What Is Work?
Jeff & Susan • July 14, 2022
When we think of work, we often think of the hours we spend from 9am to 5pm at the office (or, if you’re like many people after the pandemic, at home in front of a computer). But is that really the only “work” that we do? What about the hours we spend taking care of our kids, volunteering, and more? Work shouldn’t be solely defined as what you do to earn money. It can come in many different forms.
The Ghost Economy
We often think that our economy relies solely on what people do to earn money. And while it does rely heavily on the 9 to 5 workers, it also relies on a “ghost economy.” This is the work that we do on a daily basis for free. This could include volunteerism, housework, daycare, home schooling, errands, and more. No one pays us to clean the kitchen or pick our kids up from school, yet these are all tasks that we need to do and take time out of our day.
The Toll the Ghost Economy Takes on Us
In many cases, the work we do for the ghost economy is more stressful and time-consuming than the work we do in the office. Think about how many hours you spend taking care of your kids or cleaning up the house. Now, compare that to the hours you spend at work. Chances are you’re spending more time on these activities than you are on what actually pays your salary.
Now, we all love to take care of our kids or do some volunteer work. Nevertheless, many of these activities add a lot to our plate, both emotionally and financially. Raising kids or doing housework takes a lot of time and money to complete. As such, we not only become stressed over how much we have to do, but also how much money we have to spend.
What We Can Do
The work we do for our family or our home is obviously essential. So, what if we could be rewarded for doing these activities to help lessen the financial burden? A parallel currency such as Energy Currency could help to meet these basic needs. Not only that, but it could help our current economic system become less wasteful, less expensive, and more. Contact Renew the Earth today to learn more about our Energy Currency system.
Mexico, 5/5/25.
“It is soulless, exploitive, inequitable, unstable and destructive, yet also all- conquering and overwhelming.” Capitalism and its Critics: A History from the Industrial Revolution to AI By John Cassidy This is one of the best descriptions of Capitalism I have read recently. The only thing it leaves out is that Capitalism regularly destroys itself and has to be rescued with huge infusions of human labor (money). But Capitalism is so appealing to humans that it is allowed to continually transform and conform to new demands and circumstances, even though it is inherently unstable and destructive. Like the charming self destructive uncle who is so entertaining with his stories and wild money making schemes, no one wants him to stop. It is so much fun! For a few people. And all it takes is a few people to keep Capitalism going, approximately ten percent of the World population, the richest ten percent. That Capitalism has lasted and spread is testimony to its ability to keep adapting and improving on its main strengths: soullessness and exploitation. As a species we have become, over approximately 500 years, completely adapted to Capitalism. No matter what it distorts, destroys or lays waste to, it has captured our imaginations like a religion. We won't be saying goodbye to it anytime soon. But there is an antidote. We can make up for some of its most destructive symptoms with a Parallel Currency that is used only for basic human needs, food, shelter, education and healthcare, Worldwide. Some countries are already trying to do this with their tax structures and laws but a Parallel Currency would do this without taxation or inflation. It is a separate currency that can only be used to provide basic needs and is destroyed when it reaches a bank; it will not create inflation. It also will not inhibit the positive capabilities of existing currencies. They will continue to function as they usually do. The Parallel Currency is a closed loop created for the dignified survival of humanity. Freedom of speech, freedom of religion are not enough. A government by the people and for the people must also guarantee freedom from starvation, ignorance and curable illness, all things as a human species, over thousands of years, we have developed remedies.
Columbia, Cartegena, Columbia 4/21/25
“The path of least resistance.” (The path of the most loot.) Bonarais 4/13/25 “Island of the giants,” was the name the Spanish gave to Bonarais in the 1400’s because the native people were so tall. The prehistoric people of southwest Florida, the Calusas, were exceptionally tall also. Maybe the earliest sailing explorers? We are watching as they are unloading a container ship on the finger dock near where we are tied on. Four people halt its sway as it dangles from a crane and approaches the ground. A flatbed truck is already there, the container is placed and driven away. Repeat, repeat, again, again. An island has to import most of its needs. Bonarais is like a village of beautiful doll houses. The Dutch who were historically of colonial dominance, after they drove the Spanish out, and still maintain significant influence, designed the buildings with color and form that reminds them of their homeland. Pastel orange, yellow, and turquoise structures with contrasting gingerbread eves, cafe's where locals sit outside with coffee and converse in Dutch. The children eat ice cream. Very civilized, unhurried, no garbage.
The question is not, “ How do you pay for it?” The question is, “ What do you want to pay for?” We finally boarded the ship in Barbados 4/7/25.
Explore women’s impact on the economy and the concept of a parallel currency. Learn how these ideas shape sustainability and equitable financial systems.
The purpose of government is not to make profit, it is to protect and defend its citizens. Government is not a platform from which a business deal is made. It is carefully structured to sleuth out the most important needs of all its citizens and provide for them. When it operates as it is built to do, its citizens are generally content. When it is gamed, in bad faith, for personal power and wealth, things fall apart and the government and its citizens have to move to defend themselves. The necessity to do this should never have evolved. But a well functioning government depends on people working in good faith, who are honorable, who seek truth and have guiding morals. As we know, sometimes people get into positions of power who don't have these qualities. The unfortunate development of political positions being won by individuals who have the most money to spend has placed a significant number of people in Congress and some Presidents in the White House who have no moral compass. We see the influence of unimaginable amounts of money on campaigns. Made worse when corporations were found to be citizens. Let's dive down the rabbit hole of history. In 2010, when Obama was president, the Supreme Court found in the case called Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that corporations have 1st amendment rights to free speech and political spending. They named this “ corporate personhood” which holds that corporations are associations of people and have certain constitutional rights. This allows, among many other things, corporations to make independent political expenditures and allows corporations to spend unlimited funds on elections. Also, a corporation is allowed to exist in perpetuity. Even Voldemort would have envied this! So, here we are. Both Democratic and Republican administrations have pushed more and more power and wealth into the hands of the few and in turn the recipients of this largesse have shown their gratitude by paying into more and more autocratic governments that will continue to protect their economic and business advantages. This is not hard to see. It is very hard to live through. And even harder to reverse. But this has been done before and can be done again. Good government is not a given. It has to be watched carefully (thank goodness for bureaucrats). But everyone needs to play a part and feel they can be effective. At Renew the Earth, renew the-earth.org, we have been developing over the past 20 years a concept that allows choice within our World Economic System. We call it a Parallel Currency. This separate currency can only be used to provide basic human needs, food, shelter, education and health care. It cannot be invested or hoarded and will not cause inflation because it is destroyed when it reaches a bank. Susan Caumont, President, Renew the Earth
David Brooks made this statement in reference to recent events that may threaten the existence of our democracy. Is this where our country is going? Or are we going to stand up for our “inalienable rights”, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness? “To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men.” Governments guided by laws and run by Bureaucracies. When we look at our “inalienable rights” one at a time, we understand the profound intention of our Constitution. Life. All people are created equal and have the inalienable right to life. To have life, each person has to have the elements that sustain life; food, shelter, education and health care. Liberty. Freedom of movement. “Free from oppressive restrictions imposed by any authority on one's way of life, behavior or political view.” Pursuit of Happiness. Not just to try to be happy, but a guarantee of happiness. This is an “inalienable right” not just a quest or pass time. We negotiate the inevitable disappointments and tragedies of living but also experience the joys that keep us alive. And the resulting happiness, in its fullest reveal, is a good life. This good life also depends not just on the happiness of one person, but all citizens, including immigrants and refugees. We suffer and rejoice together. Government must ultimately guarantee basic needs to all citizens; food, shelter, education and healthcare. Most World Constitutions include these guarantees, but cannot afford them. There is a way to pay for all human basic needs without creating inflation and debt using a Worldwide Parallel Currency dedicated only to the basic human needs. You may ask, “How do we provide basic human needs to 8 billion people Worldwide?” “Is it possible?” If a majority of people agree that this is something that needs to happen in order to preserve our survival on Earth, it can be done. We already have invented all the tools necessary. We need more than a patchwork of aid that can be interrupted by a statement from the president. We must build a permanent infrastructure that conveys efficiently and consistently the human right to live in the form of basic food and shelter, education and healthcare. Efficient systems that get needs where they have to go can be designed by already existing computer intelligence. How much, where it needs to go, what kind of transportation is available, how long it will take per shipment, all these things are calculable and apply to food and medicine and building materials. Education needs shelter, and schools will be built where they are needed. We can do these things on a “small scale”. We know how to do it. We do this in our Military. Now, we must think Worldwide and ramp it up. This is where AI can become a hero! Ultimately, we do live in a “Small World”. As Bucky Fuller once put it, we are living together on “Spaceship Earth.” We glide through the dark in the company of stars, our orbit warmed by the sun and encouraging life. We are connected by visible and invisible strands, tracks and roads. A thread is plucked somewhere and reverberates Worldwide. Our fates depend on each other.