LittleSteroid Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 (edited) I've been having this thought for a while now. Any opinions welcomed. I've divided history of the world into five ages. From the earliest times to the present. Each age is defined by different medium of exchange i.e. what we, humans see as the best way of preserving our wealth or investment. 1. Paleolithic (Early Stone Age) - humans live just like minkeys. No medium of exchange. 2. Neolithic (New Stone Age) - agricultural revolution, development of cities and classes. No medium of exchange. Barter transactions. 3. Antiqity till Late Modern History (1900) - from Faraons to Etienne Lenoir. Gold has been seen as an ultimate medium of exchange and the safest way of preserving wealth. Gold standard and "money" have developed (Tally Stick, Banknotes, etc). 4. 1900 - 1945 - we all know, First WW and Second WW, Great Depression and Inflationary spiral in Europe. End of gold standard, fiat currency slowly being accepted by masses. Gold still popular among people but investment in property becomes more common as many started to look for a new ways of preserving their wealth (fiat money). "Property/Land standard" developed??? 5. 1945 - present - from Cold War to Islamic Revolution. Age of consumption in western coutries which leaded to credit crunch and housing crisis. More people deciding to buy gold as confidence in property investment and fiat currency plummet. Property/Land standard in full swing till early 2000s. We could say that gold standard is coming back but...I think different. Age of consumption has left western societies intellectually sterilised and with no national identity or moral values. We are now experiencing rapidly increasing unemplyment, oil peak, religious revolutions and possibly global market collapse. So even if you can buy all the gold in the world, but you can't use it wisely you will soon end up spending it just to survive, buying goods from people smarter than you. I believe this is begining of a new age where proper education will be the key in preserving your future wealth and social status. This is why tuition fees are rocketing. Ruling class is trying to price out others, so they cannot afford good education. By making you stupid they can secure their position as your masters. We are going back to middle ages and the feudal model of society. That's what Big Society is all about in my opinion. Big society full of numpties and small group of educated aristocracy pulling all the strings. So, are we witness of the beginnig of a new standard? "A Knowledge Standard" perhaps? Edited February 20, 2011 by LittleSteroid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishbone Glover Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 So, are we witness of the beginnig of a new standard? "A Knowledge Standard" perhaps? I think you're right about that, but not in the way that you're thinking. I don't believe that we will return to a feudal type of society, that's what some people want, but I believe that the knowledge-spreading potential of the Internet will ensure that doesn't happen. People will wake up to what's going on eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izzy Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 I think you're right about that, but not in the way that you're thinking. I don't believe that we will return to a feudal type of society, that's what some people want, but I believe that the knowledge-spreading potential of the Internet will ensure that doesn't happen. People will wake up to what's going on eventually. I see the UK regressing and becoming more like southern european states. In Greece, for example, feudalism is alive and well. Local mayors and MPs are brokers of public sector jobs and private sector contracts. They buy votes buy promising and, in some cases providing, work. Naturally, they often take back-handers. The elite help MPs get elected and then buy policy in return. Public officials, in turn, demand bribes from the public just to do the jobs they are already paid for. People in the UK have been protected from this but it seems the cracks are starting at the top. The recent scandal of Tories auctioning internships at top City firms and huge bank bail-outs are a sign to the working man that he is now having the piss taken out of him. When pay and conditions at the bottom end get worse, get ready for an increase in corruption amongst the lower ranks and a more dog eat dog existence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wonderpup Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 I agree on the internet point. There is a sort of arms race ongoing at the moment between the interests of current elites and their captive populations- one side controls the gross levers of power like the police, military and economy, while the other side employs the web to circumvent these forces and tries to establish a new order based on popular discontent. What is interesting is how this divide is as much about age as anything else- most of the ruling class are old and have been slow to grasp the implications of their young having access to the internet with it's ability to rapidly transmit ideas on a mass scale. Divide and conquer gets more difficult amongst a population who share what amounts to a sort of 'hive mind' in which new meme's can be introduced and disseminated widely and fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onesmallstep Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 I agree on the internet point. There is a sort of arms race ongoing at the moment between the interests of current elites and their captive populations- one side controls the gross levers of power like the police, military and economy, while the other side employs the web to circumvent these forces and tries to establish a new order based on popular discontent. What is interesting is how this divide is as much about age as anything else- most of the ruling class are old and have been slow to grasp the implications of their young having access to the internet with it's ability to rapidly transmit ideas on a mass scale. Divide and conquer gets more difficult amongst a population who share what amounts to a sort of 'hive mind' in which new meme's can be introduced and disseminated widely and fast. interesting, I wonder how long before they sensor things and is that possible. Of course the main way of controlling the prolls has been slave boxes, but they may have pushed that one too far now. The young cannot afford to become slaves any more. The secondary way of controlling prolls has been to create the aspirational conveyor. Its a sort of carrot and stick approach to make you run harder on the treadmill. The real mega aspirational types are so blind it's unbelievable, they are all very inteligent as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
200p Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 My £2 on it (note inflation, it was 2p); Gold is the constant and currency is the variable. This will not change. If you believe in the world is like the Matrix (from the film, The Matrix), the plug that goes in the back of your head is the only constant, and the world is the variable. The system or the world can evolve over time and you adapt to change, but you are still plugged in whatever "age" it is! There will always be the Lords, and there will always be the peasants. The real miracle of the knowledge age is that the slaves believe they are free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
200p Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 The system or the world can evolve over time and you adapt to change, but you are still plugged in whatever "age" it is! The problem is, and we have seen in it in the middle east of late, when the masses, all start unplugging themselves! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 You missed out my favorite bit. The Mesolithic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleSteroid Posted February 20, 2011 Author Share Posted February 20, 2011 My £2 on it (note inflation, it was 2p); Gold is the constant and currency is the variable. This will not change. If you believe in the world is like the Matrix (from the film, The Matrix), the plug that goes in the back of your head is the only constant, and the world is the variable. The system or the world can evolve over time and you adapt to change, but you are still plugged in whatever "age" it is! There will always be the Lords, and there will always be the peasants. The real miracle of the knowledge age is that the slaves believe they are free. it's not about being free. It's about preserving wealth. In the Knowledge Age it may be best to invest in yourself. I mean, forget saving money so that your kids could buy a house. Save money and use it to educate them. I am 32 years old, have higher education in engineering and working as a one. Yet I still study at Uni. Problem is that Engineering Department is facing cuts as there is little interest among young people to do math, science or mechanics. Art and Media building however is packed with kids. All they want to do is to be TV presenters, painters or f***** dancers. I think as long as the parents can remortgage and pay for their IPone, they don't give a s**** about how to make one. Or perhaps how to build power cells, etc. One day this kids wake up and see how this system f**** their life up. And this is sad, really Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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