent.’

‘I know this may be hard to understand, but if you had could have used a currency that had no interest, do you think this would have made things easier for you? If you could get support from a bank borrowing money with no cost as opposed to getting money from venture capitalists and banks where you have to pay interest, what would this do for your business?’

‘You are right that I may not understand all you are saying, but my cursory thought is it would make things much easier.’

‘That is what I am offering to you: the use of a cost-free, interest-free, currency to give you more freedom to breathe, to leverage what you are trying to do sustainably, and revalue your wealth not in money so much, more your capacity to educate what you do and allowing others to build your vehicles to the point where you will always be known for what you make, and educating others to make it better. Your reputation becomes your true wealth, not just zeros in your bank account.’

‘That will require some explanation. Wealth is all about money.’

‘It has to do with purchasing power, and what you need for your life experiences in the most sustainable way possible. You are extremely wealthy in the usury world, but you can earn as much purchasing power, more, shifting to a no-cost currency. You do not have to relinquish anything you own. This is not about taking away what you have rightfully earned. This is about allowing you to earn profits without the choke usury currency perpetuates. You will be able to sell your vehicles priced accordingly in BUXBE as you have with other currencies you are accepting. But there is much more to BUXBE than just another currency. As it has no cost, you can apply paying your employees and suppliers with the currency, any percentage chosen by them. This helps scale BUXBE, but also offers a chance for you and all to use a currency that has no cost, fees, interest, tax …’

‘No tax!?’

‘No tax.’

‘How will any infrastructure get built without tax?’

‘Any infrastructure projects are put to the communities involved and if it looks good, the BUXBE bank pays for it.’

‘But then people will drag projects on.’

‘There is no interest in dragging projects on to earn more money for its own sake. The object is to demonstrate what experiences one creates to empower the most people in the most sustainable way possible to redundancy. Anyone doing less than this would not be supported. Look at what you have achieved and how sustainable you have made this in spite of usury currency. Think what you can achieve with a currency that doesn’t hold you to ransom. It supports what you are doing.’

‘But somewhere down the line, I will have to give up what excess I own on the grounds of being sustainable.’

‘As I said, you do not have to give up anything. You earned it rightfully in the parameters you were offered. The time may come where you might sell your excess to the BUXBE world to use it more efficiently, but this is not forced by anyone. This is not oppressive socialism. It is about shifting capitalism to where it is for the best of people, not against them.’

‘This also sounds like I need to make vehicles that last forever, so I destroy my business.’

‘There is a strong incentive in BUXBE to create vehicles, anything, to last as much as possible, but this offers a chance to make new things in the future. Given your track record, it will be easy to get support for your projects. You also do not have to reduce your fortune as you have created what you want. BUXBE is there to support people to be their best creating experiences they are interested in to make as sustainably as they can, and be recognised for this.’

‘That takes education. What about that?’

‘BUXBE pays people to be educated, all participants, B60 per hour.’

‘Is that a lot?’

‘It’s the mean rate for those using BUXBE. You can price yourself differently if you want, and this may be easy for you to attract that amount of interest, but it goes against making the best education accessible. You would do better sticking to B60 per hour, and that is what the students will get. It keeps BUXBE grounded and not go out of control.’

‘What about criminals?’

‘Yes, this may be hard, but ask why there are criminals? Almost every crime has to do with being disempowered in some way, but mostly because of money. A big issue with that is no access to education. So I have to present to the criminal cartels that there is a better way, and they can access what they really want, purchasing power, to give them a formidable way of life. This may be hard, but if they force people to be disempowered, then there will not be a police force to protect them as before while BUXBE scales. Anything that is not created as sustainably as possible will be supported.’

‘But what if people want what criminals, like drug dealers, have? And not everyone is bad just because of no money or education.’

‘Yes, this is a free choice, but it is disempowering to take. BUXBE offers an alternative drug addicts can adopt to not be dependent on an addiction. And you are right that some people are just bad, but BUXBE is built on the best of people, not a reaction against inherently bad people. There is little a bad person can coerce in an empowered, honest, economy.’

‘You are asking too much from people.’

‘I am asking for people to be able to access the best in themselves. That is what everyone wants, bad or not.’

‘I can’t really see how you are going to pull this off.’

‘Does that mean you are not interested in trying it, in an industry you know? You are one of the smartest, most highly respected entrepreneurs that has overcome the odds. Do you still want to keep fighting for what you want in a system that doesn’t want it, or apply a model where your greatest empowerment can be expressed, and fully supported?’

‘I think you need to be sure that this is going to work.’

‘I know it can work, but it doesn’t work if people want to stay in the same prison they’ve known since usury currency was invented.’

‘OK. What I’ll give you is a research group. You can have them for free, to see how effective this will be, OK?’

‘You do not have to give them to be for free. I can pay them with BUXBE. Community service is covered by the bank. With your team, I can get the infrastructure going, have the system in action, and from there you will see the effects.’

‘OK. I wish you luck. You are going to need it.’

‘Yes, I know. Thanks.’

0416

The Activist

‘How successful have your protests been?’

‘We have ups and downs, but we do our best.’

‘You know this is all about money, right?

‘Yes, all about money.’

‘So I have an idea for you.’

‘What do you have in mind?’

‘I am using a new currency that has no cost. I’d like to pay you for your work as an activist with it.’

‘Why?”

‘You are here to change the world, yes? You need support. I have access to farmers and miners, and others with this new currency to use between them, that incentivises them to be more sustainable. Paying you with BUXBE, that’s the name of the currency, helps you connect to resources you do not have, to help you in your work bringing attention to things that need to change. I also want you to introduce the currency to those that you are being an activist against. BUXBE, Be U eXchange Bank, is free to use. No fees, interest, costs, or tax. In changing the usury money that people use, you have a much better chance of changing what you are actively against.’

‘Really? Be U eXchage Bank? It sounds corny.’

‘BUXBE sounds cool, and it is an honest currency. Isn’t life about finding a way to be yourself? To actually empower the positive side of humanity? How can we tap into are positive, empowered, self, with a usury currency that perpetually promotes being bad with one another? What you are being an activist for is all about money, as you realise. Changing the currency we use changes how we connect to ourselves. That’s why it is worth applying and using.’

‘Are there people in the network where I can buy what I need to be an activist for?’

“If it isn’t available now, as BUXBE scales, you will be able to’

‘Who is using it now?’

‘I am targeting farmers that have found it difficult to make ends meet, and miners, as a means for both to get out of debt-based currencies and be empowered to pay off their debts while using BUXBE. These are the key sectors to address for any empowered change to occur. You can discuss using BUXBE to the people you are here for, let time know about it, and get them on board. I can also be there for you to discuss it further with who you are an activist against. You know trying to change the world is tough. Doing what you do is admirable, but it fails too many times. You know politics is not on your side either as it is all about the money.’

‘Are you speaking to politicians, too, about this?’

‘I am. Part of the framework is to empower politicians to not be owned by those that have the money, and be able to use BUXBE insead. Some are currently being paid in BUXBE, and they are introducing this to other politicians. I am also talking to universities to make courses available for those in the BUXBE community, where being educated pays everyone involved.’

‘Does that mean I no longer have to be an activist?’

‘That is the plan.’

‘I’ve been an activist for a long time. I do not know what else to do with myself.’