sjkted, I honestly do not know the best way to get around the issue of “land ownership” being perceived by the owner(s) as being MINE, from their perspective. No matter how you slice it, referring to land ownership, it is still working with the current paradigm. In other words, it must come from an entirely new point of view, rather than trying to rework the system that already exists. Personally, I think one of the reasons the community I mentioned worked so well and so harmoniously was the fact that no one staying there perceived that they “owned” the land.
I do agree with you sjkted that the impending financial implosion and food crisis will play a very large part in people being put in the position of completely rethinking their current perspective on a lot of things. In my personal opinion, many will have to rethink their entire perspective on reality, our current social structure, and way of life. If, or should I say when, these things happen, people will have no choice but to come together and learn to work out their differences in order to survive.
If everyone freely shared the knowledge they had with everyone willing to learn, a community could be self-sufficient in all the ways you mentioned. If money had no value, then knowledge, physical ability, and time would be seen quite differently than they are now. That is where the true value lies!
You made some really great points regarding trading and bartering. Ammit made some great points also regarding freely giving what was needed. A site pertaining to this that I just recently came across is
http://www.timebanks.org I would love to get your feedback (sjkted and Ammit) on this site and in what ways you think this might be helpful in a community setting.
I love Ammits post! And, yours too Neo! You made some great points and gave several really good examples of how this could work! I especially agree with your statement, “If we are getting out of one [system] then why the hell start another?” The best “system” I have seen so far, is one in which people share freely because it is in their own best interests to do so. The hard part for some people is, like you said Ammit, is forgetting where we are at the moment, and starting anew. You mentioned freely sharing with your neighbors, not expecting anything specific in return. And, that is a perfect example of what I am saying here.
Thank you, sjkted, Neo, and Ammit! I really appreciate your input on this thread. You all have some really great ideas!