matslats.net

Humans, their composition, their history, their behaviour seem (to them) the most complex and interesting entities in the universe.
I'd love to explore this complexity with you, but time is short; my species is in the throes of an existential crisis.
You see, the human genotype was shaped by a life which was nasty, brutish, and short. So around 200,000 years since Mitochondrial Eve, our struggle for dominance over one another has spread to every green corner of the planet. Natural selection favoured the dominant and politically astute, and now they use all the resources that can be harvested by slaves or by machinery for their comfort and conquest, with no regard for the future. We cooperate very well in small groups, but now our organisations span the globe and most of us are confused about our role and purpose.
We understand our most precious resource is running out, that we have used it so quickly that the chemistry of our atmosphere has become unstable; we know, if we reflect, that our population is about to enter a painful decline. We understand that our behaviour is the cause of this, yet we cannot grasp whole picture adequately; the harvesting and the conquest continue unabated.
In the last hundred years, witnessing explosions in technology, energy harvesting, food production, population, we forget that we are animals designed to live on the African savannah. With our higher mental functions we can understand all aspects of life, but our animal feelings govern us more than any intellectual reasoning. Even in the face of dire peril, human beings almost always value

• the familiar, over the strange
• the tangible, over the abstract
• acceptance by their peers, over speaking the truth
• procreation over the meaningful life
• a dominant leader, over personal moral responsibility

Our rulers face a paralysing dilemma. Even as the organic engines of the planet are poisoned and drained, the resource use is rising. They are faced with the responsibility of reversing population growth. But they must act discreetly, because their hold on power is mainly psychological, and the people would not tolerate a mass cull. Their combination of making war, and bleeding the poor in every way possible is barely slowing population growth.

But now they face two unexpected obstacles. Firstly, the internet has seen a rennaisance of culture and freedom of expression, and has set back their plans to direct the thoughts and attentions of the masses away from the cull. However, the internet can be quickly choked. Of more concern is that one nation, China, with its huge, disciplined population, substantial resource base, and interest free money, unexpected swelled and, with it's new resource-hunger, now threatens the the power base of the rulers. The competition with China is wasting time and resources

Our rulers have started to become worried themselves. Unless they coopt or cripple China before they become serious competitors, there will be chaos. In a desperate attempt to centralise resources and throw China off balance, and hasten their Solution, they have crashed the global economy.

The middle classes also have a plan. They feel that humans can all live together in peaceeverything will be all right if they can make the following sacrifies:

1. Convert to compact fluorescent lightbulbs if you don't mind the colour
2. Build windmills in someone else's back yard
3. Raise money for charity
4. In uncertain times, canny professionals will put a little more aside for retirement

These people hold all the real power, but their education has neutered them. The cult of the individual has rendered them unable to collaborate. Comfortable lives with specialist professions leaves them with no resilience to societal breakdown. Trusting their leaders has withered their ability discern truth and falsehood. Their passions have been directed towards everything but the real causes.

According to the sages of the day, we should 'enjoy life while we can'; indeed this formula seems to work for the rich and myopic alike. But that seems too similar to the philosophy which brought us here. As a human, what can I possibly do to make this situation any less calamitous for what I suspect is the most sublime and the most tragic genotype in the galaxy?

Humanity needs your help to get through this. Without the leadership we are used to, the energy descent and climate change will be periods of even greater suffering through conflict, poverty, hunger, disease, displacement, with an unplannable outcome. The people who foresee this and circumstances and narratives like it, are already building resilient pockets to shield them from momentous events in wider society. To preserve the best parts of civilisation we shall need to connect these pockets. There are roles for everyone to play. What will you do?

I am making complementary currency software, mostly in support of Community Forge. Local money systems can help human societies define their own values and forge their own destinies. Some argue that they should only be used as a transitional measure to a non-money economy; but they do have the following proven effects:

• promoting social justice, instead of putting people into debt
• encouraging sourcing local produce, and more healthy buying habits
• reducing the levy we pay to distant rulers
• changing the way we value our time and other resources

Checkout the Cc software blog.

Google matslats!.