{"id":23199,"date":"2022-04-10T08:28:53","date_gmt":"2022-04-10T07:28:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/geen-onderdeel-van-een-categorie\/hoofdstuk-2\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T15:36:23","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T14:36:23","slug":"chapter-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/books\/money-is-never-about-money\/chapter-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 2. This is Not an Economics Class"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-style-default is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><br>When you want to hurry something, that means you no longer care about it and want to get on to other things.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014 Robert Pirsig, <em>Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Charles\u2019 book <em>Sacred Economics <\/em>opened my journey into the wonder-filled world of money. So far, this journey has given me at least two things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9217 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9217\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>An understanding of the ease with which we humans belittle ourselves, manipulate others and wreak havoc on the planet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9218 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9218\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Validation of what I already felt as a child: things are <strong>not<\/strong> just the way they are\u2014and they can be <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">un<\/mark>imaginably more beautiful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Grateful for having learned what we\u2019re not being told in economics class, I want to invite you to a no-economics lesson, starting with a fundamental question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What is money?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, what do we talk about when we talk about something that seems to so dominate our lives?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First I will give the answers I found, then I will delve into a game that doesn\u2019t know when more is enough, the rules that govern that game, and how we play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the end of this chapter, I hope you\u2019ll have more clarity on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-6-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9219 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-6-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9219\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>The supposed positive impact of economic growth and competition.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-6-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9220 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.01-6-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9220\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The underlying patterns that create, sustain and magnify this impact.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">Re<\/mark>gaining this clarity has greatly <br>helped me to pierce through limiting patterns and negative, often unconscious, beliefs. Perhaps it can do the same for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What&#8217;s <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">gone wrong with<\/mark> money?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018What has gone wrong with this wonderful idea called money, which can connect human talents with human needs?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the first question Charles poses in <em>Sacred Economics<\/em>. I find it a beautiful, powerful question. Money as a beautiful idea\u2014an instrument that helps us exchange and connect, a symbol for our innate desire to be creative, make dreams come true, and bestow our fellow human beings and the planet with gratitude and love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The question also offers a solution: turn money into this beautiful idea again.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if a turn is needed, where did money go wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Did<\/span> money go wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My short answer now is no. Money is what it is because of what we make it to be\u2014every day, through our thinking and acting, in dealings big and small.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And we have more to say about this making than most would think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But to realise this myself, I first had to backtrack all the way to money\u2019s very basics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>The story of the village<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Imagine you live in a village, where you and your fellow villagers grow food, milk cows, make stuff and build things. You exchange, but mostly you help each other and give off your surplus. After all, you\u2019d rather see your milk being used before it sours, and should you ever come up short, surely there will be someone with too much who can help you out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families.png\" alt=\"Families giving to and trading with each other\" class=\"wp-image-23205 lazyload\"><noscript><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1474\" height=\"513\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families.png\" alt=\"Families giving to and trading with each other\" class=\"wp-image-23205\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families.png 1474w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families-300x104.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families-1024x356.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families-768x267.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.02-families-600x209.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1474px) 100vw, 1474px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This works. There\u2019s always enough, never too much and no need for more. You live life together and trust each other, and that\u2019s what you build on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One day, a man wearing a cream-coloured suit and shiny shoes enters the village. He explores your dwellings, talks to some villagers and then calls a meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018What you\u2019re doing,\u2019 he says firmly, \u2018makes no sense. You\u2019re making life far too difficult. I\u2019m going to help you.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No one in the village finds life difficult, but the man does make you curious, \u2018Could life be easier than it already is?\u2019 So you listen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018I have an innovative idea,\u2019 the man continues. \u2018Every family in this village will receive ten notes from me. Each note will read \u201cten euros\u201d, and from now on, you will use these notes to exchange and negotiate with each other.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen.png\" alt=\"Man with the shiny shoes, holding ten money notes, each note compared to what it could be exchanged for\" class=\"wp-image-23219 lazyload\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1458\" height=\"349\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen.png\" alt=\"Man with the shiny shoes, holding ten money notes, each note compared to what it could be exchanged for\" class=\"wp-image-23219\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen.png 1458w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen-300x72.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen-1024x245.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen-768x184.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.03-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-en-spullen-600x144.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1458px) 100vw, 1458px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You and your fellows give a puzzled look. \u2018Exchange\u2019 you know, but \u2018negotiate\u2019? Never heard of that word and no idea what it\u2019s good for. Besides, why do those notes have to be exchanged? Can\u2019t they just be given?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps. But here\u2019s the thing: the man looks like he knows what he\u2019s talking about. So, after some deliberation, you collectively consent to try his idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few days later, you\u2019re pretty excited. The ease of using a tool that weighs nothing and can be exchanged for anything! Gone are the times when you asked the baker whether he could use a chicken for the bread he just gave you; now you give him one of those notes and on your way you are!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few extra days later, you begin to notice two things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.03-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9226 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.03-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-1-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9226\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>What villagers have too much of is no longer just given away. In a way this makes sense, because why give something away <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">now<\/span> when you can get a note for it later? And vice versa, why give a note <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">now<\/span> for things you don\u2019t need right now?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.03-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9227 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/2.03-5-Symbooltjes-als-bulletpoints-2-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9227\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Trust in each other is making way for trust in those notes. The confidence you had that when you give something, it\u2019ll somehow do its job and take care of you and the whole, begins to give way to an expectation\u2014the expectation of \u2018receiving\u2019 a note for things you \u2018give\u2019.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first milk sours and that\u2019s never happened, but every plus has minuses, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The man with the shiny shoes has been watching your goings-on. \u2018This is going quite well,\u2019 he declares, \u2018I can go again.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Oh, one more thing,\u2019 he follows up. \u2018I\u2019ll return in a week, asking each family to show me <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">eleven<\/span> ten-euro notes. That eleventh note will be your gift to me as a token of the progress I\u2019ve made possible.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.04-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-plus-elfde-briefje.png\" alt=\"Man with the shiny shoes holding ten money notes, plus an eleventh note in red\" class=\"wp-image-23220 lazyload\" style=\"width:225px;height:159px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"506\" height=\"358\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.04-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-plus-elfde-briefje.png\" alt=\"Man with the shiny shoes holding ten money notes, plus an eleventh note in red\" class=\"wp-image-23220\" style=\"width:225px;height:159px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.04-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-plus-elfde-briefje.png 506w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.04-man-met-de-lakschoentjes-tekstballon-met-tien-briefjes-plus-elfde-briefje-300x212.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 506px) 100vw, 506px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018But,\u2019 asks a villager perplexed, \u2018where\u2019s that eleventh note supposed to come from?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The man conjures a reassuring smile on his face.<br>\u2014\u2018You\u2019ll see.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With that, he turns and walks out of the village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Let\u2019s suppose this eleventh note is not produced in the village. Let\u2019s also suppose that no notes from outside the village flow into the village. In other words, suppose every eleventh note needs to come from each of your pockets. Finally, let\u2019s assume that a deal\u2019s a deal: every family <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">must<\/span> be able to hand over that eleventh note, or else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje.png\" alt=\"Ten families with ten notes each, surrounded by barbed wire. Above is a clock set at five to twelve, with a red money note in place of the number twelve\" class=\"wp-image-23222 lazyload\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5100\" height=\"7201\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje.png\" alt=\"Ten families with ten notes each, surrounded by barbed wire. Above is a clock set at five to twelve, with a red money note in place of the number twelve\" class=\"wp-image-23222\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje.png 5100w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-212x300.png 212w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-725x1024.png 725w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-768x1084.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-1088x1536.png 1088w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-1450x2048.png 1450w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.05-tien-families-met-elk-tien-briefjes-omringd-door-prikkeldraad-en-een-klok-met-op-12-uur-het-elfde-rode-briefje-600x847.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 5100px) 100vw, 5100px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before you turn the page, what kind of situation do you see arising?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And how would that situation make you feel?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt.png\" alt=\"Eight families with 11 notes each, the 11th note is red); one family has 12 notes (the 11th and 12th notes are red); one family is gone.\" class=\"wp-image-23223 lazyload\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5100\" height=\"7201\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt.png\" alt=\"Eight families with 11 notes each, the 11th note is red); one family has 12 notes (the 11th and 12th notes are red); one family is gone.\" class=\"wp-image-23223\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt.png 5100w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-212x300.png 212w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-725x1024.png 725w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-768x1084.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-1088x1536.png 1088w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-1450x2048.png 1450w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.06-acht-families-met-elk-elf-briefjes-elfde-briefjes-in-het-rood-een-familie-met-twaalf-briefjes-elfde-en-twaalfde-in-het-rood-een-familie-vervaagt-600x847.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 5100px) 100vw, 5100px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>In essence, this is how our money system works.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-1\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"1\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-1\">1<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"1\">The story of the village is inspired by two stories: \u2018The Eleventh Round\u2019 from Bernard Lietaer&#8217;s book <em>The Future of Money<\/em>,and the story of the shells from Heidi Leenaarts&#8217; book <em>Onze economie opnieuw uitvinden (\u2018Reinventing Our Economy\u2019)<\/em>. For the latter book, see <a href=\"http:\/\/UnitedEconomy.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UnitedEconomy.nl<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How would the story continue? So far, it resembles a classic fairy tale. \u2018Once upon a time, there was a village where everyone was happy, then an evil villain came and messed everything up.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If I follow this classic line, there will come a point where evil turns out not to be evil but an ordeal. The story\u2019s heroes have to discover this for themselves. As they confront the turmoil outside, they encounter turmoil within. They start to argue, become divided, and instead of working together, turn against each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Right when all hope seems lost, the heroes see what they\u2019re doing and realise there\u2019s only one way out\u2014unite. They learn a lesson, transcend an inner blockade and become stronger, wiser and wholer. In some stories, evil doesn\u2019t even need to be cleared away. Many fairy tales end with the dragon becoming a valuable and beloved part of the heroes\u2019 village\u2014time for a big feast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let\u2019s lay this storyline next to the so-called real world. Our evil is money. At least, evil is what we make of money when we blame money, banks, bankers and money-bobo\u2019s for everything that\u2019s wrong with the world. After all, \u2018they\u2019 are cheating us, \u2018they\u2019 are cocking up the world and we\u2019re screwed because of \u2018them\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What if this isn\u2019t true?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What if the man with the shiny shoes is not the real villain in our story? What if money, banks, bankers and people of wealth are not the cause of all evil? What if financial wrongdoing is merely an expression of a deeper, invisible and collective cause?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I could make this a history lesson, tracing the origins of money right back to its first, perhaps loving and just intentions. I could then proceed to \u2018explain\u2019 how right became wrong. But I\u2019m not going to do that. For starters, I don\u2019t believe we can ever claim to know how things exactly started out long, long ago, and what precisely happened since then up to recent times. For seconds, I\u2019d rather use our time in class to explore what our relationship with money has become today, and the key money holds\u2014when we\u2019re willing to look at it in all honesty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So to continue, I\u2019m going to answer the questions about evil and causes step by step, starting with what the village lacks: that eleventh note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>Trading with interest<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That eleventh note, the one that has to return to the man with the shiny shoes, has a name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Interest seems to do something funny, because as soon as it enters the game, players start changing their behaviour. Where before you were able to trade your stuff for an equal amount of other stuff,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen.png\" alt=\"Ten things now that you can trade for ten things later\" class=\"wp-image-23225 lazyload\" style=\"width:500px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"999\" height=\"121\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen.png\" alt=\"Ten things now that you can trade for ten things later\" class=\"wp-image-23225\" style=\"width:500px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen.png 999w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen-300x36.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen-768x93.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-1-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-spullen-600x73.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 999px) 100vw, 999px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><br>you suddenly need to trade your stuff now for <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">more<\/mark> stuff later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen.png\" alt=\"Ten things now with ten 10-euro notes, swapped for 11 things later with 11 10-euro notes (with the 11th note and 11th thing coloured in red)\" class=\"wp-image-23227 lazyload\" style=\"width:552px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1104\" height=\"284\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen.png\" alt=\"Ten things now with ten 10-euro notes, swapped for 11 things later with 11 10-euro notes (with the 11th note and 11th thing coloured in red)\" class=\"wp-image-23227\" style=\"width:552px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen.png 1104w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen-300x77.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen-1024x263.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen-768x198.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.07-2-tien-spullen-ruilen-voor-tien-elf-spullen-600x154.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1104px) 100vw, 1104px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That extra note, the one you don\u2019t have but soon need,&nbsp; creates a lack\u2014or, better said, an <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">illusion<\/span> of lack. After all, the man with the shiny shoes doesn\u2019t factually change any<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">thing<\/span> in the village. It\u2019s the deal he summons, along with your agreement to that deal, that creates a shortage. A second ago you had enough; suddenly you have too little. Yesterday, you didn\u2019t know what \u2018negotiating\u2019 means; today, negotiating seems a necessity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, there\u2019s a lot in this that we could argue with. I, at least, can come up with three objections:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u2018I didn\u2019t borrow any money. My money is mine, so to hell with people who want an eleventh note from me.\u2019<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2018The world doesn\u2019t stop where the village ends. Extra things can always be made and extra money can always be found. So what do you mean, lack?\u2019<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2018Okay, so we\u2019ll have to do more later than we do now. What\u2019s wrong with more? Why settle for the status quo when we can make things nicer, faster and more? Isn\u2019t that what we have talents for?\u2019<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All three objections make perfect sense to me\u2014until I start dissecting them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So let\u2019s dissect the objections one by one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:80px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>\u2018I didn\u2019t borrow any money.\u2019<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The word \u2018interest\u2019 is typically married to the word \u2018loan\u2019. A loan brings debt and debt brings interest. If there\u2019s no loan, there\u2019s no debt and no interest to pay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At least, that\u2019s what I would say, but in the world of money, this logic doesn\u2019t apply. Money in your wallet and bank account, whether you borrowed it or not, is in fact a debt, accompanied by an obligation to pay interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How is this possible?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Almost everywhere in the world, money is born as an interest-bearing debt. Every euro, dollar, yen, pound, et cetera came into circulation because someone, somewhere, borrowed it from a bank\u2014with an obligation to pay interest. Virtually all of the money currently in circulation must go back to a bank sooner or later, with interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018So what?\u2019 you may ask. \u2018What can those few per cent make me?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, more than many people think. Let\u2019s say, for example, that you want to buy a house, and to do this, you take out a thirty-year loan. At the end of those thirty years, you\u2019ll have had to pay back two to two and a half times the borrowed amount. A few per cent, on top of a few per cent and that every year, automatically grow into a mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.08-huis-met-anderhalf-keer-huis-in-stippellijntjes.png\" alt=\"A house with two-and-a-half houses in red added (the first red house &#039;shadows&#039; the black house)\" class=\"wp-image-23228 lazyload\" style=\"width:181px;height:69px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"725\" height=\"274\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.08-huis-met-anderhalf-keer-huis-in-stippellijntjes.png\" alt=\"A house with two-and-a-half houses in red added (the first red house &#039;shadows&#039; the black house)\" class=\"wp-image-23228\" style=\"width:181px;height:69px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.08-huis-met-anderhalf-keer-huis-in-stippellijntjes.png 725w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.08-huis-met-anderhalf-keer-huis-in-stippellijntjes-300x113.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.08-huis-met-anderhalf-keer-huis-in-stippellijntjes-600x227.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 725px) 100vw, 725px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now here\u2019s the thing: <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">you<\/span> decide to take out a loan. Whether you feel free or unfree in signing the deal, you agree to give back more than you receive. So, you can decide not to take out a loan, and you can decide not to give a crap about your money being an interest-bearing debt\u2014it\u2019s yours, so no one can ask it back, let alone oblige you to pay interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Makes sense, again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s another form of interest, one I don\u2019t think anyone signs up for willy-nilly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.09-Balloons-containing-text-\u2018inflation.png\" alt=\"Balloons containing text \u2018inflation\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23229 lazyload\" style=\"width:163px;height:118px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"329\" height=\"241\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.09-Balloons-containing-text-\u2018inflation.png\" alt=\"Balloons containing text \u2018inflation\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23229\" style=\"width:163px;height:118px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.09-Balloons-containing-text-\u2018inflation.png 329w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.09-Balloons-containing-text-\u2018inflation-300x220.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 329px) 100vw, 329px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Inflation is so normal that hardly anyone questions it. As a child, for instance, I knew it wouldn\u2019t take long before this little ice lolly we in The Netherlands call \u2018a double rocket\u2019 would cost not thirty-five guilder cents (about 15 euro cents) but forty guilder cents. I didn\u2019t ask why because this is what I\u2019d learned: things become more expensive every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A quarter of a century later and curious about the double rocket trading price, I discover the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen.png\" alt=\"Little boy with a double rocket costing \u20ac0.15; next to it, a big boy with a single rocket costing \u20ac0.60\" class=\"wp-image-23230 lazyload\" style=\"width:452px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"904\" height=\"523\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen.png\" alt=\"Little boy with a double rocket costing \u20ac0.15; next to it, a big boy with a single rocket costing \u20ac0.60\" class=\"wp-image-23230\" style=\"width:452px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen.png 904w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen-300x174.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen-768x444.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.10-raketten-en-prijzen-600x347.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 904px) 100vw, 904px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Four times as much for half of the same. Just because things get more expensive every year. Makes sense, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Um&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Or\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Actually, we have no idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So-called experts suspect that inflation happens when the amount of money in a country grows faster than that country\u2019s economic output. Here\u2019s their reasoning: as soon as people have the money to buy more, they usually start buying more, but if more things are not immediately made, they want to buy more than can be bought. For many entrepreneurs and retailers, this means the following: \u2018Okay, if people are so eager and I don\u2019t have more than I have, I\u2019ll just jack up my prices. Earn mah-self a nice lil\u2019 extra.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a buyer, you now need more money for the same thing, which makes your money\u2019s \u2018purchasing power\u2019 go down. And this happens everywhere in every trade. For example, house prices go up when there are more home buyers than houses for sale. Home buyers see this happening and start bidding over each other, increasing house prices further. Homeowners who see this extra increase happening think, \u2018Now\u2019s the time\u2019, put their houses up for sale, sprinkle some more on the price they think they can get, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And here\u2019s another cake: business owners, retailers, estate agents and homeowners raise their prices yearly <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">anyway<\/span>. After all, \u2018Things become more expensive every year\u2019, even for people who sell things, so they\u2019d better prepare for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To summarise:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>When we gain more money to buy things, but more things are not immediately produced, then demand exceeds supply, so sellers raise their prices and our \u2018purchasing power\u2019 goes down.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Things become more expensive every year because people expect things to become more expensive every year.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Are these the two causes of inflation? Are there more? I haven\u2019t yet met or encountered anyone who knows. What is known is that central banks tend to promote and even influence inflation, because whenever there\u2019s inflation, shopkeepers and entrepreneurs raise their prices, and when prices go up, people work harder to keep buying the same things, and when people work harder, the economy grows faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And why do we want the economy to do that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll keep that question for later on in this chapter. For now, let me say that inflation is a lovely idea\u2014until we turn the coin around. Inflation means that \u2018our\u2019 money constantly becomes worth less. In other words, everyone on a fixed income becomes poorer every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Inflation is interest in disguise.<br>Using money means trading with interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente.png\" alt=\"Swapping stuff and money now for more stuff and more money later\" class=\"wp-image-23231 lazyload\" style=\"width:605px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1210\" height=\"189\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente.png\" alt=\"Swapping stuff and money now for more stuff and more money later\" class=\"wp-image-23231\" style=\"width:605px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente.png 1210w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente-300x47.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente-1024x160.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente-768x120.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.11-ruilen-met-rente-600x94.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1210px) 100vw, 1210px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Wait a minute,\u2019 you might now say. \u2018What if I didn\u2019t borrow money AND there\u2019s no inflation right now? Then I won\u2019t pay interest, right?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Companies often take out loans to buy things with which they can make products or provide services. And since companies almost always collaborate with other companies, a whole chain of loans runs from raw material to finished product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct.png\" alt=\"From raw material to final product in the shop. Each step shows money plus an interest amount in red.\" class=\"wp-image-23232 lazyload\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1460\" height=\"505\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct.png\" alt=\"From raw material to final product in the shop. Each step shows money plus an interest amount in red.\" class=\"wp-image-23232\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct.png 1460w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct-300x104.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct-1024x354.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct-768x266.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.12-grondstof-naar-eindproduct-600x208.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1460px) 100vw, 1460px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the time products and services reach the retailer, an average of 35 to 40 per cent of the sales price is a pass-through interest charge.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-2\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"2\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-2\">2<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"2\">These figures come from Margrit Kennedy&#8217;s book <em>Occupy Money<\/em>. She bases it on a 2006 study. Figuring the thing with interest rates, the percentage will be higher than 35 to 40 per cent by now. For more about her book, see <a href=\"http:\/\/www.Newsociety.com\">Newsociety.com<\/a>.<\/span> That is to say, 35 to 40 per cent of all money spent is used to pay back interest on loans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So even when we haven\u2019t borrowed any money, there\u2019s no inflation, and we only use it for innocent shopping, a big slice of \u2018our\u2019 money consistently rolls from the high street to Wall Street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And even this we can turn into a non-issue. \u2018Why not just wait,\u2019 we could ask, for example, \u2018until everyone has neatly paid off their loans?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alas. Not an option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At least, not with the money currently in circulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everything that\u2019s made and sold globally has more than three times as much debt sticking to it. In other words, for every euro, pound, yen, dollar, etc., that changes hands, more than three have to return to a bank.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-3\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"3\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-3\">3<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"3\"><br>Victoria Masterson &amp; Madeleine North, \u2018What is \u201cglobal debt\u201d\u2014and how high is it now?\u2019 <em>World Economic Forum<\/em>, 21st December 2023, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.Weforum.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Weforum.org<\/a><em>.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes.png\" alt=\"Two families bartering with each other. Above one black note are three red notes.\" class=\"wp-image-23233 lazyload\" style=\"width:284px;height:auto\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"917\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes.png\" alt=\"Two families bartering with each other. Above one black note are three red notes.\" class=\"wp-image-23233\" style=\"width:284px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes.png 917w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes-300x105.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes-768x268.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.13-ruilen-met-1-zwart-briefje-en-rode-briefjes-600x209.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 917px) 100vw, 917px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Or, said more easily:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1.png\" alt=\"Earth surrounded by money and three times as much debt\" class=\"wp-image-23234 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3640\" height=\"1608\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1.png\" alt=\"Earth surrounded by money and three times as much debt\" class=\"wp-image-23234\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1.png 3640w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-300x133.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-1024x452.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-768x339.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-1536x679.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-2048x905.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.14-Aarde-omringd-door-geld-1-600x265.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3640px) 100vw, 3640px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:80px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>So, no matter how I flip the coin, each side tells me the same story: \u2018Our\u2019 money, borrowed or not, is a debt with an obligation to pay interest. If you choose to use a means of payment accepted by the banks\u2014which almost everyone does, making it somewhat challenging not to, you\u2019re effectively trading in debt and working for debt. If you also choose not to make more money every year, you\u2019re effectively making yourself poorer every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1.png\" alt=\"Comic: conversation between a person borrowing and the man with the shiny shoes. The woman says, \u2018Mmmmmhhh... okay, bad news.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23210 lazyload\" style=\"width:401px;height:399px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"686\" height=\"689\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1.png\" alt=\"Comic: conversation between a person borrowing and the man with the shiny shoes. The woman says, \u2018Mmmmmhhh... okay, bad news.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23210\" style=\"width:401px;height:399px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1.png 686w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1-600x603.png 600w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-1-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 686px) 100vw, 686px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-2.png\" alt=\"In the next frame, the woman says, \u2018One more question: those loans on top of loans on top of loans, can we ever repay them?\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23211 lazyload\" style=\"width:427px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"677\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-2.png\" alt=\"In the next frame, the woman says, \u2018One more question: those loans on top of loans on top of loans, can we ever repay them?\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23211\" style=\"width:427px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-2.png 750w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-2-300x271.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-2-600x542.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-1024x389.png\" alt=\"In the next frame, the man with the shiny shoes replies: \u2018Of course you can! In fact, we&#039;ve already thought up a solution, especially for you. Are you ready?\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23212 lazyload\" style=\"width:768px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"389\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-1024x389.png\" alt=\"In the next frame, the man with the shiny shoes replies: \u2018Of course you can! In fact, we&#039;ve already thought up a solution, especially for you. Are you ready?\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23212\" style=\"width:768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-1024x389.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-300x114.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-768x292.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3-600x228.png 600w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.15-Comic-conversation-between-person-borrowing-and-man-with-the-shiny-shoes-3.png 1390w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out.png\" alt=\"Top hat with a rabbit jumping out, scattering money around. A billboard above the rabbit reads, \u2018Borrow more!\u2019 At the bottom, in miniature: \u2018Note: borrowing money costs money. As does using money.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23213 lazyload\" style=\"width:558px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1743\" height=\"2559\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out.png\" alt=\"Top hat with a rabbit jumping out, scattering money around. A billboard above the rabbit reads, \u2018Borrow more!\u2019 At the bottom, in miniature: \u2018Note: borrowing money costs money. As does using money.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23213\" style=\"width:558px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out.png 1743w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-204x300.png 204w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-697x1024.png 697w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-768x1128.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-1046x1536.png 1046w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-1395x2048.png 1395w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.16-Top-hat-with-a-rabbit-jumping-out-600x881.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1743px) 100vw, 1743px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-medium is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/03\/2.01-dit-is-geen-economieles-e1646474554164-212x300.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5468 lazyload\" style=\"width:106px;height:150px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/03\/2.01-dit-is-geen-economieles-e1646474554164-212x300.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5468\" style=\"width:106px;height:150px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let\u2019s briefly summarise the dissection of argument one opposing the story in the village, \u2018I didn&#8217;t borrow any money\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u2018Our\u2019 money, even the money we never borrowed, is a debt with an obligation to pay interest, on top of a debt with an obligation to pay interest, on top of a mountain of debts with obligations to pay interest.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The only way to pay off all these debts is by taking out new loans, with obligations to pay interest&#8230;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>which means there\u2019s always more debt than money\u2026<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>which means we always need more than there is.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yeah, okay, so what? This <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">still<\/span> doesn\u2019t create a lack. After all, when I look at argument two, extra things can always be made and money can always be found somewhere. So\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:80px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>What do you mean, lack?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This question edges us onto muddy terrain. We can\u2019t just go on borrowing endlessly, right? And if we continuously have to pay interest on everything, all of the money in the world will at some point run out, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Something that could have been made and kept simple has been made incredibly complex. For example, as a child, I once thought, \u2018When I grow up, I will visit a bank to borrow money so I can buy a house. The bank will be able to lend me that money because someone who didn\u2019t need it put it in a savings account. So really, I\u2019ll be borrowing from someone and not from the bank. I wonder who that someone will be.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I still think this makes so much sense. To give another example: I can\u2019t borrow a drill from you if you don\u2019t have one. So money, too, I should be able to borrow only from people who have it. But here\u2019s where things start becoming wonder-filled: bankers have a power that \u2018ordinary\u2019 people don\u2019t\u2014the power to create money. Banks are allowed to create money at will and credit that money to our account, until they have only a fraction (usually around 10 per cent) of the created money in reserve. This process is called \u2018fractional reserve banking\u2019 and is best explained as follows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">John Doe puts twenty thousand euros in a savings account. For this, he receives a few per cent interest per year (if he\u2019s lucky, because in recent years, inflation rates almost always top prevailing savings rates). The bank can immediately use these twenty thousand euros to \u2018create\u2019 nine times as much and lend the resulting amount to you, with an obligation to pay interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"Two ten thousand euro notes in a savings account, John Doe walks away whistling; 18 ten thousand euro notes created in grey, loaned to you\" class=\"wp-image-23235 lazyload\" style=\"width:768px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3465\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"Two ten thousand euro notes in a savings account, John Doe walks away whistling; 18 ten thousand euro notes created in grey, loaned to you\" class=\"wp-image-23235\" style=\"width:768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png 3465w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-300x62.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1024x213.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-768x160.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1536x319.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-2048x426.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.18-bank-en-getoverd-geld-600x125.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3465px) 100vw, 3465px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Coming back to that thirty-year mortgage: you don\u2019t just spend thirty years paying back what wasn\u2019t there in the first place; you also spend thirty years paying <em>interest<\/em> on what wasn\u2019t there in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"You pay back 18 ten-thousand-euro notes, plus 27 garden-variety notes in red.\" class=\"wp-image-23238 lazyload\" style=\"width:768px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3619\" height=\"963\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"You pay back 18 ten-thousand-euro notes, plus 27 garden-variety notes in red.\" class=\"wp-image-23238\" style=\"width:768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png 3619w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-300x80.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1024x272.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-768x204.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1536x409.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-2048x545.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.19-bank-en-getoverd-geld-600x160.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3619px) 100vw, 3619px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, officially, the bank has to \u2018destroy\u2019 (i.e. wipe out or disgorge) the money you repay, so that what wasn\u2019t there in the first place isn\u2019t there again when you finish repaying. But the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">interest<\/span> you repay, the bank can keep, and this part of your repayment can pile up to one and a half times the amount you borrowed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, by the time you \u2018give\u2019 back the last part of your loan, you\u2019ll have \u2018repaid\u2019 the bank nine hundred per cent, times one and a half, of John Doe\u2019s savings as interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"1.5 times 18 notes of ten thousand, now blackened, held by the bank\" class=\"wp-image-23239 lazyload\" style=\"width:768px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3617\" height=\"829\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"1.5 times 18 notes of ten thousand, now blackened, held by the bank\" class=\"wp-image-23239\" style=\"width:768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png 3617w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1024x235.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1536x352.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-2048x469.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.20-bank-en-getoverd-geld-600x138.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3617px) 100vw, 3617px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>And the wonderfilling doesn\u2019t end there, because every time you repay a piece of loan with interest, the bank may immediately create nine times as much of the interest you paid and lend it to someone else. With an obligation to pay interest.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-4\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"4\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-4\">4<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"4\">See Heidi Leenaarts, <em>Onze economie opnieuw uitvinden (\u2018Reinventing Our Economy\u2019), <\/em>available via <a href=\"https:\/\/UnitedEconomy.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UnitedEconomy.nl<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"18 ten-thousand-euro notes were conjured up nine times in grey\" class=\"wp-image-23240 lazyload\" style=\"width:677px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1363\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"18 ten-thousand-euro notes were conjured up nine times in grey\" class=\"wp-image-23240\" style=\"width:677px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png 1200w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld-264x300.png 264w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld-902x1024.png 902w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld-768x872.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.21-bank-en-getoverd-geld-600x682.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>If I extend this logic to people and drills, we get the following situation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>I lend you a drill that I don\u2019t have.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>We agree that you\u2019ll give back this drill, plus an extra drill, plus an extension cord and some accessories.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Once you\u2019ve done so, I will re-lend that extra drill-plus-extension-cord-and-accessories to nine people simultaneously, under the same conditions under which I lent you a drill I didn\u2019t have.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s a miracle, and as it turns out, even more miraculous, because banks don\u2019t need John Does with savings to lend money to people. Banks can request almost unlimited \u2018advances\u2019 from their country\u2019s or continent\u2019s Central Bank. For every loan banks make, they apply for such an advance. And where do Central Banks get these advances from? Heidi Leenaarts, author of the book <em>Onze economie opnieuw uitvinden<\/em> <em>(\u2018Reinventing Our Economy\u2019)<\/em>, told me that even she doesn\u2019t know all the ins and outs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, instead of going deeper down this rabbit hole, I\u2019m going to move to another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Somewhere in recent times, bankers got the idea of reselling outstanding loans to investors and speculators. And of course! Why take money from one side when you can take it from two?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"Bank with money flowing to and from investors\" class=\"wp-image-23241 lazyload\" style=\"width:768px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3324\" height=\"3315\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png\" alt=\"Bank with money flowing to and from investors\" class=\"wp-image-23241\" style=\"width:768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld.png 3324w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1024x1021.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-768x766.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-1536x1532.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-2048x2042.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-600x598.png 600w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.22-bank-en-getoverd-geld-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3324px) 100vw, 3324px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps needless to say, investors and speculators make their living by buying things and reselling those same things for more money, among other places on the stock market. By capitalising on what they think will happen to a stock price (or, in the case of fraud, already know what will happen), they \u2018create\u2019 enormous profits, in no time, out of nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How does this \u2018investment\u2019 game work when someone speculates with money that didn\u2019t exist, was lent out anyway and hasn\u2019t been repaid yet? Pfff&#8230; Here, too, I stopped digging. What I learned is that this reselling, re-speculating and over-investing of loans went on for years and years, under the radar and without a hitch. Quietly, a long line of interest-bearing debts grew, and then, in 2008, things started faltering. People at the back of the interest line lost their jobs, had spent money they didn\u2019t have and were broke. Since they could no longer repay their loans, all the loans taken out to make <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">their<\/span> loans possible could also no longer be repaid. The same went for the loans before these loans, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When word hit the street, all hell broke loose. Suddenly, the whole world saw the thin thread holding billions of loans. Confidence in the financial sector took a dive, stock prices plummeted and bad loans toppled like domino bricks. Millions of people lost their homes and even more millions lost their jobs.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-5\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"5\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-5\">5<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"5\">See, for example, John Cassidy, \u2018The Real Cost of the 2008 Financial Crisis\u2019 in <em>The New Yorker<\/em>, 10 September 2018, <a href=\"https:\/\/NewYorker.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NewYorker.com<\/a>; Laura Paddison, \u20189 Faces Of The 2008 Financial Crisis: The Winners, The Losers And Those Left Behind\u2019 in <em>HuffPost<\/em>, 14 September 2018, <a href=\"https:\/\/HuffPost.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HuffPost.com<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag.png\" alt=\"Domino puppets with a hammer at the ready. Each toppling male rams the head of the following\" class=\"wp-image-23242 lazyload\" style=\"width:800px;height:auto\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3143\" height=\"1021\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag.png\" alt=\"Domino puppets with a hammer at the ready. Each toppling male rams the head of the following\" class=\"wp-image-23242\" style=\"width:800px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag.png 3143w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-300x97.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-1024x333.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-768x249.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-1536x499.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-2048x665.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.23-dominomannetjes-met-hamer-in-de-aanslag-600x195.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3143px) 100vw, 3143px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When even the big international banks threatened to fall over, the <em>European Central Bank<\/em>, the <em>US Federal Reserve<\/em> and the <em>International Monetary Fund<\/em> came to the rescue. Their plan? To waive debts\u2014not for broke people, but for the banks. This was the only way to avoid a global financial meltdown. At least, according to the rescue party.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition to the waivers, banks received huge cash injections, mostly from governments that took out loans for the occasion, with an obligation to pay interest, so the banks in their countries could continue lending money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A small number of people were charged with fraud. Some paid a fine; a few were sent to jail for a while; the majority got away with a scare. And the prominent leaders in the game? They continued to work in the financial sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Things calmed down, consumer confidence rebounded, and economies started growing again.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-6\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"6\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-6\">6<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"6\">See above articles in <em>The New Yorker <\/em>and <em>HuffPost.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Except in Iceland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m going to quote from <em>De Prins van Fillettino<\/em> (\u2018<em>The Prince of Fillettino\u2019)<\/em>, a novel written by Flemish author Geert Kimpen, based on the true story of an Italian mountain village that created its own currency. To me, the book is a touching, painfully hilarious and poignant manifesto, which includes the following conversation between an investigative journalist called Sergio and a bank manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Surely, as a financial man, it should interest you why Iceland is the only European country with a budget surplus right now\u2014in full crisis.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018A budget surplus? Why isn\u2019t that in the papers?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Perhaps because you\u2019re reading the wrong newspapers,\u2019 Sergio smiled. \u2018Iceland, too, took a blow in 2008, just like the rest of the world. The bubble burst. And do you know what the new Icelandic government did? It cancelled all mortgage debts above 110 per cent of borrowed money! All debts above 110 per cent of the value of houses need not be repaid.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018I beg your pardon, what a ridiculous measure! We\u2019d go bankrupt if we followed their example!\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Exactly. In a few months\u2019 time, Iceland let the three biggest banks go belly up. A move that other European countries claimed would lead to the End of Time. The <em>International Monetary Fund<\/em> was furious. It wanted to lend billions to save the Icelandic banks, as it had done to all other countries. Loans that, of course, would have to be repaid by Icelandic citizens, who said, \u201cThank you, but no thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018And in contrast to all other countries, the bankers who caused the blow were arrested and held accountable. Most of the unemployed in Iceland are now bank employees, not ordinary people. This is why Iceland is the only country already out of the crisis, while the rest of Europe is still up to its neck. And they partly owe this to their currency, the Icelandic <em>kr\u00f3na<\/em>, which they can influence themselves. There\u2019s not an Icelander left wishing for the euro.\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-7\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"7\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-7\">7<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"7\">Translated from the original Dutch book by Geert Kimpen, <em>De Prins van Fillettino<\/em>, De Arbeiderspers, 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In Iceland, the monstrous growth of debt was halted. Icelanders repay only what is humane and no more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Outside of Iceland, humane doesn\u2019t seem to apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, coming back to argument two against the story of the village, \u2018What do you mean, lack?\u2019: money is indeed always to be found somewhere, if not in the village, then outside of it. So, of course you can pay the man with the shiny shoes \u2018his\u2019 eleventh note. Even if you fail to do so on time, no sweat. The man with the shiny shoes will simply say, \u2018Here, extra money, with an obligation to interest. If you can\u2019t pay me again next time, that\u2019s okay too; I\u2019ll just confiscate your house.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is \u2018our\u2019 money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This money we call a medium of exchange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This system we call \u2018financial services\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I see plenty of finances, but I fail to see the service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s sad, because like money, banks and bankers are an excellent idea. How wonderful, when you have more money than you need, to find a banker who says, \u2018I know people who can use your money in positive and constructive ways\u2014I would like to connect you.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To me, this is the beautiful essence of banking: connecting gifts, talents, positive needs and creative possibilities. Helping people to find each other, fuel each other\u2019s ideas and make dreams come true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And as in banking, so in interest. Going to the core, interest is an appreciation someone receives for the connections they make. An appreciation that he or she can use for sustenance and livelihood, which thus flows back into a tribe, village and economy for further circulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That the practice of banking and interest is often a completely different cookie doesn\u2019t automatically make banks, bankers, and people with a lot of material assets crooks. It makes them part of a deeper, collective pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which brings us to argument 3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>What\u2019s wrong with more?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Every one of the prevailing answers we\u2019re currently inventing to battle an illusion of lack creates a new, greater illusion of lack. The positive name we\u2019ve given to this vicious cycle is \u2018growth\u2019. Economic growth is good news; economic shrinkage is bad news. Why? Because we\u2019ve come to associate economic shrinkage with decline, stagnation and decay, while economic growth signifies progress, innovation and prosperity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And without economic growth, so the reasoning goes, there\u2019s no increase in prosperity. Why? Because our ability to satisfy our needs only grows when the economy grows. This, at least, is the common idea, which is built on two assumptions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If we want to create a happy and healthy society, prosperity must increase.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>People don\u2019t pursue prosperity in and of themselves; they need an incentive.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first assumption I can easily link to a perception of lack. Whatever is there now isn\u2019t enough to be happy and healthy\u2014we need more. The second assumption, ditto. Because as the reasoning continues, we humans only want more when we see ourselves having too little.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This mindset makes lack, or \u2018scarcity\u2019, as economists call it, both a problem and a solution. Scarcity encourages us to stop idling, get moving and go forward. And if we don\u2019t see scarcity ourselves, we can be given it through that eleventh note, i.e. an interest-bearing debt, i.e. an artificially created lack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This problem-solving problem may have served us in a way. We humans have made impossible discoveries, invented bizarrely beautiful things and vastly improved our living conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But what if more is a must?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What if we can no longer do without more?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When, then, will more be enough?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Never.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A growth economy (or, better said, a debt society) is insatiable. Interest and inflation always demand more than they give, so there\u2019s always more that needs to go back into the system than comes out. This creates an enormous paradox: we\u2019ve invented everything we need to live comfortable lives, expending only a fraction of the time and labour we needed one hundred years ago to make ends meet\u2014but are we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">living<\/span> more?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF.png\" alt=\"From caveman, through hunter-gatherer, to farmer, to construction worker, to computer slave\" class=\"wp-image-23245 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3673\" height=\"1247\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF.png\" alt=\"From caveman, through hunter-gatherer, to farmer, to construction worker, to computer slave\" class=\"wp-image-23245\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF.png 3673w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-300x102.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-1024x348.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-768x261.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-1536x521.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-2048x695.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.24-VAN-HOLBEWONER-NAAR-COMPUTERSLAAF-600x204.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3673px) 100vw, 3673px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Almost everything that Nature once gave us, plus everything we used to do with and for each other, is now called a product or a service. Clean drinking water, land to live on, food, raw materials, care for older people, childcare and walking the dog\u2026 things to buy and sell. The same goes for almost everything we used to make or rebuild ourselves. In all of these areas, we\u2019ve come up with \u2018innovative\u2019 solutions\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">that are amazing at causing problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The more we outsource our needs to specialists and professionals, the more we pay to meet our needs, the more we have to earn to meet our needs, the harder we need to work to earn more, the less time and attention we have for things that require time and attention, the more of our time and attention we outsource to specialists and professionals, the more we have to earn to pay specialists and professionals&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.25-spinning-wheel-with-words.png\" alt=\"spinning wheel with words: pay more, work harder, earn more, spend less time, outsource more(and back again at pay more)\" class=\"wp-image-23246 lazyload\" style=\"width:225px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"509\" height=\"517\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.25-spinning-wheel-with-words.png\" alt=\"spinning wheel with words: pay more, work harder, earn more, spend less time, outsource more(and back again at pay more)\" class=\"wp-image-23246\" style=\"width:225px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.25-spinning-wheel-with-words.png 509w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.25-spinning-wheel-with-words-295x300.png 295w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 509px) 100vw, 509px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As long as more isn\u2019t enough, enough remains a promise, never to be fulfilled. Fortunately for us in the West, we\u2019ve become so skilled at outsourcing that much of the ever-increasing societal pressure has been delegated elsewhere. People in so-called developing countries ask less money, whine less about working conditions, and are more forgiving of our polluting attitudes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, you and I could say, \u2018There must be a point at which our needs are met, right?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alas\u2014again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An insatiable system constantly \u2018discovers\u2019 new needs. Western and \u2018developing\u2019 societies are bursting with products, services, apps and gadgets that didn\u2019t exist a short while ago. All feed into our secret fears and vanities, all work tirelessly to convince us they\u2019re essential and all promise us a more leisurely, richer and safer life. Do they deliver on these promises? Doesn\u2019t matter\u2014what matters is that we pay for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland.png\" alt=\"Advertising poster for Oasis soft drink. Text: &#039;It&#039;s Summer. You&#039;re thirsty. We&#039;ve got sales targets.&#039;\" class=\"wp-image-23247 lazyload\" style=\"width:386px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2398\" height=\"3186\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland.png\" alt=\"Advertising poster for Oasis soft drink. Text: &#039;It&#039;s Summer. You&#039;re thirsty. We&#039;ve got sales targets.&#039;\" class=\"wp-image-23247\" style=\"width:386px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland.png 2398w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-226x300.png 226w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-771x1024.png 771w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-768x1020.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-1156x1536.png 1156w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-1541x2048.png 1541w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.26-Reclameposter-in-Schotland-600x797.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2398px) 100vw, 2398px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><br><sub><em>Advertising poster for <\/em>Oasis<em> soft drink, Scotland, 2015. One of the most honest ads I&#8217;ve ever seen.<\/em><\/sub><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, in short and in response to the question \u2018What\u2019s wrong with more?\u2019:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Except in a debt-with-interest-economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More and more of everything is burdened with a price tag, not because we want to burden more of everything, and not because it makes things better, but because in a debt-with-interest-economy, more can never lead to enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So far, I\u2019ve given a mostly theoretical answer to the questions \u2018What\u2019s <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">gone wrong with<\/mark> money?\u2019 and \u2018What\u2019s wrong with more?\u2019. To summarise:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Money, in our wallets, on our bank accounts, borrowed or not, is an interest-bearing debt. Or, more accurately said, money is systematically turned into an interest-bearing debt.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>People who use a means of payment accepted by banks are trading in debt and working for debt.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This interest-bearing debt game inevitably creates an insatiable society. Because there\u2019s always more debt than money to pay off the debt, there\u2019s always more that needs to go back into the system than what\u2019s coming out, so the promised land of Enough is always pushed ahead faster than we can work towards it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gaining insight into these dynamics has been immensely valuable to me. For one, a better understanding of the worldly stress I already felt as a child has enormously helped me to step out of that stress. But the real value\u2014and confrontation\u2014came when I started seeing how deeply <em>never enough <\/em>permeates the planet, society, people, and myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The rest of this chapter will focus on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The confusion that turned economic growth into a holy grail;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the impact of this confusion on our mental, emotional and even physical health;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the poverty that we breed by clinging to this phenomenon called \u2018competition\u2019;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the wonderful kernel of truth at the core of it all.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><br><strong>Gr<mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">ow<\/mark>th<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-left is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><br>The world has enough for everyone\u2019s needs,<br>but not for everyone\u2019s greed.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014 Mahatma Gandhi<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We humans inhabit a planet that could easily accommodate eight billion of us but no longer can. To keep ourselves alive, we tear down what keeps us alive bit by bit and faster and faster. Why? Because fresh air, clean seas and healthy forests\u2014our only real capital\u2014don\u2019t make money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many unconsciously think they can safeguard their backyard from destruction elsewhere, but that idea is folly. Our homes aren\u2019t made up of separate chunks independently floating through space. So if <em>never enough <\/em>keeps having its way, then at some point, everyone\u2014including the man with the shiny shoes\u2014is going to be screwed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is no news. The cliff we\u2019re approaching is globally acknowledged. Across the fields of science, business and politics, people in positions of authority are saying, \u2018We cannot go on like this.\u2019 Yet the bulk of governments, companies, institutions and banks continue chasing after growth, jobs, purchasing power and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Having stepped out of the fish bowl myself, I can only call the mess we\u2019re collectively creating insane. But I, too, have been swimming with painful ignorance. So, I, too, have come to understand our cancerous \u2018growth\u2019 mindset. It contains a programming error\u2014a confusion about what gives life and what takes life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To illustrate, here\u2019s part of a conversation between an international chief executive and a Native American named Oren Lyons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018I understand what you\u2019re saying, but we cannot slow down. We have to make a profit, otherwise we will be fired. As a CEO, I <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">have<\/span> to make a profit.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018For whom?\u2019 asks Oren.<br>\u2018For the shareholders.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018Are you married?\u2019 asks Oren.<br>\u2018Yes.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018Do you have children?\u2019<br>\u2018Yes.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018Do you have grandchildren?\u2019<br>\u2018Yes, two boys.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018When are you going to stop being a CEO, and when are you going to start being a grandfather?\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-8\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"8\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-8\">8<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"8\">The video in which Native American Oren Lyons talks about this conversation can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MoneyNeverAboutMoney.org\/oren-lyons\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/oren-lyons<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With his mind in his heart, the international executive will have nothing to argue against Oren\u2019s question. But the chances of him fully waking up to the question, his grandchildren, and the future they face\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I consider them slim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After all, a deal\u2019s a deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, what deals have we collectively made? I want to shine a light on three:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">land and property.<br>money and gold,<br>talent and wealth,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><br><strong>Money and gold<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Money exists and has value because we agree that money exists and has value. Before we collectively accepted this agreement, we dealt in gold. This makes some sense, for gold is rare, it doesn\u2019t spoil, and it\u2019s easy to chop into bits or melt into shapes. Plus, gold is easily distinguished from other metals, which makes faking it difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, gold is also heavy, so not very convenient when you want to go shopping. Thus (at least, so we\u2019re told) money initially appeared as a solution to gold\u2019s inconvenience, serving as a \u2018representative\u2019. Metal coins and paper notes were given a value equivalent to a specific weight in gold, and this made gold a backup or \u2018reserve\u2019.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-23250 lazyload\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.7902097902097902;width:460px;height:auto\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2019\" height=\"1123\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-23250\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.7902097902097902;width:460px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes.png 2019w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes-1024x570.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes-768x427.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes-1536x854.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.27-eerste-geldbriefjes-600x334.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2019px) 100vw, 2019px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Detail of a <\/em>jiaozi<em>, the world&#8217;s earliest known money note. This paper money appeared in China around the year 1000, initially because of a shortage of copper to mint new coins.<\/em><sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-9\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"9\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-9\">9<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"9\">See <a href=\"https:\/\/En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Banknote#Early_Chinese_paper_money\">En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Banknote#Early_Chinese_paper_money<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The year 1871 saw the invention of the international \u2018gold standard\u2019. The standard was supposed to provide security and stability, partly by ensuring that no more money would be created than the known corresponding amount of gold on the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When almost sixty years later the US stock markets crashed and the world slid into an economic downturn, people no longer dared to build on the financial system. Crowds flooded the banks to exchange money for gold. Governments became nervous, and in 1976, after a lot of political wrangling\u2014including attempts to still make something of the gold standard, money was de-coupled from gold. From that moment on, money could be created at a whim and without limit, making it easier for governments to influence economies.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-10\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"10\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-10\">10<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"10\">Information on the gold standard came from <a href=\"https:\/\/En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gold_standard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gold_standard<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/Investopedia.com\/ask\/answers\/09\/gold-standard.asp\">Investopedia.com\/ask\/answers\/09\/gold-standard.asp<\/a>, among others.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, here\u2019s the funny thing: de-coupling money from gold could have made gold almost worthless, which it factually has always been. Gold may be rare and non-perishable\u2014it\u2019s also too soft to build with and too hard to eat. Gold is one of the least usable metals on Earth. Still, people killed for it before 1976 and have continued to kill for it ever since, for one simple reason: once upon a time, we agreed that gold is worth its weight in gold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In short, the gold standard was an agreement based on a value perception with almost no real, applicable foundation. Yet legions of people still believe in the agreement, digging holes in the ground to mine gold to transport and store that gold in other holes called \u2018vaults\u2019. You can still get a virtual hold of that gold by buying it with money, but since you\u2019ll never get to see it, you\u2019ll never know whether it exists. And even if it does, \u2018your\u2019 gold is only useful to you for as long as the agreement that gold is worth its weight in gold is honoured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To go even shorter, if you\u2019re under the illusion that you\u2019re securing your financial or material capital by exchanging it for gold, you\u2019re fooling yourself just as severely with gold as you did with money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I want to make a note about agreements: there\u2019s nothing innately wrong with them. I find agreements super handy, provided they mean something and help us. The problem\u2014at least, with most of the common and collective agreements around work, life, parenting, education, money and gold\u2014is that they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They trap us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig.png\" alt=\"Emile as a little kid with mini-plane\" class=\"wp-image-23251 lazyload\" style=\"width:182px;height:auto\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1064\" height=\"1378\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig.png\" alt=\"Emile as a little kid with mini-plane\" class=\"wp-image-23251\" style=\"width:182px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig.png 1064w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig-232x300.png 232w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig-791x1024.png 791w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig-768x995.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.28-Kleine-jongen-met-speelgoedvliegtuig-600x777.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1064px) 100vw, 1064px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is Emile. Emile loves flying and wants to become a pilot. Growing up, he discovers that pilot training is costly. Emile can\u2019t borrow money from a bank because he owns no collateral (or \u2018reserve\u2019) that the bank could seize should he fail to repay the loan and its corresponding interest in a timely fashion. However, Emile\u2019s father does have collateral: a house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, but shit, the house is collateral already, for the outstanding loan that Emile\u2019s father took out years ago to buy the home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, but wait, there\u2019s a way! According to an appraiser and the bank, the house has increased in value since Emile\u2019s father bought it. This so-called excess value can serve as collateral for an extra loan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Emile\u2019s father is keen to see his son live a passionate life, so he signs for the extra loan. Emile\u2019s dream is just one pilot\u2019s licence away. He completes the training and can\u2019t wait to get started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He waits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For six years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018I applied for so many positions so many times,\u2019 he says in the documentary his sister Suzanne makes about him, \u2018and the yearly trial checks I need to do to keep my licence are too expensive. I kept throwing money at it because I still had hope, and I no longer feel like doing that. It\u2019s enough, loan-wise.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2018How much is it now?\u2019 Suzanne asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018It\u2019s now 136,400 euros.\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-11\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"11\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-11\">11<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"11\">The documentary is called <em>Het laatste uur in de zon (\u2018The Last Hour in the Sun\u2019). <\/em>You can find more about it on the <em>International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam<\/em> website <a href=\"https:\/\/Idfa.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Idfa.nl<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ordeal doesn\u2019t lead to arguments in the family, but it does become part of it. Whenever Emile speaks to his father, he thinks about it, and his father, in turn, says the loan cut things in two. \u2018We had a life before the signature and a life after.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Emile\u2019s story is a reality for many, many people. Millions work to pay back interest on a loan, without seeing the loan decrease, so they keep working just to cough up the interest. All because a dream didn\u2019t turn out the way they envisioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, before you grab your pitchfork and storm into the nearest bank, I don\u2019t believe the banker who made the loan to Emile\u2019s father is happy about this. I\u2019d sooner believe the banker feels shitty about it. But\u2026 a deal\u2019s a deal, and if Emile\u2019s father fails to honour the deal, the bank will lose the money the bank created out of nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Plenty of bankers will jump at the opportunity to make the deal less dire, but dire it almost always remains. After all, like the executive says to the native American, \u2018As a CEO, I <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">have<\/span> to make a profit.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With this, I want to reiterate that financial scamming (or in this case, financial agreeing) stems from a deeper pattern, one that determines business as usual almost everywhere. Banks, bankers and people of wealth are part of this pattern, but not the cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Talent and wealth<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Back to the village. Before the shiny shoes walked in, you lived together and gave to each other, which was fun, rewarding and perfectly logical. After all, how wonderful is it to give to your fellow human when you have too much, and how wonderful is it to receive from your fellow human when you have too little?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This logic applies to much more than food and stuff. In the words of a tribal elder from Greenland called Angaangaq:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble.png\" alt=\"Portrait of Angaangaq\" class=\"wp-image-23256 lazyload\" style=\"width:358px;height:auto\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"775\" height=\"592\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble.png\" alt=\"Portrait of Angaangaq\" class=\"wp-image-23256\" style=\"width:358px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble.png 775w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble-300x229.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble-768x587.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.29-Face-Angaangaq-with-speech-bubble-600x458.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 775px) 100vw, 775px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>&#8216;The more I share my knowledge, the wealthier I become. And, of course, the wealthier I become, the more giving I can be. The more I give, the more I get. It\u2019s like a circle, with no beginning and no end, in which we all belong.\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-12\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"12\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-12\">12<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"12\">People from the ethical <em>Triodos Bank<\/em> asked Angaangaq: \u2018How do you become rich, really?\u2019 The short video with his answer can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/really-rich\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/really-rich<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you become less when you share knowledge someone else doesn\u2019t already have? No. Sharing enriches both the giver and receiver. That is, until money\u2014pardon me, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">interest<\/span>\u2014enters the game. Suddenly, holding on doesn\u2019t seem so crazy. Milk will go sour, turn into cheese, and then rot, but money has no best-before-date. You don\u2019t need to use a surplus of money for it to keep its value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So here\u2019s what happens: wherever interest determines the rules (which it does almost everywhere on Earth), money mostly rolls to people skilled at multiplying it. It rolls less to not-at-all to people who merely want to do something beautiful and sound with it. To boot, the more money people own, the easier it is for them to multiply it. As French economist Thomas Piketty says about his homeland:<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-13\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"13\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-13\">13<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"13\">From an article by Pieter Giesen, \u2018Slapend rijker\u2019. <em>De Volkskrant<\/em>, Saturday 19th April 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble.png\" alt=\"Thomas Piketty with blackboard and speech bubble: \u2018People with capital easily gain a 4 to 5 per cent return per year on it. In normal times, the economy grows by about 1.5 per cent.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23258 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1469\" height=\"568\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble.png\" alt=\"Thomas Piketty with blackboard and speech bubble: \u2018People with capital easily gain a 4 to 5 per cent return per year on it. In normal times, the economy grows by about 1.5 per cent.\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-23258\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble.png 1469w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble-300x116.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble-1024x396.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble-768x297.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.30-Thomas-Piketty-with-blackboard-and-speech-bubble-600x232.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1469px) 100vw, 1469px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">having<\/span> money almost automatically \u2018earns\u2019 you 2.5 to 3.5 per cent more than <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">working<\/span> for money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s a similar trend in the country I hail from. Between 1980 and 2018, inflation levels in The Netherlands were about the same as the income increase for people in paid employment. Effectively, people in paid employment have not become wealthier. Yet in the same time frame, the Dutch economy grew by more than 40 per cent (again, effectively speaking, after adjusting for inflation and also after adjusting for the increased number of households). Put simply, in almost forty years, wages didn\u2019t go up at all, but profits went up by 40 per cent. And who\u2019s redeeming? Capital owners.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-14\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"14\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-14\">14<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"14\">Mirjam de Rijk, \u2018En de winnaar is\u2026 Het zakenleven\u2019. <em>De Groene Amsterdammer<\/em>, 31st January 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In Angaangaq\u2019s village, people mainly benefit from property by sharing it; in Western \u2018developed\u2019 societies, people mainly benefit from property by sitting on it. This profit-from-sitting-on-property has crept into almost everything, even the price we pay for products and services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a just society, everyone who adds value to a product or service would receive a fair share of the price we pay for it. In other words, pricing for products or services would be determined by the combined income of all the people who worked on them. In our societies, we price things differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>First, there\u2019s the 35 to 40 per cent of retail prices mentioned earlier, used to pay interest on debts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Second, there are the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">actual<\/span> costs of products and services. In most cases, these costs are much higher than the price we pay for them in the shop. Why? Because we humans have become really good at destroying fellow humans and Nature while producing goods and delivering services. Other people and Nature immediately pay for the resulting damage; we consumers will only pay somewhere in the future, when, for example, our lungs start suffering too much from cleared rainforests and depleted seas.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-15\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"15\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-15\">15<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"15\">Trees aren\u2019t the only lungs on our planet. In fact, it\u2019s claimed that most of the atmospheric oxygen comes from oceans. See, for example, <a href=\"https:\/\/Seaspiracy.org\/facts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Seaspiracy.org\/facts<\/a> &amp; <a href=\"https:\/\/Earthsky.org\/earth\/how-much-do-oceans-add-to-worlds-oxygen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Earthsky.org\/earth\/how-much-do-oceans-add-to-worlds-oxygen<\/a>.<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Third, to return to the price we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">do<\/span> pay directly: on top of the interest part, another part of the price we pay goes to people who have not actively contributed. These people take a cut purely because they own shares in companies we buy from, or because they receive rent for the land and buildings on which those companies do their thing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In short, having wealth in the form of money or land almost automatically gives you the gift to increase that wealth. The only talent you need for that gift is the ability to lend out some of your money\u2014with an obligation to pay interest, of course\u2014or to rent out some of your land. And even that talent you can outsource; many a banker, speculator or broker will jump at the opportunity to \u2018help\u2019 you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Globally, the gaining-from-property game is painting a dire picture:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two.png\" alt=\"Globe divided in two, at left half eight dolls and figure 8, under right half a whole bunch of dolls and figure 3.6 billion.\" class=\"wp-image-23294 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3516\" height=\"1205\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two.png\" alt=\"Globe divided in two, at left half eight dolls and figure 8, under right half a whole bunch of dolls and figure 3.6 billion.\" class=\"wp-image-23294\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two.png 3516w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-300x103.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-1024x351.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-768x263.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-1536x526.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-2048x702.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.31-Globe-divided-in-two-600x206.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3516px) 100vw, 3516px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since 2015, the richest one per cent own more capital than the remaining 99 per cent put together; at the start of 2017, the eight wealthiest people owned as much as the poorest half of the world\u2019s population.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-16\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"16\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-16\">16<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"16\">Oxfam Briefing Paper, \u2018An Economy for the 99%\u2019, January 2017, <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfam.org\">Oxfam.org<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About this, French economist Thomas says: \u2018We humans don\u2019t object to inequality due to work and merit, but when you have a group of oligarchs who just keep piling up capital\u2026 that clashes with deep convictions on social justice.\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-17\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"17\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-17\">17<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"17\">Pieter Giesen, &#8216;Slapend Rijker&#8217;. <em>De Volkskrant<\/em>, Saturday 19th April 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I agree with Thomas\u2019s words, but the biggest clash I feel&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">happens on other grounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\"><strong><br><strong>Land and ownership<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No human being has ever bought their birth on this planet. Yet the right to live on Earth has been made into a tradable commodity\u2014with an obligation to pay interest. As with capital, an ever-growing part of the Earth\u2019s surface is falling into the hands of an ever-smaller group of people. And as with capital, people \u2018enrich\u2019 themselves through land mainly at the expense of other people and the planet. In most areas, land has become so expensive that it\u2019s almost impossible to gain financially from it without destroying it or piling buildings on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oddly enough, when it comes to extraterrestrial terrain, we seem to exhibit less insanity. The <em>Outer Space Treaty<\/em>, effected in 1967 and now signed by 111 countries, stipulates that any nation may freely explore the entire extraterrestrial space\u2014including everything that floats in it\u2014but no nation or country may claim dominion over it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why there yes and on Earth no? According to the treaty, because freedom of exploration contributes to international scientific cooperation and thus to greater understanding, and thus to more robust, more peaceful relations between states and people.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-18\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"18\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-18\">18<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"18\">See <a href=\"https:\/\/Outerspacetreaty.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Outerspacetreaty.org<\/a>.<\/span> A friend of mine came up with another reason: our collective consciousness has grown since we started claiming land, and out of this growing awareness arose a different choice when the time came to decide on matters away from Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both reasons I find hopeful, but I also see a treaty that hasn\u2019t been tested yet. As I write these words, no person has set foot on an alien plot for over three days. What people <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">have<\/span> managed to do, frequently, is dishonour agreements they\u2019ve signed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe it\u2019s a case of waiting for the first extraterrestrial settlers to flout the treaty. Or\u2026 of us coming to our senses before then, here on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/04\/2.31-5-scheidingsteken-verwarring.png\" alt=\"Warboel\" class=\"wp-image-8033 lazyload\" style=\"width:34px;height:34px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/04\/2.31-5-scheidingsteken-verwarring.png\" alt=\"Warboel\" class=\"wp-image-8033\" style=\"width:34px;height:34px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To wrap up this first exploration of the confusion around what gives life and what takes life, here\u2019s something I sometimes hear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Money is very earthly.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I almost never understand what people mean by this, if only because they, too, almost never understand what they mean by this. To me, the deal we call \u2018money\u2019 is as unearthly as can be. Money neither rots nor diminishes in usefulness when you sit on it. I know of nothing else on our planet that behaves like this. Except for gold, perhaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another thing I hear people say is that money is energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This rings more true to me, even though money in and by itself cannot \u2018be\u2019 anything. \u2018Money becomes wrong or right by what you do with it,\u2019 the Dutch <em>ASN Bank<\/em> once advertised. In my words: no matter how crooked, unjust or idiotic money might be birthed and used, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">we<\/span> determine how positively and creatively we let it flow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This brings us closer to the patterns that determine <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">our dealings with<\/mark> money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because what do we allow ourselves to be determined by?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And what does this determining do to us\u2014not only mentally and spiritually, but <em>physically<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><br><strong>In our veins<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><br>It is no measure of health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014 Jiddu Krishnamurti<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My father is quite the carpenter and taught me to make many things myself. We once built a kitchen from used scaffolding wood, working on it every weekend for two months. The job wasn\u2019t finished then, but neither of us saw how to continue. For the next six months, I lived with half a kitchen; only then did I know where the drawers and oven would fit best. Soon after, Dad and I completed one of the most beautiful kitchens I\u2019d ever seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t have a lot of things and some call me a minimalist, but I find \u2018essentialist\u2019 more appropriate. I love things\u2014things made with love and possessed by an air of quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not easy to come by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The vast majority of our current buildings, public spaces, utilities and other things I encounter are ugly and lifeless. And this, too, I\u2019ve come to understand. In a debt-with-interest-economy, people are constantly pushing (and being pushed) to produce as much as possible as fast as possible for as little as possible. One price we and the Earth pay for this has already been addressed, but I see another loss:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>we buy new stuff all the time because new things are cheaper than repairing what we already have;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>we put furniture in the junkyard because we don\u2019t make it ourselves;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>we throw away a third to half of our food because most of us don\u2019t grow it in our gardens.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-19\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"19\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-19\">19<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"19\">From Mark Boyle, &#8216;I live without cash &#8211; and I manage just fine\u2019. <em>The Guardian<\/em>. 28 October 2009, <a href=\"https:\/\/TheGuardian.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TheGuardian.com<\/a>.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The bulk of our daily food and things are carelessly produced, consumed and discarded. This holds as true for consumers as it does for retailers, suppliers and producers. Sellers who know (or want to know) where their things and raw materials come from, let alone under what conditions they were harvested or made, are still spread thinly. Many have no feelings for what they make, sell and buy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, our relationship with food, furniture, appliances and clothes is determined mainly by the retail price we pay for them. In our so-called busy lives, quality has become too much to ask for. Yes, we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">want<\/span> to buy furniture made with love and attention, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">but<\/span>&#8230; And no, we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">don\u2019t want<\/span> to have our things made by children\u2019s hands in low-wage countries, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">but<\/span>&#8230; And sure, we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">want<\/span> to buy our food from small-scale, organic farms instead of supermarkets, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">but<\/span>\u2026 And, of course, we <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">want<\/span> to run our businesses from a place of love and attention, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">but<\/span>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Having worked in a dozen or so caf\u00e9s and restaurants, I witnessed many hospitality entrepreneurs go against the grain of the passion they had once started from. Working longer hours than feels good and healthy, preparing meals in a hurry instead of with attention, switching to cheaper suppliers with bad products, reacting more and more stressfully to everything and everyone\u2014all to cope with the ever-increasing costs of running a business\u2014of which rent or mortgage usually form the lion\u2019s share, while forgetting why they were doing this again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Being busy and making unloving choices are two \u2018gains\u2019 for which we may thank our collective thirst for comfort and progress. Another so-called gain is the luxury of standing on our own two feet. In Western society, it\u2019s damn cool to be able to say that you\u2019re financially independent. But is it? Is it cool to be able to pay for the freedom of not having to meet fellow human beings, not receiving favours you may want to return, and managing most of your life through mobile apps and digital bank accounts? Conversely, is it cool not to ask for help because you can\u2019t afford help and\/or unconsciously learned that you should always be able to solve everything on your own, by yourself, with \u2018your\u2019 money?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cool or uncool aside and no matter what we do, we never stand on our own two feet and never live a lone life. We stand on the Earth thanks to the Earth. We live thanks to everything that gives life. Two humbling and enriching facts, which we deny when we <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">unconsciously<\/mark> bow to the individualistic, \u2018independence-making\u2019 gospel of <em>never enough<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And our denial doesn\u2019t just make us poor spiritually\u2014it literally makes us sick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To illustrate, here\u2019s a story that would become known as the \u2018Roseto effect\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the end of the nineteenth century, many villages in Italy ran empty. One such village was called Roseto Valfortore. Fed up with their poverty, the Rosetans crossed to America, hoping to find new wealth there. In Pennsylvania, they established a new village under their familiar name: Roseto. People in the surrounding towns didn\u2019t particularly like the Italian newcomers, so the Rosetans quickly learned that in America, too, they depended on each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fifty years later, almost every household in Roseto consisted of three generations: the original immigrants, their adult children and their growing grandchildren. During the day, the village was quiet. Children attended school while their parents worked in nearby quarries and garment factories. In the evenings, Roseto livened up. Villagers walked into each other\u2019s houses as if they were at home, set tables outside to share Italian feasts, walked together, organised festivals and celebrated life together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein.png\" alt=\"Village in connection, people eat together at a large table in the square\" class=\"wp-image-23259 lazyload\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5097\" height=\"1207\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein.png\" alt=\"Village in connection, people eat together at a large table in the square\" class=\"wp-image-23259\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein.png 5097w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-300x71.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-1024x242.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-768x182.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-1536x364.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-2048x485.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.32-Dorp-in-verbinding-mensen-eten-samen-aan-een-grote-tafel-op-het-plein-600x142.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 5097px) 100vw, 5097px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 1961, Roseto received a visit from Stewart Wolf, an American medical professor. Stewart had been invited to speak to a group of medics and afterwards grabbed a beer with a local doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Do you know what\u2019s so strange?\u2019 mused the local doctor as they entered the bar. \u2018Here in Roseto, there\u2019s much less heart disease than in the neighbouring village of Bangor.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Immediately, Stewart was all ears. In early 1960s America, heart disease could already be called an epidemic. Among men under sixty-five, it had even become the leading cause of death. Stewart asked for an explanation, but the local doctor didn\u2019t have one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stewart requested to see Roseto\u2019s death certificates and those of the surrounding villages. Bewildered, he browsed seven years back in time. In the neighbouring town of Bangor, heart attack rates ran in line with the US average; in Roseto, people made do with half the rates. Among men under sixty-five, heart attacks in Roseto were even virtually unheard of.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adding everything up, Stewart found death rates in Roseto to be thirty to thirty-five per cent lower than the US average. To top it all up, Rosetans hardly ever went to the doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stewart\u2019s bewilderment heralded a long-term study. Years later, one of his fellow researchers would say, \u2018Roseto had no suicide, no alcoholism, no drug addiction and virtually no crime. No one in Roseto lived on welfare and no one had an ulcer. Rosetans were dying of old age, that\u2019s it.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How could this be? Was it the olive oil?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stewart hired eleven dieticians to watch over Rosetans while they shopped and cooked. It wasn\u2019t the olive oil\u2014Rosetans had no money for olive oil. They cooked their meals in pork fat and topped their pizzas with sausages and eggs. A colossal 40 per cent of their calories came from animal fat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, were Rosetans fitter than elsewhere? Um, no, not exactly. In Roseto, they liked cigarettes, booze and\u2014of course\u2014food, lots of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Was it the genes? No. Italian Rosetans who had settled elsewhere in America were just as unhealthy as the average American, as were the descendants of those Rosetans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Was it Roseto\u2019s geography? Climate? Groundwater? Medical facilities? No, no, no and no: those were all the same as in surrounding villages\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For years, Stewart and his fellow researchers observed themselves silly, unable to find a physiological explanation for Roseto\u2019s immunity. Having ticked off all options, Stewart could only draw one conclusion: it was because of Roseto\u2019s close-knit community. More than good for the mind, the community was healthy for the body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Had Stewart\u2019s investigation stopped there, we\u2019d be left with one side of the coin. But Stewart decided to keep following the village right when Roseto\u2019s community began to show the first signs of cracking. As irony would have it, the very effort Rosetans had put into giving their children a better life undermined what made their lives so good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Roseto might have been immune to disease; Roseto\u2019s youngsters found it a deadly dull village. Luckily, thanks to their parents\u2019 hard work, they were able to go elsewhere to study. Returning a few years later, they brought different ideas and fresh blood. More and more Italian Americans married non-Italian Americans. Church attendance dropped, three-generation households became one-generation households, and soon, the American dream proved too big for the original dwellings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Young families moved to the outskirts of the village to populate newly built houses, complete with fences, swimming pools and all the comfort and style a person could want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos.png\" alt=\"A village with nuclear families and fences and swimming pools and cars\" class=\"wp-image-23263 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5100\" height=\"2629\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos.png\" alt=\"A village with nuclear families and fences and swimming pools and cars\" class=\"wp-image-23263\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos.png 5100w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-300x155.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-1024x528.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-768x396.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-1536x792.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-2048x1056.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.33-Dorp-met-nucleaire-families-en-hekken-en-zwembaden-en-autos-600x309.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 5100px) 100vw, 5100px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While all of this was happening, Roseto\u2019s heart disease rates doubled and cases of high blood pressure tripled. By 1980, almost 20 years after Stewart first walked into the village, Roseto was way up there with the average American when it came to heart attacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stewart added the following to his original conclusion: from the moment we separate ourselves from each other, we\u2019re easy prey to life\u2019s challenges. We become more susceptible to stress, and if stress persists long enough, we get sick.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-20\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"20\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-20\">20<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"20\">I found information on the \u2018Roseto Effect&#8217; in Lissa Rankin\u2019s book <em>Mind over Medicine <\/em>and in \u2018The Roseto Effect, class notes from the University of Illinois\u2019, available via <a href=\"https:\/\/Uic.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Uic.edu<\/a>. A fairly well-known later study on the world\u2019s happiest and healthiest societies can be found in the widely read book <em>Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way<\/em>, written by Dan Buettner.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stewart wouldn\u2019t be the only one drawing such conclusions. Subsequent studies have also indicated that the quality of our relationships greatly determines our health and happiness. A close, supportive community keeps stress at bay, prevents illness and can even heal us. Without such a community, the opposite happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Telling this story is like kicking at an open door, yet I too was amazed when I first read about Roseto. Why, when it makes so much sense? This is my answer now: our confusion only becomes visible when we dare to stand still\u2014and look at what we allow ourselves to be possessed by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And in a world where <em>never enough <\/em>sets most people\u2019s pace, many of us need to do a lot of stressful running before we grind to a halt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><br><strong>Economy or rivalry?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><br>If you don\u2019t become what they want you to become, they get angry. Because everyone can tell you exactly how to live, while they don\u2019t even know what to do with their own lives.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014 Paolo Coelho, <em>The Alchemist<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2004, my crew and I reach the final of one of the most prestigious rowing tournaments in the world. We win. Six weeks later, I still walk around like the exhausted mop that collapsed over the finish line. I\u2019m twenty-two years old and this is not how I should feel. Luckily, I have a doctor who knows what to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Mundo,\u2019 he says firmly, \u2018you\u2019re overtrained\u2014take it easy.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I take his words for truth, but inside, I know better. I\u2019ve been feeling physically messed up since I started wanting to quit rowing. For a whole year, I fight my body towards that prestigious rowing tournament. Every stroke hurts, my body continuously asks if we can please knock it off\u2014and I keep going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because I want to row\u2014at least, that\u2019s what I tell my crew, everyone around me and myself. The real reason is one I dare not face. I keep going because clever and fast receive more praise than dumb and slow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No one ever became an honorary member at my rowing club because they said, in the middle of the season, \u2018Guys, it\u2019s been emotional, but I\u2019m out of steam\u2014I quit.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Quitting is a very uncool thing to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I ignore the signals that say <em>enough<\/em>, right up to that final finish line. Deep inside, I know it\u2019s insane to hold high what wants to be put down, but it\u2019ll take five more years before I start making honesty more important than receiving praise. I\u2019m addicted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The above story, as personal as it may be, is also about a fundamental flaw in our collective drive for competition, which doesn\u2019t just reign in sports\u2014it reigns everywhere. Much of what we call work, school, family, collaboration\u2014even love and play\u2014is infused with competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As is economics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Economics generally sees competition as a logical and desirable consequence of that eleventh ten-euro note\u2014or, better said, an illusion of lack. Competition makes us work harder, better and faster. Competition stimulates innovation, innovation drives prosperity and more prosperity is good.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This chapter has already covered the ideas underlying competition, innovation and prosperity; let\u2019s now look at their application.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Indeed, competition brings out strengths that would otherwise remain hidden, as happens when lives are at stake. A mother lifts a car with her bare hands to free her trapped child; warring sailors throw impossibly heavy bombs from their burning ship to prevent the ship from exploding; a little girl jumps over a man-high wall to escape danger&#8230; There are countless stories.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet, in life-threatening situations, people just as easily fall apart. And as there, so in a debt-with-interest economy. In a debt-with-interest economy, people even <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">need<\/span> to fall apart. One can only earn because another accumulates debt, and one can only excel because another underperforms. And if that\u2019s not undesirable enough, even among \u2018winners\u2019, I see few genuinely excel. More and more people burn out younger and younger <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">while<\/span> supposedly excelling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This game, in which we either \u2018win\u2019 or lose, doesn\u2019t start when we first make contact with money. Winning and losing are deeply embedded in how we teach each other to live, play and work. Much of what we call family, school, business, organisation and management is set up to produce obedience, incite competition and repeat the mistakes humanity has been repeating for aeons. Often, this happens unconsciously and with the best intentions, but that doesn\u2019t lessen the damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If we need to fulfil certain conditions to reap appreciation and approval, there\u2019s a big chance we\u2019ll start disliking ourselves for who we are. This, in turn, drives us to build a false persona, someone who <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">hopefully<\/mark> does well in the eyes of the outside world. Learning to use our adaptive skills to bury what genuinely makes us tick, will likely get us in a depressed and despondent state\u2014and makes us forget who we are.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-21\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"21\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-21\">21<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"21\">In the book <em>Unconditional Parenting, <\/em>Alfie Kohn poignantly describes the harm we do by (unintentionally) rewarding and punishing our children\u2014and fellow adults. He backs his arguments with numerous studies. More about his book, plus alternatives to punishment and rewards, can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Alphabet<\/em>, a documentary about the current state of our educational system, painfully shows the impact of conditionality. Among others, a Chinese boy appears on screen. His mother recites a list of his achievements and pulls out a medal he won at a maths competition. Like a docile lamb, he hangs the medal around his neck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen.png\" alt=\"Boy with medal hanging around his neck\" class=\"wp-image-23267 lazyload\" style=\"width:179px;height:256px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1492\" height=\"2130\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen.png\" alt=\"Boy with medal hanging around his neck\" class=\"wp-image-23267\" style=\"width:179px;height:256px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen.png 1492w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-210x300.png 210w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-717x1024.png 717w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-768x1096.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-1076x1536.png 1076w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-1435x2048.png 1435w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.34-Jongen-met-een-medaille-omgehangen-600x857.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1492px) 100vw, 1492px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018Go and win some more prizes,\u2019 his mother proudly says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The film portrays the boy several times, but he doesn\u2019t speak, so I can\u2019t say what\u2019s going on in his mind. But what I see, in every shot in which he appears, is what I see many of us go through\u2014and what I went through, not only in my rowing career. Legions of athletes, maths prodigies, artists and businesspeople experience or end \u2018brilliant\u2019 careers in physical and mental ruin. Living for recognition instead of joy can literally exhaust us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s tragic, again, because as in banking, so in competition do I see a beautiful kernel of truth. We long to flourish. We love stepping outside of trodden zones, nudging ourselves and each other past what we think we\u2019re capable of\u2014even when the nudging frightens us. Transcending <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">self-<\/mark>imposed limits, alone or together, is an intensely beautiful and empowering experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But at other people\u2019s expense?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At our own expense?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And ultimately\u2014because that\u2019s the inevitable finale of <em>never enough<\/em>\u2014at the expense of everything and everyone?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t see how that makes us more intelligent or more prosperous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, what <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">fuels<\/span> competition?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rewards and punishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two carrots, both killing our genius and innate drive for discovery\u2014and this statement is backed by solid findings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For example, in the 1960s, researchers developed a simple test for the US space agency NASA to identify itsmost innovative engineers and scientists.&nbsp; The test measured \u2018divergent thinking\u2019 (the ability to generate multiple, novel ideas or solutions to a given problem) and worked well for its aim. Yet, it didn\u2019t answer a more profound question: Where does creative genius come from? Is it something we\u2019re born with, or is it a skill we learn?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since it was a simple test, the researchers applied it to a group of 1,600 children between the ages of four and five. Ninety-eight per cent of these children scored at the \u2018creative genius\u2019 level. Five years later, the test was repeated on the same group of children, now aged nine to ten. This time, only 30 per cent scored at the creative genius level. At age fifteen, the children were tested again; this time, the number had dropped to twelve per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to George Land, one of the researchers, this is where the study ended, \u2018because so many people got depressed. Most of the testing was done by teachers, and they didn\u2019t want to do it again.\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-22\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"22\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-22\">22<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"22\">You can watch George\u2019s painfully funny TEDx Talk via <a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\">MiracleProject.e<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\">rth\/creative-genius<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Follow-up studies had more than one million adults tested. Among them, a staggering <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">two per cent<\/span> came out as creative genius.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-23\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"23\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-23\">23<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"23\">You can find more about these tests in the TEDx Talk mentioned in the previous note, plus in the book authored by George Land and Beth Georgeland, <em>Breakpoint and Beyond; Mastering the Future &#8211; Today<\/em>, published by<em> HarperBusiness<\/em> in 1993.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When we\u2019re honest, I don\u2019t believe any of us wants to be a driving force behind humanity dumbing down. Yet the bulk of grown-ups insist that competition is the engine of prosperity, even though research keeps contradicting&nbsp; this insistence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Time and again, studies confirm that rewards and bonuses only \u2018work\u2019 for easy tasks with simple frameworks and concrete goals. When a job becomes even slightly challenging, rewards and punishments tend to paralyse rather than encourage. Even worse, the higher the promised reward, the more stupidly we commit to getting that reward. Why? Because rewards and punishment, a.k.a. \u2018extrinsic motivation\u2019, narrow our gaze. With a juicy carrot in our faces, we tend to see only the carrot. We close our eyes to creative avenues towards a set goal\u2014and forget to ask a valuable question: \u2018Is the set goal the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">best<\/span> goal?\u2019<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-24\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"24\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-24\">24<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"24\">A fun and well-researched resource on what science knows and what the world does is Dan Pink&#8217;s TED talk &#8216;The Puzzle of Motivation&#8217;, which you can watch on <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/intrinsic-drive\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/intrinsic-drive<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even people who think they want a society where others do neatly what we tell them, shoot themselves in the foot with extrinsic motivation. The more people are rewarded for something, the more they tend to lose interest in what they need to do to get the reward. Dozens of studies among people of different ages, genders and cultural backgrounds came to this or a similar conclusion.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-25\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"25\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-25\">25<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"25\">More of such research is summarised in Alfie Kohn\u2019s book <em>Punished by Rewards<\/em>, which he refers to extensively from his book <em>Unconditional Parenting<\/em>. See <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In short, good workhorses, rewarded for their work, become bad workhorses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To boot, there\u2019s this annoying human trait: not always (or just never) doing as we\u2019re told. A big portion of humans that grow up constantly hearing \u2018Well done!\u2019 or \u2018Shame on you!\u2019 will, at one point, start rebelling, sabotaging, and even fighting their fellows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Again, we can oppose such statements. One frequently used argument is based on the idea of a \u2018natural order\u2019, with poor people being poor because they\u2019re stupid, for example. Poor people don\u2019t have a rich brain, don\u2019t know how to earn money, don\u2019t want to earn money\u2014or they earn it but then waste it on stupid things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Accurate as this may be in some cases, research again shows that in the overwhelming majority, something else is going on. A study in America indicates that poor people are poor not because they\u2019re stupid but because poverty encourages poor-making behaviour. Researchers put people\u2019s cognitive abilities alongside their thoughts about money, and what they saw is that worries\u2014be they about money, time, food or whatever\u2014consume mental bandwidth. And a head full of aches automatically slips into survival mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As with rewards and punishment, a worrying head narrows its focus on the short term. Things that are <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">also<\/mark> important are moved aside. The result: decisions that create, perpetuate and worsen poverty. Conclusion: poverty is more likely a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">cause<\/span> of stupid behaviour than a result.<sup id=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-26\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote modern-footnotes-footnote--expands-on-desktop \" data-mfn=\"26\" data-mfn-post-scope=\"00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199\"><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\"  role=\"button\" aria-pressed=\"false\" aria-describedby=\"mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-26\">26<\/a><\/sup><span role=\"tooltip\" class=\"modern-footnotes-footnote__note\" tabindex=\"0\" data-mfn=\"26\">Author Rutger Bregman interviewed one of the researchers for an article, &#8216;Why poor people do stupid things&#8217;, available on <a href=\"https:\/\/Decorrespondent.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Decorrespondent.nl<\/a>. For the full research paper, see Anandi Mani et al, &#8216;Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function&#8217;. <em>Science<\/em>, Vol. 341, 30 Aug 2013, pp. 976-980.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This last research limited itself to people at the bottom of the social ladder: poorly educated, living on meagre wages and often badly taking care of themselves. An understandable choice, but is it any different at the top? Making ends meet for your children, making a profit for your shareholders, or continuing to row for another shot of praise\u2014I see no difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Poverty, the way I\u2019ve come to view it, primarily resides inside us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And poverty can only make a home for itself in people who <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">unconsciously<\/mark> believe they\u2019re lacking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><br><strong>Not having enough, not being enough<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><br>Anything we do out of fear of punishment if we don\u2019t\u2014everybody pays for it. Anything we do for a reward\u2014everybody pays for it. Everything we do to make people like us\u2014everybody pays for it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014 Marshall Rosenberg<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Relentless competition blurs the lines between doing, having and being. We learn to gain self-worth, not from an innate sense of worth but from \u2018being\u2019 bigger, smaller, smarter, dumber, faster or slower than others. Doing things less well than others makes us less; doing things better makes us more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Years ago, I would have called this blurring a Western symptom, but I found the blur even in the unlikeliest places.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2013, photographer Thijs Heslenfeld invites me to join him in Namibia\u2019s wilderness. Thijs is one of the people we put on film for the <em>Heartworkers<\/em> project, and because I\u2019ve gotten to know him a bit since then, I also know that when he talks about wilderness, he means it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On our first day together, with nightfall drawing near and a few metres from where we spotted lions\u2019 footprints, Thijs smiles and announces, \u2018Let\u2019s set up camp for the night.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Namibia is the second-least densely populated country in the world. Its emptiness is one reason why Thijs is so taken by it. But even in this emptiness, we meet people daily, often in the most impossible areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2018I moved to the city for an easier life,\u2019 says one woman, \u2018but only there I discovered how easy my life in the desert was. So I came back. Here I can take care of myself; in the city I found that much more difficult.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay, extraordinary story, but also logical. Less logical is what Thijs and I encounter when we venture deeper into the desert: entire families, sometimes with as many as a hundred cows. For days on end, members of these families walk their herds through drought and heat, looking for food and water for the animals. Amazed, we ask a family chief why. He replies as briefly as he does honestly, \u2018Status.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One cow may serve to give a family some milk; the rest is merely a symbol. The more cows you have, we are told, the richer and more important you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan.png\" alt=\"A tired man drags cows along on a rope. The cows trudge wearily behind him. The penultimate cow lies on its bum; the last lies dead on its belly\" class=\"wp-image-23270 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3632\" height=\"859\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan.png\" alt=\"A tired man drags cows along on a rope. The cows trudge wearily behind him. The penultimate cow lies on its bum; the last lies dead on its belly\" class=\"wp-image-23270\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan.png 3632w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-300x71.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-1024x242.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-768x182.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-1536x363.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-2048x484.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.35-Een-vermoeide-man-sleept-koeien-mee-aan-een-touw.-De-koeien-sjokken-vermoeid-achter-hem-aan-600x142.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3632px) 100vw, 3632px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>We Westerners then think, <em>These people are insane<\/em>. But then I come home from our trip and think, <em>We\u2019re just as freaked out<\/em>. What do we in the West invent, produce, buy and collect by way of \u2018cows\u2019\u2014things, apps, gadgets, toys and monthly bills\u2014just to be able to show and tell? How many derive their self-image from the work they do, the money they make, the praise they reap and the stuff they own?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And again, at what cost?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181.png\" alt=\"A tired man atop a Tesla. Behind him is a flat-screen TV, surfboard social media profiles, electronics, administration, and a mug reading \u2018#1\u2019.\" class=\"wp-image-23271 lazyload\" style=\"width:512px\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3560\" height=\"1222\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181.png\" alt=\"A tired man atop a Tesla. Behind him is a flat-screen TV, surfboard social media profiles, electronics, administration, and a mug reading \u2018#1\u2019.\" class=\"wp-image-23271\" style=\"width:512px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181.png 3560w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-300x103.png 300w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-1024x351.png 1024w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-768x264.png 768w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-1536x527.png 1536w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-2048x703.png 2048w, https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/04\/2.36-Een-vermoeide-man-bovenop-een-Tesla.-Achter-hem-een-Flatscreen-TV-surfplank-social-media-profielen-elektronica-administratie-en-een-beker-met-daarop-\u20181-600x206.png 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3560px) 100vw, 3560px\" \/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>More<\/em> is now so common that it\u2019s become an end unto itself. Anything to produce more stuff, make more profit, get more out of \u2018your\u2019 business, get more out of \u2018your\u2019 people, get more out of yourself, earn more, buy more, do more\u2026 be more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Give children space to follow their hearts and help coworkers to flourish? Great, but only if hearts and flowers make them more effective in performing and delivering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a while, I was pretty judgmental about all of this, but as in competition and banking,&nbsp; so in our collective thirst for more I now see a wonderful kernel of truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">We humans deeply long to experience life<br>in all its limitless richness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">We long to fully take in all of life\u2019s colours,<br>to never stop exploring,<br>and to keep quenching ourselves<br>with the magic of existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>The problem is not our longing for more; it\u2019s seeking the limitless in the wrong places.\u00a0 <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">Unconsciously<\/mark> hoping to find fulfilment in things, inauthentic ambitions and inflated self-images creates a vicious cycle. The more we seek, the less fulfilled we feel, the more we seek in the hope of still finding fulfilment, the even-less fulfilled we feel\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To me, this is the absolute poverty of <em>never enough<\/em>: a society in which it\u2019s become normal to fend off avenues that feel vibrant, creative, valuable or meaningful, and instead do <em>this <\/em>now for fear of <em>that <\/em>later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To give some examples, do you recognise any of the following?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If I don\u2019t take boring school subjects now, I won\u2019t be able to go to university later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I don\u2019t get that degree this year, I won\u2019t find a job next year.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I don\u2019t take this job now, I won\u2019t have a good resume later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I don\u2019t do what the boss says today, I\u2019ll be fired tomorrow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I say \u2018no\u2019 now, I won\u2019t stand a chance later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I don\u2019t join the gang now, I won\u2019t have any friends tomorrow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I don\u2019t follow this course now, I\u2019ll have stumped my development later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I rest now, I won\u2019t finish it in time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If I stop rowing today, I\u2019ll be a loser tomorrow.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe you don\u2019t\u2014I recognise all of the above. Each of these beliefs I\u2019ve allowed to bullshit me, usually without realising it, sometimes knowing very well I was bullshitting myself. And still the bullshitting happens, albeit in increasingly subtle ways. Fear has a wonder-filled tendency to turn illusion into reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--nextpage-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/04\/2.31-5-scheidingsteken-verwarring.png\" alt=\"Warboel\" class=\"wp-image-8033 lazyload\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/04\/2.31-5-scheidingsteken-verwarring.png\" alt=\"Warboel\" class=\"wp-image-8033\" style=\"width:38px;height:38px\"><\/noscript><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">That just about wraps up this chapter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">To give a brief summary:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">Our perception of lack<br>is rarely about <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">having<\/mark> too little<br>and almost always about <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">being<\/mark> too little.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">Or rather:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">about the stubborn belief<br>in not being good <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">enough<\/mark>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why <em>not good <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">enough<\/mark><\/em> is a belief, why the belief is a mistake, why this mistake is the root cause of all the negativity this chapter touched upon, and what turning the mistake upside down can bring about\u2026 I\u2019m going to save that for part two of this book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For now, I want to conclude this no-economics class by saying, \u2018This is why money is such a powerful door.\u2019 Few things preoccupy us and few things so seem to control our lives, as money. Yet, as soon as we dare to look more honestly, both at our preoccupation with money and the idea of it controlling us, we naturally start looking more honestly at ourselves, each other and the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that honest looking almost automatically makes us a building block for the world we all, deep down, wish to live in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The following chapters are about the first hallelujahs in my money research, my experiments with money, my journey without money, and the realisation I would come home to: that it\u2019s not about <em>with<\/em> money or <em>without<\/em> money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"modern-footnotes-list-heading modern-footnotes-list-heading--show-only-for-print\">_<\/h3><ul class=\"modern-footnotes-list modern-footnotes-list--show-only-for-print\"><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-1\"><span>1<\/span><div>The story of the village is inspired by two stories: \u2018The Eleventh Round\u2019 from Bernard Lietaer&#8217;s book <em>The Future of Money<\/em>,and the story of the shells from Heidi Leenaarts&#8217; book <em>Onze economie opnieuw uitvinden (\u2018Reinventing Our Economy\u2019)<\/em>. For the latter book, see <a href=\"http:\/\/UnitedEconomy.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UnitedEconomy.nl<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-1\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 1 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-2\"><span>2<\/span><div>These figures come from Margrit Kennedy&#8217;s book <em>Occupy Money<\/em>. She bases it on a 2006 study. Figuring the thing with interest rates, the percentage will be higher than 35 to 40 per cent by now. For more about her book, see <a href=\"http:\/\/www.Newsociety.com\">Newsociety.com<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-2\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 2 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-3\"><span>3<\/span><div><br>Victoria Masterson &amp; Madeleine North, \u2018What is \u201cglobal debt\u201d\u2014and how high is it now?\u2019 <em>World Economic Forum<\/em>, 21st December 2023, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.Weforum.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Weforum.org<\/a><em>.<\/em> <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-3\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 3 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-4\"><span>4<\/span><div>See Heidi Leenaarts, <em>Onze economie opnieuw uitvinden (\u2018Reinventing Our Economy\u2019), <\/em>available via <a href=\"https:\/\/UnitedEconomy.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UnitedEconomy.nl<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-4\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 4 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-5\"><span>5<\/span><div>See, for example, John Cassidy, \u2018The Real Cost of the 2008 Financial Crisis\u2019 in <em>The New Yorker<\/em>, 10 September 2018, <a href=\"https:\/\/NewYorker.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NewYorker.com<\/a>; Laura Paddison, \u20189 Faces Of The 2008 Financial Crisis: The Winners, The Losers And Those Left Behind\u2019 in <em>HuffPost<\/em>, 14 September 2018, <a href=\"https:\/\/HuffPost.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HuffPost.com<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-5\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 5 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-6\"><span>6<\/span><div>See above articles in <em>The New Yorker <\/em>and <em>HuffPost.<\/em> <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-6\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 6 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-7\"><span>7<\/span><div>Translated from the original Dutch book by Geert Kimpen, <em>De Prins van Fillettino<\/em>, De Arbeiderspers, 2013. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-7\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 7 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-8\"><span>8<\/span><div>The video in which Native American Oren Lyons talks about this conversation can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MoneyNeverAboutMoney.org\/oren-lyons\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/oren-lyons<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-8\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 8 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-9\"><span>9<\/span><div>See <a href=\"https:\/\/En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Banknote#Early_Chinese_paper_money\">En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Banknote#Early_Chinese_paper_money<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-9\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 9 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-10\"><span>10<\/span><div>Information on the gold standard came from <a href=\"https:\/\/En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gold_standard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">En.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gold_standard<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/Investopedia.com\/ask\/answers\/09\/gold-standard.asp\">Investopedia.com\/ask\/answers\/09\/gold-standard.asp<\/a>, among others. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-10\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 10 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-11\"><span>11<\/span><div>The documentary is called <em>Het laatste uur in de zon (\u2018The Last Hour in the Sun\u2019). <\/em>You can find more about it on the <em>International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam<\/em> website <a href=\"https:\/\/Idfa.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Idfa.nl<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-11\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 11 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-12\"><span>12<\/span><div>People from the ethical <em>Triodos Bank<\/em> asked Angaangaq: \u2018How do you become rich, really?\u2019 The short video with his answer can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/really-rich\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/really-rich<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-12\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 12 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-13\"><span>13<\/span><div>From an article by Pieter Giesen, \u2018Slapend rijker\u2019. <em>De Volkskrant<\/em>, Saturday 19th April 2014. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-13\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 13 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-14\"><span>14<\/span><div>Mirjam de Rijk, \u2018En de winnaar is\u2026 Het zakenleven\u2019. <em>De Groene Amsterdammer<\/em>, 31st January 2018. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-14\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 14 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-15\"><span>15<\/span><div>Trees aren\u2019t the only lungs on our planet. In fact, it\u2019s claimed that most of the atmospheric oxygen comes from oceans. See, for example, <a href=\"https:\/\/Seaspiracy.org\/facts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Seaspiracy.org\/facts<\/a> &amp; <a href=\"https:\/\/Earthsky.org\/earth\/how-much-do-oceans-add-to-worlds-oxygen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Earthsky.org\/earth\/how-much-do-oceans-add-to-worlds-oxygen<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-15\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 15 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-16\"><span>16<\/span><div>Oxfam Briefing Paper, \u2018An Economy for the 99%\u2019, January 2017, <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfam.org\">Oxfam.org<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-16\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 16 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-17\"><span>17<\/span><div>Pieter Giesen, &#8216;Slapend Rijker&#8217;. <em>De Volkskrant<\/em>, Saturday 19th April 2014. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-17\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 17 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-18\"><span>18<\/span><div>See <a href=\"https:\/\/Outerspacetreaty.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Outerspacetreaty.org<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-18\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 18 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-19\"><span>19<\/span><div>From Mark Boyle, &#8216;I live without cash &#8211; and I manage just fine\u2019. <em>The Guardian<\/em>. 28 October 2009, <a href=\"https:\/\/TheGuardian.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TheGuardian.com<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-19\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 19 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-20\"><span>20<\/span><div>I found information on the \u2018Roseto Effect&#8217; in Lissa Rankin\u2019s book <em>Mind over Medicine <\/em>and in \u2018The Roseto Effect, class notes from the University of Illinois\u2019, available via <a href=\"https:\/\/Uic.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Uic.edu<\/a>. A fairly well-known later study on the world\u2019s happiest and healthiest societies can be found in the widely read book <em>Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way<\/em>, written by Dan Buettner. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-20\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 20 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-21\"><span>21<\/span><div>In the book <em>Unconditional Parenting, <\/em>Alfie Kohn poignantly describes the harm we do by (unintentionally) rewarding and punishing our children\u2014and fellow adults. He backs his arguments with numerous studies. More about his book, plus alternatives to punishment and rewards, can be found at <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-21\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 21 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-22\"><span>22<\/span><div>You can watch George\u2019s painfully funny TEDx Talk via <a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\">MiracleProject.e<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/creative-genius\">rth\/creative-genius<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-22\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 22 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-23\"><span>23<\/span><div>You can find more about these tests in the TEDx Talk mentioned in the previous note, plus in the book authored by George Land and Beth Georgeland, <em>Breakpoint and Beyond; Mastering the Future &#8211; Today<\/em>, published by<em> HarperBusiness<\/em> in 1993.\u00a0 <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-23\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 23 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-24\"><span>24<\/span><div>A fun and well-researched resource on what science knows and what the world does is Dan Pink&#8217;s TED talk &#8216;The Puzzle of Motivation&#8217;, which you can watch on <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/intrinsic-drive\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/intrinsic-drive<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-24\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 24 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-25\"><span>25<\/span><div>More of such research is summarised in Alfie Kohn\u2019s book <em>Punished by Rewards<\/em>, which he refers to extensively from his book <em>Unconditional Parenting<\/em>. See <a href=\"https:\/\/MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MiracleProject.earth\/unconditional-parenting<\/a>. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-25\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 25 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><li id=\"footnote-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-26\"><span>26<\/span><div>Author Rutger Bregman interviewed one of the researchers for an article, &#8216;Why poor people do stupid things&#8217;, available on <a href=\"https:\/\/Decorrespondent.nl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Decorrespondent.nl<\/a>. For the full research paper, see Anandi Mani et al, &#8216;Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function&#8217;. <em>Science<\/em>, Vol. 341, 30 Aug 2013, pp. 976-980. <a href=\"#mfn-content-00000000000012ef0000000000000000_23199-26\" class=\"modern-footnotes-scroll-to-footnote\" aria-label=\"Back to reference 26 in text\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/div><\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From the book Money Is Never About Money. This chapter is about the principles on which we have built &#8216;our&#8217; money and the supposedly positive consequences of &#8216;never enough&#8217;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"[]"},"categories":[63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23199","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-money-is-never-about-money"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Money is Never About Money \u00bb Chapter 2. This is Not an Economics Class<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"About the principles we&#039;ve built &#039;our&#039; money on\u2014and about the supposedly positive consequences of &#039;never enough&#039;. \u00bb Read \u00bb Get the book\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/books\/money-is-never-about-money\/chapter-2\/\" \/>\n<link rel=\"next\" href=\"https:\/\/miracleproject.earth\/en\/books\/money-is-never-about-money\/chapter-2\/2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Money is Never About Money \u00bb Chapter 2. 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