How best to achieve economic reform in Canada

Ok, good to hear that, you’ve definitely got the right attitude.

Not sure what you mean by my group, I am only one of ten admins on the discussion page, and I didn't create it, it's not mine. You joined that page hopefully to learn and share about economics and monetary reform, there is no obligation of quid pro quo for me to join a page of yours. And you posted a link to a blog I guess? That you would like me to comment on? I'm not opposed to that for any reason other than I'm spread thin enough as it is with the various debates and sharing of info on facebook, as well as the many volunteer and activist groups I'm a part of in real life. I am on the executive of COMER for one, and on top of all my activities, but if you want to spice things up in a way people will not believe, my real name is actually Adam Smith. I've also written a few research papers if you're interested, I can post links to pdfs.

The system, at least in Canada, is not broken, it's just been co-opted by corporate psychopaths. Everything wrong about Canada currently is reversible, the mechanisms exist within the system to fix all that, we just need to right people in charge. Do you know any of the history of Canada in the post-war period? From the end of WWII until the early 70s? Canada was a bastion of progressiveness and equality, we were using the BoC to full potential, building all kinds of public works, employment was high, income equality was never higher (the highest marginal tax rate was 90%), and we were in our golden years. The only thing that has changed since then is the motives and actions of the people in charge. While our electoral system is not the most democratic, it does allow for a majority government to pretty much do as it pleases. Which means if people ever woke up and voted in a majority government who actually wanted to do things in the public interest, it could all happen. But PEOPLE are the problem, they have been conditioned by the psychopaths in charge to be selfish, ignorant, apathetic, complacent, and disengaged. And that’s exactly how the powers that be want them to be able to control us.

There are people so ignorant and selfish all they care about is consumption, buying the newest gadgets as soon as they come out, obsessed with obtaining material status symbols, looking down on those who don’t have them, and completely uninterested in anything political. Then there are people who are more aware, refuse to be fooled by advertising and reject materialism, and want to live a sustainable lifestyle. But they are so turned off by the evils of politics they are apathetic and disengaged, and ignore it and do not participate in politics, some even thinking not voting is some form of rebellion. That by voting they are somehow supporting a system they disagree with, instead of realizing they would be helping shape that system. And they don’t realize how many people are just like them, and if only they all got interested and started getting political they could make a difference. But instead they turn a blind eye and live sustainably but selfishly. And that’s EXACTLY what the powers that be want them to do, they want them not to vote, not to organize, not to try to influence parties. They want to atomize us, turn us into selfish individualistic consumers, instead of grouping together and realizing our common interests.

Ever heard of Edward Bernays? There are some good docs on him, look him up, he’s the father of modern marketing and appealing to people’s emotions to sell them things and control them. Politicians have taken his kind of messaging and use it to rile up voters and appeal to their selfish side and divide them. It was the evolution of Bernays’ ideas that led to such a focus on everyone being special, being unique and individual, and equating that with freedom. It’s all divide and conquer, to ensure we don’t see ourselves collectively and don’t make political choices in the best interests of the group, but rather in our own best interests. It is the psychopaths in charge that have made everything seem like a competition, every man for himself, and appeal only to our selfish side. They push the erroneous capitalist notion that if everyone in the economy acts selfishly, everyone benefits. It’s just not true, especially when some economic actors have vastly more power and influence than others.

As for money, you may have got the wrong impression from some of my comments? I am all in favour of the government creating money out of thin air for the needs of the public, I just know enough about the banking system to know the difficulties of how to do that. And Alberta actually has a great system, the ATB, which is the kind of thing more provinces should have:

www.atb.com/about/Pages/our-history.aspx

You should also know, we don’t actually pay compound interest on our debt. Our debt is primarily in the form of government bonds and t-bills, they pay out a set payment that does not accrue compound interest. However, as interest rates go up, new bond issues will require a higher interest rate, and so will pay out more. But interest rates being as low as they are, it’s relatively cheap to borrow selling bonds, currently a bit less than 2% for the feds.

I don’t think you have a narrow worldview because you’re narrow-minded or closed off, I think you’re just not fully informed about the vastness and complexity of the system you want so badly to reform, your knowledge is limited at the moment. But from the look of you on your profile, you’re light years ahead of where I was at your age (I turn 40 this year). It took me many years of observing, reading, and study to get to where I am, and I’m still only scratching the surface. I too want truth and equality, so clearly we are allies in that quest. But you must not give up on the system just yet, that is the selfish route they want you to take. They want you to disengage, move by yourself into some remote plot of land and not try to reform things for the greater good. They don’t want you to protest in large cities, or start a political party, or educate your friends and family, or run for office. This is not to say you can’t still aim for a self-sustaining green existence somewhere remote, but let that be your Plan B. Because if you do make that life for yourself, it won’t mean much if the rest of the billions on this planet destroy it for everyone. Turning your back on the system is the selfish route, it’s the easy way out. And BELIEVE ME I think about doing the same every day of my life. Ever seen the movie “Into the Wild”? Every time I want to throttle society and say fuck the system I tell my wife or friends I’m having an into-the-wild kinda day. But that would be letting them win, that would be retreating in defeat and admitting the system broke me and won.

Don’t give the psychopaths in charge what they want, don’t let them turn you off the system and abandon society, even if you think you can start a new one. Because we are outnumbered, there’s only so long we can turn our backs on the system before it pulls us back into the fold. It’s a monstrous beast, and we can either be eaten by it, or find a way to take the reins. The system cannot be stopped, it can only be directed, and we need people like you to stay engaged, stay involved, and help to evolve it into something better. Start getting political, write to your politicians at all levels (federal, provincial, municipal), meet with them if you can, ask questions. You’d be surprised how open they can sometimes be, and what you can learn. Try to understand the system inside and out, find the cracks, figure out how it can be used for good instead of greed. It is possible in Canada, were it not I would have left years ago. But I have hope because I understand the system and our history intimately. I know what’s possible because I know what has happened in the past. And it can happen again, but it takes the next generation to start paying attention and demanding change. And if their demands are not met, they need to start trying to take it for themselves by directly challenging the status quo.

I didn’t intend to go on so long, but there was so much to say, so much I wish I could wake you up to and jam into your head. Don’t lose hope, your blog is a great start, keep that up and try to find more allies and ORGANIZE. That is what they are most afraid of, because our system is free enough that ANYONE can get voted in as long as voters support them.

I hope this has been an eye opener, I hope you continue and keep your interest up.

Cheers,

Adam