Oh, The Humanities! Why STEM Shouldn’t Take Precedence Over the Arts

By Grace Richards, OnlineDegreePrograms.com

STEM = science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
STEAM = science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics

As much trouble as the education industry is in, every state continues to witness the dissolving of the very funds intended to help it. Major cuts in education have been directed toward the arts and humanities where millions of students are being deprived of these subjects and outlets.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), nearly 1.5 million elementary students are without music, nearly 4 million are without the visual arts, and almost 100% of them, more than 23 million, are educated without dance and theatre.

Government Push for STEM

While the Department of Education (DoE) attempts to find a one-size-fits-all solution for more than 14,000 public school districts through its Common Core Standards, the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) have been placed as the focal point for education, well ahead of arts and humanities.
Dave Csintyan, CEO of the educational non-profit organization See the Change USA, feels taking away from the arts and humanities programs is the wrong answer but said the push for STEM may actually have a positive effect on arts and humanities students who are exposed to STEM learning.
"Rigorous STEM exposure is equally applicable to professional success no matter the field of choice," he said.
Education reform has been a major part of Barack Obama’s presidency, who has proposed a bill called the STAPLE Act, which would provide immigrant PhD students in STEM fields a green card upon graduation. The argument is that these students, who commonly return to their home country to develop companies and businesses, should be given the option to remain in America and help boost the economy.
This potential law is a major player in the push for STEM. It voices the government’s insistence that the education system is not producing enough Master’s and PhD STEM graduates.
But the major push for STEM education in America may, in fact, not be that necessary after all. A Georgetown University, Rutgers University, and Urban Institute-collaborated study found that "U.S. colleges and universities are graduating as many scientists and engineers as ever before…[and the] findings indicate that STEM retention along the pipeline shows strong and even increasing rates of retention from the 1970s to the late 1990s. Over the past decade, U.S. colleges and universities graduated roughly three times more scientists and engineers than were employed in the growing science and engineering workforce."
It seems the great migration toward STEM by the government will indeed have adverse effects and not solely in regards to the cuts in education funds. There is the economic impact to consider, as well.
The Americans for the Arts Arts and Economic Prosperity IV study showed that the nonprofit arts and culture industry accounts for more than four million full-time jobs and more than $135 billion in economic activity. It also generates over $22 billion in revenue for local, state, and federal governments each year.
But access to the arts for students of all ages continues to shrink as more government officials continue to solely invest in STEM, forcing the arts and humanities to fend for themselves.
According to Florida’s governor, Rick Scott, picking a degree shouldn’t be up to the student. It should be up to what is best for the student, or at least what he thinks is best for the student.

"I want to spend our money getting people science, technology, engineering and math degrees," he said in a radio interview on WNDB-AM in Daytona Beach. "That’s what our kids need to focus all of their time and attention on: those type of degrees that when they get out of school, they can get a job."

Stronger Together Than Apart

Eric Darr, president of Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, said he doesn’t think arts and humanities students are being turned off from pursuing those particular degrees, although some of the recent press may help sway some of their decisions – in particular articles about salary comparisons.
"The social sciences — communications, pre-law, journalism — continue to be very popular," he said.
As much as the DoE encourages the increase in STEM, it is aware that education needs the influence of the arts and humanities.
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences formed its Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) at the request of Congress. The group, comprised of scientists, engineers, leading business executives, philanthropists, jurists, artists, and journalists, were asked to find the answers to a question posed by Congress: What actions should government officials take to maintain national excellence in humanities and social science education in order to better improve the economy and civil society?
Darr believes it is a mistake to try to separate STEM and the social sciences. He said they are both stronger together.
Recent moves by government officials looking to improve education, however, have done just that via budget cuts.
One of the more obvious statements in the STEM push is the Obama Administration’s Race to the Top initiative, which places all 50 states in an academic competition to be the best and be eligible for additional education funding, has STEM emphasis as one of its seven point factors. Arts and humanities, however, is not on the list.
Many have gravitated to the idea that STEM is the best source for innovation and job creation. But according to the Americans for the Arts organization, their studies show that children involved in the arts are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement and four times more likely to participate in a math and science fair.
These same students are also three times more likely to be elected to class office in their school, giving them early leadership skills and making them more apt to become leaders in the business world.
Karl Eikenberry, a fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, former ambassador to Afghanistan and a retired general was reported saying during a CHSS discussion at Stanford that knowledge of history, foreign languages and cultures can help America more successfully navigate the increasing number of multinational issues that need multinational solutions.
The need for advancements in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics will never cease, as will the need for the study of social sciences like human behavior, languages, linguistics, and philosophy. The answer is the continual interworking of both.

"The new economy requires that we continue to improve and encourage STEM education because mastering existing and new technologies is vital," said Edward Abeyta, director of K-16 Programs at the University of California-San Diego Extension. "It also requires that arts be included in the curricula to capture the full potential of the whole-brain."

He said the education industry needs to take a STEAM approach.

"It is using the combination of all these capabilities that drives creativity and innovation," he said of STEAM. "The future economic cost of not having a whole brain education system that fosters creativity and innovation is immense. It requires retraining instructors to teach how to deal with ambiguities and nuances – how to think creatively and how to construct or deal with abstract issues instead of so much of the emphasis being on teaching facts. Teachers will need to teach our students to ‘think’ – not memorize."

One of the major components of STEM is rote memorization which can hinder a student’s ability to think freely on subjects. When social sciences and arts are provided, students are able to understand problems rather than simply accepting solutions.
Even if the STEAM approach is best, funding cuts to arts and humanities programs remain an inescapable reality. In the face of such cuts, arts and humanities students will have less career counseling and professional guidance in school than their STEM peers. As such, these students need to become their own career coaches and figure out for themselves how to convince employers of the relevance and value of their degrees.

How Humanities Students Can Help Themselves

Humanities students need to educate themselves on how to communicate their abilities and ideas. Also, having a firm business foundation along with understanding the importance of their own craft is essential to impressing an employer and landing a job.
Darr said students must place themselves in the best position to secure a job coming out of college and gave some tips on how to do it:

• Keep a portfolio of your work. Through your education, internships, and early career, continue to catalog documents, audio and video recorded projects, and any other materials showing your work. Not having proof that you are talented in your field can be costly.
• For those in the arts field, creating a portfolio of your work – whether art, music, film – gives employers an insight into your established work and where you are headed in your field. The portfolio needs to show the quality and complexity of your work and how it has progressed over time. A portfolio should mimic a timeline providing visual evidence of professional growth.
• Get an internship – at all costs. Earning a degree is a must, but obtaining internship work related to your industry is vital. When applying for a job, nearly every professional opening requires some experience. It is very important to have on a resume to show that you have some idea of what it is to work in your area. Even a short history of understanding how to conduct social science research or working in an arts industry is steps ahead of someone who only has a degree. A philosophy major may consider interning with a law firm or a consulting firm to become comfortable in a business environment.
• Take classes that help you become a good communicator. At the end of your college career, take a course on communication, preferably one that will count toward your degree. Most degree programs give students the ability to take upper level courses of their choosing. For example, a student studying philanthropy may consider taking a business course to help them understand the business side of non-profit work.
• To fully participate in today’s society, you need to have some knowledge of technology – even if you’re a fine arts student. Most schools offer courses in social media. Knowing how to use and manage social networking sites will go a long way in helping you land a career job.

There is no denying the importance of STEM education and the economic and technological impacts it has on the world. But STEM standing alone, or by itself atop the educational mountain, will soon prove counterproductive.
"The idea that we must choose between science and humanities," Abeyta said, "is false."

The Egg

by Michael Akerib

A huge golden egg stood on the beach. Solitary. Majestic.

It had no name, no history. No one knew how it had arrived there. The fairies brought it, said some. No, the devil replied others.

One night a woman ventured to touch it and went as far as to lean against it.

The following day, it was the turn of a little boy. A brave little boy, the old folks said. Wise – or perhaps foolish - but no one dared criticize him. Or make fun of him. Gradually, however, the other boys of the village stopped playing with him.

He was ten years old and lived a few hundred meters from the beach in a wooden house. A normal family, if any such thing still exists. His parents too were born and raised in the village. All agreed they were the salt of the earth. A quiet, happy, life if it was not for their son’s curiosity – no, his passion, for that egg.

Every morning he would go, fascinated, to see and touch the egg before going to school. And every evening the woman relayed him.

At the village, the municipal council was debating as to what to do with the egg. Build a wooden hut around it, said some, with a padlocked door. And lock the woman inside, said one of the counselors.

The boy knew of the woman but did not care. But that was not the case of the rest of the village. They watched her. Talked behind her back. Wondered how she earned her money to buy herself those beautiful clothes.

One stormy evening, the boy could not sleep. He rose and walked to the beach. His naked feet did not leave any imprints on the wet sand.

The woman was leaning against the egg, naked, the curve of her back espousing closely the curve of the egg. Her long blond hair was of the same color as the egg. Her hands were lying on her belly. She had long fingers, longer than any he had ever seen. Her lips were moving, but he could not hear what she was saying.

The egg moved closer to the water. Ever so slightly, but moved nevertheless. The wind and the rain seemed accomplices of whatever was taking place in front of the child’s eyes – the wind blew more than ever, and the rain poured as if the clouds had decided to drown the earth.

The egg moved again, this time over a bigger distance. The boy moved closer to the egg. He undressed and leaned on the side opposite to the one on which the woman rested her body. The metal of the egg was cold.

He did not know why he was doing this.

The egg started vibrating. The wind and the rain intensified their beating of the beach, of the egg and of the two bodies.

It moved once again wrapping the woman’s feet under its weight. Her hands were attempting to stop the roll. She was pressing firmly against the metal, but the weight of the egg was overpowering.

The egg accelerated its movement towards the water. The body of the woman and that of the boy were crushed under its weight. Slowly they were becoming part of the egg.

A fisherman in his boat saw the egg increase in size. It had fed itself on the two bodies.

At dawn the villagers noticed the egg had disappeared. It had been carried away by the waves, said the fisherman.

The woman and the boy had become one with the egg. The water had washed their bodies into the metal.

The egg appeared on another beach. None of the villagers knew how it had gotten there.

A young boy approached and touched the egg.

Joy Rides and Robots are the Future of Space Travel

By Eve Harding

Human space exploration has its roots in war. The Saturn rocket used to propel Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the moon was based on the V2 rockets developed by Nazi Germany to pummel London during WWII. Furthermore, the space race was not a born out of a need to explore and expand human knowledge, but was more a technological showcase between the United States and Soviet Union during the cold war. However, we now live in more peaceful times. The cold war is over and it has been over forty years since a human being last walked on the Moon, and few scientists seriously believe we will be returning any time soon.

Manned space exploration
Manned space exploration is expensive, very expensive. NASA has a budget of over $17 billion a year, and the American Congress has agreed to fund the new Space Launch System (SLS), which is the most powerful rocket ever produced. While this is capable for the first time since the Apollo missions of sending humans beyond low-Earth orbit (where the International Space Station sits and where the Space Shuttle did all of its missions), this doesn't mean we will be sending humans back to the Moon or beyond anytime soon.

For the last forty years, manned space travel has involved relatively short hops into low Earth orbit, with the Space Shuttle, Russian Soyuz and European Ariane rockets used mainly for putting communication satellites into orbit. Of course, this has improved our technology dramatically. Without space travel, life would be very different on Earth, especially when it comes to communications and telecoms. Mobile phones, satellite TV and GPS are all technologies that are owed to the space race, and few of us could imagine life without a smart phone, sat nav and the other communication devices we have come to rely on. Furthermore, these telecom satellites have made long distance calls and global communication much cheaper and simpler, and have created a much smaller world. Because of these communication satellites, the internet has flourished, providing us with such things as Google Earth, something unconceivable forty years ago. However, as useful as telecom satellites and the big changes they have made to communications are, there has been very little space exploration by humans. In fact, since the last man walked on the moon in 1972, no human has left low Earth orbit, and it doesn't look like the future of space travel is going to involve humans doing much exploring at all.

Robot exploration
Setting foot on the Moon, Mars or other far off body, landing on the surface, and then returning home safely, costs far too much to be justifiable. However, that doesn't mean that space exploration is over. While sending humans to far off bodies such as the Moon or Mars is very expensive, sending robots is much, much cheaper. After all, robots don't need oxygen, food water and a comfortable temperature in order to survive. Furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, robots don't have to be brought home, and a one-way ticket to Mars is much cheaper and technologically easier to do than a return trip.

In addition, while human exploration is inspiring and romantic, it isn't that useful when it comes to scientific understanding. Advances in robotic technology means there are few things an astronaut can do in space that a robot can't. The Mars Curiosity Rover, for instance, is a complete laboratory that can sample, analyse, and study the rocks and soil of the Martian surface. Furthermore, with its array of cameras, you don't need human eyes on the surface to see the planet.

The stars and beyond
Even unmanned space exploration is still limited. While we can pretty much send a robot anywhere in the solar system, reaching to the stars is beyond our capabilities. The Voyager probes, for example, have been in space over 35 years, and yet are only just reaching the outer limits of our solar system. Travelling at 57,000 km/h, Voyager 1 is approximately 17 light hours from Earth, or put another way, in 35 years, Voyager 1 has travelled 0.2 light years. When you consider the nearest star, Alpha Proxima, is 4.2 light years way, it will be another 70,000 years before the satellite gets anywhere near.

However, travel to the stars is not beyond the realms of possible future technologies and is limited purely by propulsion. The problem is, the only method we have to propel a spacecraft at the moment is rocket power, and the big problem with that is how much fuel has to be carried for just a relatively short periods of propulsion (95% of Saturn 5 contained fuel, and 60% of this was burned in the first couple of minutes). However, if a propulsion system that is more economical is developed then travel to the stars within reasonable timescales, such as a couple of decades, is far more realistic, even considering the immense distance.

For example, the average family car has an acceleration force of 1 g. However, because of gravity, air pressure and friction, speed is limited on Earth. In space, none of these forces apply, so if an average family car could drive in space, it would keep on accelerating to immense speeds. In fact, if it had enough fuel, it would take less than three months for it to reach 50% of the speed of light, which would mean that Alpha Proxima was within reach within a decade of space flight (about the same amount of time as it currently tales a probe to reach Jupiter). Of course, no such propulsion system yet exists, but scientists believe they may not be that far away, which means in a few generations time, manmade robots could begin exploring planets in other solar systems, of which there are many, and return their signals within the lifetime of those that sent it.

Commercial space travel
Despite all this, humans will still have a place in the future of space travel, although it is going to be a much more local activity, and it probably won't be through large organisations such as NASA. Commercial space travel is now a reality. Projects such as Virgin Galactic are already preparing to take tourists into space. While these trips are sub orbital, the demand from rich celebrities and wealthy business people mean it won't be long before commercial enterprise starts to expand. Already, the cash strapped Russian Space Agency is preparing to take musical singer Sarah Brightman to the International Space Station, and more wealthy space tourists are bound to want to follow.

For the rest of us, space travel may seem like a dream. However, the same was said about the first jet airliners, but jumping on an airplane is something most people have done. While a visit to Mars, the Moon or planets beyond our solar system may never be a reality for us humans, in the future, a holiday in space may just become as common as flying abroad is today.
 

The Transposon

By Michael Akerib

The outbreak of the Manaus retrovirus was over and the government had lifted the emergency situation.


Rumors abounded that the virus had been developed in one of the military laboratories and that its release had the sole purpose of testing a vaccine. It did not quite make sense, as mass vaccinations are very expensive, even when done through tap water. Rumors, though, don’t have to make sense, do they?

The first deaths were those of passengers returning from holidays in exotic countries. Diagnosis had been difficult and, at the beginning, post-morten as patients rarely survived 48 hours.

Then there had been dead rats lying in the streets, then larger mammals – dogs, cats. Finally humans, but the death count was small – less than five percent of the population. Immunity – natural or acquired – had protected everyone else.

The epidemic had subsided by early winter and the country had gone back to its placid normality. Almost.

Werner Oberman, of the Zurich University Hospital, did not quite agree with this conclusion. In his opinion, the virus was lying dormant and undetectable in the body of its victims; in children particularly. In technical language, it was a transposon, He believed an intelligent mutation had occurred and that the choice of dormancy had been taken by the virus as a phase of its evolution. Evolution was the key word according to him as this transposon, he believed, was to lead the human species towards a new evolutionary pathway, perhaps a new species altogether, particularly if carriers of the virus reproduced faster than the rest of the population.

What the end result would be he was obviously unable to predict.

What Oberman had no way of knowing, was how stable was this DNA chain and how easily and rapidly the information it carried could be modified.

‘Immunity my eye,’ he told Rosie and James, his colleagues, at the cafeteria, stopping for a minute to eat the stuffed pancakes. ‘What the virus is doing is replacing some of the sequences of the DNA of the infected patients. Storing information there. Information that we should delete failing what it will spread by self-replication, and we will lack the means to contain it. We do not know what kind of mutants may result and what may be the ultimate result. We need to rapidly find a way of blocking these transcriptions.’

‘Werner is suffering from delusion,’ thought Rosie; and her thoughts immediately entered the Collective Memory and would, in time, be transformed into feelings or music and shared horizontally through the Transmission System. The System had evolved as ground-breaking progress was made in understanding neuronal structures and brain implants ensured brains worked more like memory cards.

The implants had a function which was originally believed to be purely auxiliary, but which was increasingly fine-tuned by the engineers at the Upper Cloud Center so as to better monitor, and above all optimize, the decision making process of the millions who had been lucky enough to have the newest versions of the implant.

Although Rosie still thought of it as the Transmission System, it had recently been renamed The Thoughtemplex by the new Chief Minister who had made it his top priority. It allowed everyone to share into the entire knowledge stream as it was formed and store it in the long-term memory. It was constantly vibrating as new ideas superimposed and piggybacked existing ones at a phenomenal speed, and the System evolved into a high-flux universe of its own. The Ministry’s paper made that very clear.

There had, of course, been critics of the system, claiming it led, sooner or later, to the abolishment of individual consciousness but they had neglected to take into account the fact that knowledge was ultimately transformed into feelings and music and allowed the entire population to live on the same rhythm.

Oberman seems to have neglected the mandatory embryo screening and DNA sequencing, she thought. What a gross mistake. He has obviously been unable to adapt to the world he had helped create. He had helped reason the opponents to the creation of the big DNA data bank. Staying in good health was more important than any element of privacy.



‘Failure of the kidney functions soon followed by cardiac arrest.’ Unusual for a teenager. Too many similar cases!!

Vincent was looking at the obituary statistics – his job at the Ministry of health – that the computer had processed. The computer had also suggested several possible treatments, but they had all failed.

Autopsy showed an unusual large number of astrocytes, the cells that make up the vast majority of the brain. He had never seen anything similar before – a new type of disease he was tempted to conclude.

Over the next weeks, an increasing number of teenagers died and the autopsies all showed the same proliferation of astrocytes. Sufficient, in any case, to lead to the conclusion that the health problems, and subsequent death, might well have a relation to this phenomenon. If the relationship was proven, a major problem would be finding a cure.

The government called it an emergency situation. Doctors and scientists were mobilized to understand the disease and identify a cure and the lights in the laboratories were never switched off. Public meetings were banned to prevent the possible spread of the disease through infection. An order for the entire population to stay at home was envisaged.

Although censorship on the Thoughtemplex was introduced, panic was spreading faster than the disease together with thoughts that the state was not doing enough to counter the epidemic. Here and there groups of citizens spontaneously met and agitated in the large squares of the country. Anxiety was felt at the top ranks of the state. The Chief Minister had to appear in public several times to dispel rumors of his death. Special decrees were issued whose content was nonsensical but the government felt that at least it showed their concern.

Economic repercussions were being felt – productivity, for one, was decreasing.

As the numbers of deaths increased, and as the doctors and scientists were unable to produce tangible results in their fight, the Chief Minister and his cabinet resigned.

The following morning the number of deaths dropped suddenly. Connection to the Thoughtemplex was impossible.



Oberman was wondering who was the creator of the virus and whether his sole aim had been to disable the Thoughttemplex. In a way he felt sorry for the end result. He had lost track of Rosie who had left the country when the disease had taken epidemic proportions. If the Thoughtemplex had been active he could have communicated with her – to tell her how right he had been.

10-step program for a sick planet

By Hardy F. Schloer, Owner, Schloer Consulting Group - SCG, Advisory Board of the Club of Amsterdam

Speech 10^th Anniversary of Club of Amsterdam Dec. 6, 2012

Good evening, Ladies and Gentlemen Let me first say that it is an honor to speak here to you on the 10th anniversary of the Club of Amsterdam. Creating an unrestricted and free thinking environment that is strictly focused on envisioning the future, whatever such future may be, was the concept of Felix Bopp. It has produced in the past 10 years much original thought and free expression about our feelings, ideas and definitions of preferred futures. We may not always agree with each other, but that was never the intent. Prolific discourse was!

I’d like to thank Felix at this point to provide us with this forum that is, to this day, free from any dogmatic guidance and political or corporate persuasion to brainstorm about these preferred futures. Anyone is allowed to speak and to present his or her views; even I.

My article in the Club of Amsterdam Journal carries the title “One Minute before 12.”
Actually, it is only about 10:55pm, and the date is April 10, 1912.

We are in the northern part of the Atlantic, in route to New York. We are on board of one of the most beautiful ships ever built!It’s 1912, and global warming has not happen yet. The sea is full of beautiful and scenic icebergs, even in the middle of April; and there is absolutely nothing to worry about.

We are on the safest cruise liner ever built; the beautiful and majestic Titanic!
Nevertheless, there is a tiny fly in the ointment: we just struck one of these picturesque icebergs at about 10:40, - about 15 minutes ago. Some people come up from the engine room, and they look like they just ate a bad piece of fish!! … they talk about a bad breach into the lower part of the Titanic, caused by the floating iceberg that we have just passed. To me, this sounds just like the typical stuff coming from these blue collar workers on the lower decks … they try to scare the people… it’s always the same! What would they know anyway?

Sure enough! Soon the first worried discussions are on the way:
“Is the Titanic really as safe and unsinkable as we have been told by the White Star Shipping line?”
“Did these White Star people really think of everything?”

It’s just the typical negative stuff that goes around; just because we bumped into a little snowball? ... What’s wrong with these people? I had dinner with the builders and designers of the Titanic last night; they told us we didn’t even need rescue boats! It’s a total waste of money! Unnecessary, stupid and totally outdated safety regulations! This nonsense is cutting seriously into the dividends of our shareholders! We should have maximized the profits by putting no safety boats at all, and put in more first class cabins instead ... Yield is important, not costly red tape! We need profits, not unnecessary and costly safety precautions!!

Everybody knows, the ship is unsinkable!
They should know!
These guys last night at the dinner table, they built this ship!
They are the experts!
The potential sinking of our boat is just a theory; just like global warming! It’s not realistic!It’s always these fear mongers amongst us that try to scare us.
These experienced ship builders know what they are doing; they are not stupid.
They have always thought about the worse case scenarios, we can be sure, because they told us so!
Some of these paranoid disaster prophets think there is a systemic or even structural problem with the Titanic! Can you believe this?

I always tell you: Follow the Money!
Look at all these rich people on the boat! Would they be on board, if there were anything to worry about?
Probably not!
They do not make miscalculations with their lives ... As long as I see all these fine gentlemen on board, I know I am safe.
Well ... if all of this sounds familiar to you, then you’ve got the point!

Today, however, we are not talking about a sinking ship in the Atlantic.
This time we are talking about the future of the entire planet!

And it’s just like on the Titanic! There are too many people, and not enough resources to save them! And when bad planning forces a disaster; who gets saved first. It's the guys with the deep pockets!

And those that should manage the crisis, they are busy with rearranging the Titanic deck chairs and polish the ballroom silver – even after the understanding sets in, that the boat will sink. We are doing the same things now. There are at least 20,000 to 30,000 very well-informed people on this planet, right in this moment, that know the severe global problems that are coming over the next 2 decades exactly, but it is easier to hide behind the polished indifference of academic language, then to come out, and tell point-blank what’s in store for the world.

Yesterday I read a scientist’s assessment of rising ocean levels and how they are putting countries like Naru at risk to disappear. Why at risk? Why not tell them what the date of expiration is? It's probably around 2035. Let's come out and tell them that they need to move, because this is the correct and honest answer.

I like these modern “Optimists!” I like to call them “Ignorists”:

• Global warming is just a myth; it’s just a theory; no hard facts..
• People will always find, automatically, a solution to any problem.

Here are some more slogans from the Top-10 list of total global ignorance

• We can overcome anything with positive thinking.
• Conflict in society is good and necessary for humanity to evolve.
• Greed is good, greed is right; it’s the very spirit of evolution.

Or this one, which I read yesterday:

• Global problems? What problems? We’ve only got to solve the ‘fear of the future’, and not problems….

Well, for all of those who did not get it yet what will happen globally between now and 2030, I suggest they look at the vital data and trends much more carefully.

Look at these trends in its full context!
Look at all elements of the global information and how these elements affect each other.
Do your homework first, and then participate in the discussion.
Don’t start out with an opinion, and get the fact later! Get the facts first!

For example:
Look for exponential change in vital data!
Look at the fast dynamics and how they change over recorded time periods.
Look at all contextual consequences.Build an all-inclusive master model!
Look carefully at vital areas like Energy, Food, Water, Natural Resources, Pollution, Environment, Economics, the financial and the monetary system, and last but not least, at the increasing willingness to engage in global conflict.
And look at all of this information within the frame of an interconnected model!

The fact is: The exponential changes in these 10 fields point to a world of challenges previously unknown.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are entering new territory here!

Tonight however I do not want to talk much more about our potentially problematic global future. I’ve written much about this, and much has been circulated by others on these subjects. I’d just like to refer you to the last issue of the Club of Amsterdam Journal from November 2012, where I published an extensive article about our global crisis between now and 2030.

For those who like to familiarize themselves with the relevant research and forecasts, I also recommend to request a copy of our ‘Global Trend Report 2012’, to look at the data and the conclusions we draw from such data in more detail.

Our latest report will be released by December 18; just in time to provide you with some interesting Christmas literature. However, if your nerves are weak, I recommend you read Charles Dickens instead. It may be much more comforting for the holidays.

Tonight I would like to focus now, on what we must do to change the course of these negative trends, and create a truly sustainable and lasting future for our planet. I’d like to focus on the potential solutions, and on a way forward, to get out of the global problems we are in.

I have summarized them in 10 vital modifications we must undertake, to change our planet into something that some people would often call a UTOPIA.
But just remember that UTOPIA is always the next step of desired or necessary advancement, which we have not yet achieved.

Let’s look at these 10 recommendations one by one. Each of them can be implemented today! We can argue on how the implementation of these recommendations should look like, but they are in any case a good starting point for discussion:

1. We must recognize, that the era of self-righteous decision-making by Kings and Presidents is over. The world has become too complex. Human intelligence is no longer adequate to govern or manage countries, or to solve the global challenges of the future. We need extensive real-time and parallel data and machine intelligence instead, to make intelligent and sustainable decisions for the future! We as a society must begin to elect super computer programs, instead of political leaders, to manage this complex and fragile world.
2. The age of democracy must evolve into an age of consensus. Democracy is no longer adequate. Democracy is badly implemented and, when under pressure, produces dangerous polarization instead of peaceful solutions, and then collapses. We must move on to models of inclusive consensus, where all of us participate, and where decisions are made that are backed by a overwhelming majority of all participants!
3. We must plan exploitation and consumption of global resources in a global and cooperative context model. This begins by viewing our society as a single global society first, and not as many competing or even hostile regional societies. We need to share these resources in a sustainable way and with long-term perspectives, to respect the need of future generations as well.
4. We must develop a global and cooperative energy production model based on ZERO-pollution or other negative environmental effects. These energy models must be sustainable for future generations. Today’s mineral oil reserves must also serve the petrochemical needs of generations to come.
5. We need to learn to look at all citizens of this globalized world as partners, not as exploitable resources! All humans must be equal everywhere, have true equal rights, not just legally or ethically, but also economically. People must be rewarded for labor and commercial contribution equally everywhere. This will also solve all of the so-called immigration problems!
6. We need one single global currency, to eradicate the effects of predatory speculative trading practices. The multi-currency system has produced detrimental conditions amongst many nations, especially those that are rich in resources, but less developed otherwise.
7. We must urgently eradicate conflict among societies, and begin to promote a model of tolerant and respectful coexistence. I know this sounds truly utopian, but it all begins with proper education. If we invest in education on how we can get along with each other about 50% of the money that we currently invest in weapons, then this problem will be solved. Conflict must end! We cant afford it any longer!
8. We must properly manage the population/consumption/pollution matrix. We must go on the assumption that all citizens on this planet want to live eventually with more or less the same level of development, technological comfort, and consumption habits. This requires that these 3 dimensions be brought into a sustainable equilibrium. This is a big task for forward-thinking problem solvers and data crunchers such as IBM’s scientists and latest breed of supercomputers. I encourage their management and also Universities such as MIT or the University of Shanghai to participate extensively on the solutions to this particular problem in a collaborative and global thinking approach.
9. Solve global problems globally. Healthcare, drug addictions, security, energy production, waste management or food production are all global issues, and they require global thinking and global collaborative management. They require an interconnected, intelligent and consistent approach to the problems.
10. Last, but not least, we don’t need or ever want a global government. This would be a nightmarish scenario. We need to maintain and preserve our cultures, our regional customs and communities, wherever possible. Nevertheless, there are some vital issues, such as mentioned in my last points, which must be managed and decided globally, because they have global implications. We must find a global collaborative and corruption-free decision-making model, where we arrive at implementable, binding and also enforceable decisions, which provide global long-term sustainability in a peaceful and dignified way, and for all societies on this planet.

These are at least the 10 points, where we need to start. Solving these issues will make the world a significantly nicer place.

We, as a global community, owe it to each other and to our future generations to solve these problems and to prepare for a society that can sustain itself well into the future.

Today, we must begin a new chapter in human development!
Today we must inspire everyone to become part of a decisive trend to change and fix the world’s problems.
Today we must begin a new renaissance of global life with global responsibility.
Today we must depart from conflict, dogmatic division and the virus of hypocrisy!
There is only one way forward!
We all know what that the proper road to the future is!
Let’s walk on this road together! - Today!

All of us, and as a fully collaborating, peaceful and responsible human society.
It begins with us; - today; - right here in this room!


Thank you for your attention!

Public Brainstorm: Economic-Demographic Crisis

December 6, 2012 will be the 10 Years Anniversary event of the Club of Amsterdam.

We are going to promote and discuss ideas, statements, observations and solutions for five areas that are considered key challenges by Schloer Consulting Group. The main characteristics are exponential changes - the primary cause for critical societal and economic crisis. You find an overview of the Public Brainstorm here.

You are invited to contribute here to our public brainstorming session: Public Brainstorm: Economic-Demographic Crisis

Public Brainstorm: Energy

December 6, 2012 will be the 10 Years Anniversary event of the Club of Amsterdam.

We are going to promote and discuss ideas, statements, observations and solutions for five areas that are considered key challenges by Schloer Consulting Group. The main characteristics are exponential changes - the primary cause for critical societal and economic crisis. You find an overview of the Public Brainstorm here.

You are invited to contribute here to our public brainstorming session: Public Brainstorm: Energy

Public Brainstorm: Environment

December 6, 2012 will be the 10 Years Anniversary event of the Club of Amsterdam.

We are going to promote and discuss ideas, statements, observations and solutions for five areas that are considered key challenges by Schloer Consulting Group. The main characteristics are exponential changes - the primary cause for critical societal and economic crisis. You find an overview of the Public Brainstorm here.

You are invited to contribute here to our public brainstorming session: Public Brainstorm: Environment

Public Brainstorm: Food and Water

December 6, 2012 will be the 10 Years Anniversary event of the Club of Amsterdam.

We are going to promote and discuss ideas, statements, observations and solutions for five areas that are considered key challenges by Schloer Consulting Group. The main characteristics are exponential changes - the primary cause for critical societal and economic crisis. You find an overview of the Public Brainstorm here.

You are invited to contribute here to our public brainstorming session: Public Brainstorm: Food and Water

Public Brainstorm: Human Overpopulation

December 6, 2012 will be the 10 Years Anniversary event of the Club of Amsterdam. We are going to promote and discuss ideas, statements, observations and solutions for five areas that are considered key challenges by Schloer Consulting Group. The main characteristics are exponential changes - the primary cause for critical societal and economic crisis. You find an overview of the Public Brainstorm here.

You are invited to contribute here to our public brainstorming session: Public Brainstorm: Human Overpopulation

Autonomy and Solidarity - Prospects of an Unconditional Basic Income

By Dr. Sascha Liebermann

The idea is simple and powerful, challenging and disturbing. It has been around for years in academic circles, but has recently gained momentum ever since the idea has been advocated for publicly (e.g. in Germany since 2003). But what roughly is it about?


An Unconditional Basic Income (UBI) would be provided from cradle to grave, paid to individuals not to households, irrespective of any income from other sources, without requiring the performing of paid work or any expression of a willingness to work. Pundits berate the idea as naïve, a land of milk and honey-vision, which, at the very least, confirms the decline of modern civilization.

It might seem so at first glance, especially when looking back and remembering that workfare policies have dominated European welfare states for more than a decade. But the closer you get the less plausible such objections appear. Of course, a UBI counters workfare policies and the idolatry of wage-labour as the most valuable contribution to community-life. But a closer look also shows us that a UBI is consonant with the lives we live in modern times. Moreover, the core idea reminds us of the basic premises of republican democracies: namely, the sovereignty of the people as citizens.

Why is "unconditionality" so important? Present welfare states beyond all variations provide an assortment of different insurance benefits (unemployment benefits, statutory pension insurance schemes etc.), forms of assistance and allowances often managed by independent funds. All are conditional; they either require willingness to work, acquired entitlements or claims to benefits through contributions, a certain age (child benefits), or means testing. For adults wage-labour is pivotal, so that benefits are conditional as a way of guiding one back into the labour market; to get off the benefit roll is the ubiquitous normative goal.
The term unconditional refers to the achievement-conditions a beneficiary must meet to receive benefits today, and it is this which the UBI wants to get rid of. In this way, a beneficiary of UBI must meet status-conditions, either citizenship or a permanent residency, a fact, which does not-as some say-contradict the idea of unconditionality. Unconditionality is conditional, because it presupposes a political community to provide UBI.

The higher a UBI is in terms of purchasing power, the more means-tested allowances it eliminates and the further it gets in recognizing wage-labour as only one among other important activities within a political community of citizens. A consequence would be that the status of wage-labour would decrease, while that of child-care, volunteering and other activities would increase. UBI would not have this equalizing effect immediately, but it would come about as a result of recognizing people as citizens and not as contributors through wage-labour. By being provided without obligation, UBI tells 'beneficiaries' that they receive it for their own sake. Just as citizen rights are bestowed without obligation, so is UBI.

Through a UBI, high enough to secure a livelihood, employees would gain bargaining power. Being independent of wage-labour implies the ability to say 'No'. On the one hand, companies could rely on motivated employees who work voluntarily and, on the other hand, companies would have to offer attractive working conditions and an attractive working environment. Both would help to create an innovative atmosphere in companies and organizations. A controversial argument is that the community could get rid of the legal restrictions necessary today to protect an employee's status; for example, regarding restrictions on the laying off and hiring of employees. To hire individuals for only a short time in order to work on a project would become common (if employees agree) and not a threat to the individual. Because of bargaining power, it would be up to them to define acceptable working hours. Each individual would be in a much better position to find an appropriate answer in accordance with his or her life, inclinations, capacities, and so forth. The amount of time someone is willing to spend in an occupation depends on what he or she regards as reasonable.

Some accuse UBI of being a neoliberal Trojan Horse. It helps, they say, to extend the low-wage-sector and by doing so perverts the idea. But a relatively low wage under the circumstances set by UBI does not necessarily mean low income. Today wages fulfil two functions: 1) to secure a minimum income and 2) to provide a share in a company's success. With UBI the situation is altered. A UBI would secure a steadily available minimum income, while a wage would be additional and separate. Consequently, if UBI were relatively high, a lower wage than today would not imply a lower income (UBI plus wage).

Plurality would be encouraged. Neither growth nor labour is a goal in itself. With a UBI different ways of living a self-determined life are respected. Instead of financing employment-programs and educational trainings to "bring" people back into the labour-market-both of which are more or less compulsory for the unemployed-education could be a goal in itself following the individual's interests and inclinations. By providing a UBI, the community signals that it trusts the citizens' will to contribute to the wellbeing of the polity and, thus, fosters solidarity.

Workfare these days put enormous pressure on families. The value of work even exceeds the value of family as debates about extending childcare institutions to support working parents show. Some proponents of UBI argue that what seems to be progressive and emancipatory turns out to be the opposite. Parents are put under increasing pressure by public debates and political decisions. They have to decide whether they should take care of their children, or whether they should pursue their professional career to fulfil the community's normative expectations. By enhancing childcare institutions without providing means, such as UBI, to opt out of the labour market, the normative ideal of doing wage-labour is reinforced. Therefore, what is considered to be a step into the future by praising, for example, Scandinavian childcare policies, is a step backward. In the common use of the term, stay-at-home parents are unemployed because they do not work in the wage-labour market. Of course, they contribute to the common welfare-without families the political community has no future. Nevertheless, their contribution neither helps to acquire entitlements to benefits, nor is it recognized as central in the same way as having a full time occupation. UBI, however, would open up the opportunity for staying at home, without stigmatizing it. It would leave the decision up to parents, without directing them toward any normative goal.

Why is it so difficult to get UBI on the political agenda? Is it an idea existing in Cloud Cuckoo land? What the situation reveals is a contradictory phenomenon that helps explain why UBI is still confronted with unrealistic objections. On the one hand, there is a discrepancy between the fundamental meaning of citizenship and political community already incorporated in democratic institutions. Political communities still trust the citizens' will to contribute; on the other hand, there is how this is interpreted in the self-conception of the people. In Germany especially the ongoing public debate about UBI has helped to make this contradiction apparent and, thus, set interpretive patterns going.


Author
Dr. Sascha Liebermann (PhD in Sociology, Master of Arts in Philosophy). Research focus: Political Sociology, Welfare State, Economic Sociology, Theory of Professions, Sociology of Socialization, Qualitative Methods. Assistant Professor at Ruhr-University Bochum, Visiting Fellow at ETH Zurich (Switzerland); Founding member of "Freedom not Full Employment" (www.freiheitstattvollbeschaeftigung.de) (in 2003), a group of German citizens arguing for an Unconditional Basic Income.


Upcoming books (August 2012) to which the author contributed a chapter about the UBI-debate in Germany:"Manifold Possibilities, Peculiar Obstacles -Basic Income in the German Debate", in: Basic Income Worldwide. Horizons of Reform, edited by Carole Pateman and Matthew C. Murray, Palgrave Macmillan - International Political Economy Series


"Far, though close. Basic Income in Germany - Problems and Prospects" in: Basic Income Guarantee and Politics: International Experiences and Perspectives on the Viability of Income Guarantee, edited by Richard K. Caputo, Palgrave Macmillan - Exploring the Basic Income Guarantee Series,

Burning Issues: Economy / Stock Market / Poverty

See also Club of Amsterdam Journal, November 2011, Issue 143, Special Edition

Hardy F. Schloer, President and Managing Director, Schloer Consulting Group

Hardy is a strong team builder, entrepreneur, accomplished scientist and visionary theoretical thinker with extensive people and public relation skills.

Club of Amsterdam: Does the 2008-2009 crisis, by its consequences, need to be considered as the main economic challenge we now face; or was this crisis a painful highlight of the economic and financial defaults of our globalized economy?

Hardy F. Schloer: The short answer is: Both. Nevertheless, a longer and more careful view at this subject, looking perhaps into the next 2 decades, reveals a much more complex picture. The current global economic and geopolitical situation, as it will develop between 2010 and 2030, expectations are not comforting, including the prognosis of conflict and deeper economic adversity. Nevertheless, an informed understanding of these current and future trends could contribute to innovative solutions to manage these events, at least on a case-to-case basis.

The world continues in a fast transforming and unstable global framework of complex problems and multi-dimensional influences. A cluster of different types of crisis has now matured into a "perfect storm" that will transform the entire planet very extensively. These crises are systemic problems, and are therefore very difficult to manage.

The crisis of 2008-2009 was not the real and pivotal global crisis, though it felt so to many; it was simply a mild and early marker of what is yet to come on a much larger, more sustained scale and of what will have greater consequence. Over the past decades, Western societies have committed serious errors in their economic planning and fiscal policies. The results are dependency on accelerated deficit spending and an enormous accumulation of external debt.

The conflicts of the future will be conflicts of social unrest. We are seeing this not just across the Arab world, in Syria, Libya, Egypt, but also across England and Israel during August 2011. We believe that this wave of social unrest will continue to spread throughout the world in the years to come. This social unrest comes exactly as I predicted in 2010 and even before. The world is not just economically but moreover socially in a state of redefinition that will bring in a period of extensive chaos and be accompanied by global anxiety.

Trends in the United States

The United States government is bankrupt; its finances are beyond the point of no return. The reoccurring debate over the debt ceiling only serves to obscure this painful fact. The downgrade earlier in 2011 of American debt by Standard & Poor's to AA+ is the first sign of this fact seeping into general consciousness, the facts about an intractable budgetary predicament. The only plausible future scenario is default by the U.S. government, or significant devaluation of the dollar - which is basically the same thing in monetary terms; this will happen regardless of further modifications to the debt ceiling.

In the midst of the debt crisis, the U.S. will undergo the greatest strain to its cohesion as a single country since the civil war, more then 130 years ago. It will not only lose its global status and leadership in governance and lifestyle, it will internationally become more and more economically and politically ignored. Social tensions will again test the breaking point of the American Union. Although this may be speculative from today's perspective, the trends are clear and the likely outcomes of these social tensions have a number of possible consequences that include international isolationism similar to the pre-World War I era, and a potential break up into 3 or 4 separate geographical and cultural units.

We project China will overtake the U.S. economy in 2016 or latest 2017. A good share of the U.S. economy has become devoted to a high level of military spending and maintaining the country's government debt. In contrast, China has relatively little debt, relatively low military spending in comparison (2.2% of GDP versus 4.7% in the USA) and is investing in the country's prosperity. This disparity will accelerate the eventual passing of power between these two countries.

Unlike Europe, the U.S. will be faced with the added transition of an ethnic and consequently cultural shift towards a Hispanic society. Hispanics traditionally tend to prefer working in smaller companies and groups, as opposed to big corporations, and prefer working in small manufacturing and trade as opposed to finance and banking. The dominance of the U.S. in international banking was largely due to the dominance of certain European groups, British and German for example, in the U.S. mainstream after 1900. In the future, the U.S. will start acting like a Hispanic society, and will have stronger ties with Latin America than with the East or West. America's new friends are increasingly found in the south - not overseas.

Trends in Europe

The end of the Western financial model extends from New York to Frankfurt. Europe also suffers from U.S. fractional reserve-style banking and insurmountably high debt levels in nearly all states, with Greece, Spain, Ireland, Italy and France being some of the most prominent examples In the U.S., national bankruptcy is being driven by the debt and refusal to deal with the debt. In the Euro zone, it is driven by the discrepancy between currency management and the political integration that has been a hallmark of the European project in the last few decades. The French and German answer to the currency problems is that all Europeans should become like Germans, but other nations strongly resist this. Although there is a single currency for this geographical area, debt is issued by governments, not by the European Union. Without any politically effective means to resolve these tensions, the crisis will continue to spiral downward. Europe further suffers from the costs of a demographic transition towards a substantially higher average age, and a fast diminishing population in several key countries.

The repercussions of this crisis will create a substantial power shift from a Western and Caucasian dominated world to an Eastern and Asian dominated world, with South America gaining influence on its northern neighbours. The West will begin a very long economic and social decline well into 2025 to 2030 while concurrently losing influence in the world.

The waves of social unrest that will continue to sweep the world in waves of climactic events will also affect China to some degree, but in a way that is a bit disconnected from their economic process. The currently more police-controlled state will very slowly give away to a much milder form of governance, as we have seen happen in Shanghai, and bring a more balanced form of existence to Chinese citizens all across the nation. The government is extremely active in staying on top and is well engaged in political and social developments in the world. But in order not lose their migration to a position of global power; Chinese leaders must focus on maintaining stability and relative peacefulness in the country. The Chinese government will however not hesitate in the future to make a point of power, if deemed necessary.

China's internal political weakness is exacerbated by fast shifts to a male dominated society (males outnumber females in increasing numbers due to frequent abortions of female fetuses). This partially results from forced family planning, and partially from the traditional preference for male children. But, in an era when more boy children survive than previously, it also means more internal conflict amount young males. This fact may move China into a more conflict willing society and may cause external conflicts in the 2020s or 2030s and beyond. A corrective measure here would seem to be a priority.

From 2025-2030 onwards, the world in general will be sobered by deep crisis, and ready for a renaissance. Just as Europe built out of the ashes of the world wars a period of unprecedented peace, so Asia and the rest of the world will be ready to experience a new age of enlightenment. The meaning of globalization will have gone from being, what can everyone steal from himself throughout this planet, to discovering how we can live together, on a global scale.


How can the westernized countries best manage their downfall in power facing the rise of the new superpowers such as China, India or Brazil?

Hardy F. Schloer: They cannot. However, the West must do two things to soften the landing and to position for a better future later.

Firstly, the West must seek economic investment from the East. An increasingly self sufficient China that migrates from a export society to a self consumption society is less interested in such investments in the future, therefore such investments must be thought after now, not later. Secondly, the West must focus on producing products that are increasingly important to the East. The gold of the future is agricultural commodities and clean drinking water. Especially Eastern Europe has here a very large and unused capacity that could bring very advantages trends to a region that has been economically challenged for a long time. Thirdly, Europe must change its immigration policies in the nearest term to attract young people from abroad to relocate into Europe and to make up for the loss of a young working population in that region due to a fast accelerating demographic shift. Developed Western countries are aging dramatically; the average age is over fifty, compared to for example Turkey, Malaysia or the Middle East where average ages are between 19 and 23 years of age.


The majority of experts, professionals and the public opinion now all agree governments provided wrong answers and policies to various economic challenges in the last decades: what should be the measures taken for the future? Do politics still have a strong role to play in an ever more globalised economy?

Hardy F. Schloer: First of all, governments do not run the world. Goldman Sachs, Citibank or global multinational corporations with interconnected networks run the world; not in a way of conspiracy, but simple in the way they seek through maximization of profits also maximum leverage of their global influences. Today, governments can be bought, and they are bought through political donations, lawyers, lobbyists, and economic threats by powerful economic interests. When a government is bought, it becomes irrelevant.

Secondly, no one can deny that the benefits of globalization are manifold. A global financial perspective has facilitated the standardization of products, as well as the rapid movement of goods, people, capital, technologies, and information around the world. The rapid adoption of information and communications technology makes it easier to fragment the production of goods and services, and to outsource certain tasks to other countries. This has extended the reach of globalization to domestic activities where workers were previously sheltered from direct international competition. And yet, despite some of the advantageous aspects of the trend towards global knowledge and product sharing, the current global economic crisis shows us that the financial system governing this interaction is obsolete and inadequate.

What is needed here is a vision that is radically different from the economic and financial model of today - a model, that I, and many others have argued, is inherently unstable, unfair and repressive. The current model gives monetary speculation and financial derivatives a central role in defining the character and dynamics of not only the way in which people accumulate wealth, but also the way in which some people impoverish others. Quite simply, the current instruments used in the financial industry have made much of the world poorer. Following the statistics of the World Bank and the IMF demonstrate most clearly, that the existence of these institutions did not prevent poverty, but make it worse over the last 50 years by substantial margins.

According to various distinguished sources including the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Switzerland, the amount of outstanding derivatives worldwide, as of 2008 reached USD 1.144 Quadrillion, (i.e. USD 1,144 Trillion), a number that equates to a shocking 190,000 USD per person on the planet. The term "quadrillion" is a number usually reserved for use in complex super computing processes or astronomical measurements, not for economists and bankers.

Certainly, the human mind boggles when contemplating these enormous amounts of "paper promises" holding no intrinsic value, created by the current system's need for an ever expanding economic value that is not based on actual goods and services. Yet, these so called financial instruments have been used to negotiate products and services of true value in every day's business, in spite of such instruments' total lack of value. In other words, such empty paper promises being used to negotiate "true value." Nevertheless, this near fraudulent transaction is called in modern business school language "maximizing profits" or simply good or innovative business.

What is more, under the complex guise of financial exactitude and an evolving spiral of inter instrument dependency, financial derivatives have instrumentalized risk in a way that forces ownership and property to take a new form. History shows us that the limited liability and "absentee ownership" in the second half of the nineteenth century marked the beginning of a transformational shift in the way the human collective responded to trading goods for services. With this transformation towards unchecked liability, true ownership was less tangible, and less based on any underlining reality. It was, in fact, a relationship between a complex, underlying, loose process, and the powers that be.

The event of derivatives only added another layer of obstruction to the system and loosened the ties to reality even further, as they act as financial instruments with absolutely no direct tie to any particular commodity or asset. It is also important to mention that from the perspective of personal responsibility and stewardship, derivatives are based on the "disengagement and financialization proceeds via the construction of indifference to the exigencies of 'real' economic competition." (Wigan, Duncan, 2009).

In the context of the current financial and economic crisis, some economists argue that the current speculative system cannot go on, unchecked, forever. A collective, financial "reality check" will soon be needed. What humanity must do soon, East or West, is to evaluate some of the most basic systems. We must ask tough questions, such as: do we need money at all to manage a functional and creative global society? Or if we chose to use money or a money like system, would one single currency, that serves the whole planet, be a good step towards an economic more equal world?