Мы строим деревню / we are building ecovillage: экономика

Economy: ours and our settlement

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 10:49

For surplus cash you can buy only surplus things.

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 10:51

But the soul`s needs

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 10:54

you can`t satisfy with money.

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 10:56

H.D. Thoreau

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 13:32

This chapter, perhaps, the most disput and difficult. While I was writing it, me and Natasha have discussed a lot about life economics, because in discussion comes understanding, and before this moment I never explored this subject so thoroughly.

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 13:08

I have to say: not in any way I beckon you to asceticism, homelessness, poverty, begging, rejecting your desires, hunger, refusal from medical assistance. But I`m calling you to healthy simplicity, free travel, intense consumption refusal, conscious poverty, healthy, simple, natural food, barter, gifting, and careful attention to your health instead of blind faith in medical assistance.

WolfgangXIII 25.11.13 в 13:31

"I don`t like the word 'work'. Human beings - the only living creatures who must work. I think it`s the most pointless thing in the world. Other creatures just live in life, but people going mad by their work, thinking what they must do it to stay alive. Bigger the challenge, harder the problem - the better, they think. It`ll be good to throw away such thoughts and live light, convenient life, having much free time. The way of wild animals in tropics, when they seek food at morning and evening, and dozing rest of the day - I think it`s a beautiful life.

WolfgangXIII 26.11.13 в 09:43

For a man such simple life can be possible if he works only to stay. In this life work - not the work, people usually mean by this word. It`s only doing what is need to be done".

WolfgangXIII 27.11.13 в 10:51

M. Fukuoka

WolfgangXIII 27.11.13 в 10:51

"The One Straw Revolution" quote here is not for nothing. It`s one of my favorite places in this book. And now I read and understand, that I live just exactly the author said, working then it`s necessary, without permanent "official" employment.

WolfgangXIII 28.11.13 в 02:47

This morning, while I laying in my bed, I were thinking: How is that possible? Why work causes so many questions and bothers people a lot. Why many of them ready to spend most part of their life doing things they don`t really like?

WolfgangXIII 28.11.13 в 19:08

If don`t go into details, then the major reason which cause them to work permanently - they must pay regular fees, and commonly this fees didn`t directly linked to their basic needs, just artificially created.

WolfgangXIII 28.11.13 в 19:26

There are two kinds of such regular fees:

WolfgangXIII 02.12.13 в 18:18

1. 'Rent'. It`s hard to say what urban utility bills consists of. They are huge. Some people must give away most part of their earnings for 'just live', having only minimum heat, water and electricity. And if it`s rented apartment then the prices rise up to the space.

WolfgangXIII 02.12.13 в 18:30

In the village, and in our settlement everything is different. Recently I`ve learned that tax on my land for this year totaled in 118 rubles. That`s my rent, I can say. It seems to me quite adequate. Water I bring in buckets, firewood cut at forest (or buy it), stove gives me heat and warm water, I have my own electricity... In that way, our fee for utilities is almost equal to zero.

WolfgangXIII 02.12.13 в 18:49

I have never got my own habitation: firstly I lived with parents, then in dormitory, then with fiends. During my life I have got some attempts to hire a room or a flat, but I was tired of it fast, because every month I had to look for money to give up it practically for nothing. Thus I have not got a habit to spend money for the habitation. I concider it to be very strange to pay somebody because you simply live. I will better gradually built my own simple habitation.

Yanne 15.03.14 в 03:57

2. Credits. I like an old joke about debts, that you borrow somebody else's money for a certain time but repay your own money for good. People buy something unnecessary and expensive (although while buying they think it is very “necessary” and “cheap”), and then they are obliged to work more and worry how they will pay this debt back. One of my friend worked in the big company and had to motivate the staff to work. He developed methods of every sort and kind for the encouragement and punishment, in order the stuff to do what they must do. One of the methods of holding the person in work position was that he boosted and encouraged all kinds o f credits. If the person takes the mortgage for 30 years he becomes very stable employee. He doesn’t what any changes. He values his work place and salary.

Yanne 15.03.14 в 04:22

Bank workers are very kind and when they offer some no-interest loan, but they behave themselves in a different manner when you detain your regular payment. I have got credit experience twice in my life. I don`t want to do it again.

Yanne 15.03.14 в 04:42

My American friend Rick said once: “In America if you already are 18 years old but you still have not got a credit history you are suspect”. He told that all his family is “normal” and only he in principle doesn’t take on a loan. He has not got a car of a flat but he doesn’t worry at the end of the month that he heeds to pay something. He travels freely, enjoys his life where he wants. I understand him very well.

Yanne 15.03.14 в 05:00

Well, enough talk, the idea is clear, I think.

Yanne 15.03.14 в 04:24

As soon as all necessary payments are disappeared (which on top of that give us nothing special in return), the financial question anxiety about the next day also decreases. And working for getting money becomes only by perforce. If you need to buy something you will go for a work, exchange one of your skills for money. If you want to travel you work again sometime, collect some money. Each according to his needs, as it is said. I write here the word “money”, although it`d better suit another one - “resources”. After all we need money to exchange them for some goods. Often these goods could be got straightly. For example now I sometimes act as a country doctor. Without doubts I don`t get any money for the old women consultation. But instead of it we get some potatoes and unions.

Yanne 20.03.14 в 05:07

The food theme is very simple. We live in the world where to die from hunger is very difficult (of course if we are not citizens of some super-poor desert African country after the war). Practically every person can earn for the simple nourishment. Potatoes, carrots, unions, macaronis are quite cheap. We always are able to provide ourselves with base, no matter which income we have. If you want something unusual you’ll just require doing more work.

Yanne 20.03.14 в 05:19

It will be good if you understand that wholesome products are always the cheapest. And don`t forget about seasonality. Every type of food has its own time. People always lived like that. Nobody ate fresh cucumbers in December. It is time for pickled ones. (I think I have already three times written about it in this book).

Yanne 20.03.14 в 05:23

But there you should remember that this book is more devoted to the rural life, than to the urban one, and in the rural area you can get products even much simpler than in the city.

Yanne 20.03.14 в 05:26

The clothes as well as the food should be simple too. It is done, first of all to protect a human from environment factors. There are no other functions. For example, I just can’t understand what for people kill 200 little animals to make one uncomfortable and expensive fur-coat, which will become old-fashioned already in next year? The clothes should be serviceable and fulfil their major function.

Yanne 20.03.14 в 06:32

So, I had already written that in general my “work” are: teaching, medical consultation and selling of my own books. For example this one. I do it by perforce and don’t depend on somebody. But what I tell here is only about our personal finances, about our choice.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 06:02

Now I will try to explain our common village economic system, which has been developing for two years of our lands settling.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 06:13

First of all we gathered the money for the land purchase. On the first stage we required about two million of rubles. On the meeting of first settlements we decided to make an entrance fee in an amount of 150 thousand rubles, which became something like club membership fee. Later it was renamed to the “infrastructure fund”. The first participants determined their position, first money were collected and from that all started. We moved to Altai for the legal paperwork. At first that “infrastructure” money was our single common money.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 06:35

After the purchasing of land, our first team went to the territory of our prospective village and work began: laying out of gardens, first building sites, creation of our public infrastructure. In the village council we came to the decision that while we had no money except “infrastructure” fund, mentioned above, we would feed in the common kitchen, using those resources.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 07:05

Now this fund is spent only for the village development: for common buildings, big purchases, legal paperworks, road reparation, connection maintenance and so on.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 07:09

In the second season appeared the need to make a distinction among financial inflow and we created two more funds: “food” and “domestic” ones.

Yanne 23.03.14 в 07:12

The “food” fund began to support the common kitchen where we eat all together. Everybody makes deposits: 50 rubles per day for settlers and 100 rubles per day for guests. If the family of settlers doesn’t have any income in a city it has a right to feed on in the common kitchen free of charge.

Yanne 25.03.14 в 12:16

“One more purse is the “domestic” one or the “fund of recurrent expenses”. It is spend for various instruments, fuel, wash-basins, banya soap, so in general for some trifles. This fund is filled up with the dues of all settlers, 300 rubles from the family per month.

Yanne 25.03.14 в 12:24

In the settlement we also have some kind of magic box “for the development of the settlement”, and everybody who wishes can put there their donation. This money is used in any of the funds when required.

Yanne 25.03.14 в 12:29

Thus we have one big fund which is spent very attentively for the various important deals and two smaller funds which support simpler requirements.

Yanne 25.03.14 в 12:38

Besides the sources mentioned above, sometimes the funds are filled up due to some arrangements organized in the settlement. They are some seminars or festivals. Sometimes we sell the hay from our land, and it also gives us some income.

Yanne 25.03.14 в 12:41

Well, I think that's all about economics

JCDharma 30.11.13 в 14:56