Ryan Arthur’s Reviews > Sacred Economics, Revised: Money, Gift & Society in the Age of Transition > Status Update
Ryan Arthur
is on page 403 of 505
Ch. 18 was supposed to be about Relearning Gift Culture, which I feel could be a book all on its own. Not much time is spent on insisting we relearn how to give gifts. Considering how important gift giving is to the Sacred Economy, I would have hoped the author spent more than 14 pages on the topic. Instead, much of the heavy work is directed towards Marcel Mauss' The Gift. I guess I'll have to go read that work now.
— Dec 18, 2023 03:47PM
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Ryan’s Previous Updates
Ryan Arthur
is on page 418 of 505
Ch. 19 covers Nonaccumulation - briefly. I'm convinced that these remaining chapters in the book are long-winded and unnecessary. Eisentstein's argument is started on how our hunger-gathering ancestors hadn't lived a life of accumulation and that it came about with the rise of agriculture. Then a discussion about a proto-cult promulgating nonaccumulation comes into the picture. Things are certainly off the rails...
— Dec 19, 2023 03:11PM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 384 of 505
...analysis to explain exactly HOW any of this would work. As I stated earlier, Eisenstein is making predictions and prescriptions, without going through the work to demonstrate how any of it works. I believe that he requires the hopeful to take his word for it, as opposed to being shown any proofs with how it works altogether. For all of what sounds nice, the lack of these details dissuades me from his stance.
— Dec 18, 2023 08:59AM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 383 of 505
Eisenstein completes Part II with summarizing the policies that need to be enacted in order to reach his "Sacred Economy". Debt cancellation, neg-interest currency, elimination of rents, internalization of costs, economic localization, social dividends, degrowth, and gift culture/p2p econ. Each covers why that policy needs to be enacted, what the policy is, and what would the result be. It lacks any technical...
— Dec 18, 2023 08:56AM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 368 of 505
Eisenstein presents his roadmap to a sacred economy and begins with debt forgiveness. He correctly identifies the question that inevitably would be asked when it comes to widespread debt relief - who will pay? Eisenstein looks to the '08 financial crisis solution, to bail out the creditors and maintain the debts on the books. This would create the best path for debtors relief w/o causing cataclysmic repercussions.
— Dec 16, 2023 03:47PM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 361 of 505
Ch. 16 seems like a waste of a few pages, in that its pages are filled with hopeful predictions of what "will" happen as humanity somehow decides to mature. Where Marx when wrong in his critique of capitalism, was being short-sighted on his predictions and prescriptions when the "workers of the world" unite. Eisenstein may be making the same mistake here - there simply isn't much to back up his story of the future.
— Dec 16, 2023 03:30PM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 348 of 505
Crypto is relegated to a reserve currency, if it's to be used at all. Eisenstein points out that crypto's inception was born out of a distrust of the fin system and this is a story that shouldn't be co-opted by the new economics. He also points out that there isn't much to prevent the use of crypto for criminal acts and finance terrorism, that despite the transparency of the transaction - its users remain anonymous.
— Dec 16, 2023 08:07AM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 340 of 505
Eisenstein brings up a few different methods to have economies return to localized forms of currency exchange. These include P2P lending, mutual credit, and time-banking. These are in answer to the likely inability of local economies to utilize locally produced currencies in the face of national or regional currencies. Many of these hope to return folks back to serving one another and reinvigorating communities.
— Dec 15, 2023 02:50PM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 318 of 505
Eisenstein finishes Ch. 14 discussing how degrowth will allow people to be able to do the work they want to - that the time for leisure will increase in this way, as when people are working in what they want to do, there's little difference between labor and relaxation. Degrowth will lead to menial jobs going to the wayside, as entire classes of jobs that cater to an economy of growth will eventually disappear.
— Dec 14, 2023 02:38PM
Ryan Arthur
is on page 312 of 505
Eisenstein makes the case to alter our relationship with work in the new "sacred economy". In efforts to give workers more time to themselves and reduce employment, to reduce the work week - as Germany had in response to the Great Depression. He also presents the idea of UBI and defends against antagonist arguments, saying that the new system will allow workers to engage in tasks that they feel provide meaning.
— Dec 14, 2023 11:20AM
