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We have answers for create employment.

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 00:06:48 GMT

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Every day things are getting worse on our world.

There are now 8.1 million people unemployed in the USA – and that’s the (UN)official figure because the real figure is probably way more than the official one!

Each day more and more people, all over the globe are tossed out of work – left with mounting bills and no way to pay them.

Prior to this we were told that materialism was the way. “Keep up with the Joneses” they said – and we all thought “Hey what a good idea”. But appearances could be faked. We didn’t really own all those fancy cars and large houses with the all the things which went in them. We were too busy ‘accumulating’ to realize that we were really getting into massive debt.

Now the rug has been pulled from under our materialistic world and billions of people are struggling to survive.

The whole system was based on greed – and a premise that money ruled and nothing else mattered.

Now we find ourselves in dire straits.

Now we must either sink or swim.

To find answers we are going to have to stop going it alone. We are going to have to look at nature.

Ants know when rain is coming and in order to prepare, the whole colony gets out of the nest and finds food. They all work together for the good of the community – and don’t have any of this “what’s in it for me?” mentality.

If we humans want to survive, we’re going to have to copy those ants.

We need two things – and we need them now.

We need to put our heads together to find innovative new ideas.
We need to work together to put these ideas into practice.

The Founders of AlterQuest knew this time was coming and we are ready to form a Global AlterQuest Network, where individuals from all parts of the world can unify and exchange ideas and concepts which will work to make life better.

See: www.alterquest.org for more details.

We cannot solve this problem on our own.

We must get everyone who is affected, to join us in creating a new type of sustainable world!

Practical solutions for a new community economy!

Fri, 06 Feb 2009 00:23:38 GMT

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I am a futurist and my husband is a retired economist. Together we predicted this economic downturn about 8 years before it happened and we tried to warn as many people as possible because we knew it would be 'the big one.'

We also know that this problem will not be solved by throwing money at the corporate sector or at individuals and families. This strategy will not work! It would only be a stopgap measure.

Up till now we have relied on our politicians and world corporate 'leaders' to get us out of this mess - but these guys have no real solutions.

The answer is going to be to solve the issues from the grassroots up.

Individuals, families and entire communities are going to have to come together to find practical, workable answers which are fair and just for all - and not just a select few.

With our research, here at AlterQuest (the alternative quest for answers) we didn't just predict the problems but we began to search for ways to circumnavigate it. We now have a database of workable ideas which are used by people all over the planet.

We have the blueprint for a new civilization.

Every day we now hear of more and more people who have been made redundant.

Our son, who was working as a draftsman for a housing company was laid off two weeks ago.

Our neighbor, who had worked for the national airline for many years was let go after the Xmas rush.

How are all these people going to get jobs again?

The old world economy, around which we humans based our civilization, is crumbling and no amount of patchwork will save it.

We only have two choices at this time:

Stay as we are and hope that someone, somewhere will have answers which will make everything ok again (or)
Start creating a new system which works parallel to the old one – a system which will be able to sustain all of us and which will be fair and just and will work long into the 21^st century.

So, how can we find a system which will help us get through these tough economic times?

There are many ways and I will list a few here.

Start a local monetary system which will provide an income and create jobs in your community. See: www.ithacahours.com for one system.
Start a barter system – so you can trade your knowledge or expertise for someone else’s skills e.g. if you are a cook, you can make bread or cookies and you can barter some of these for a haircut. The hairdresser cuts your hair and you pay her in food.
You start a LETS system – where each barter transaction is given a LETS amount and you get LETS credit for each thing you do e.g. if you give a massage or a haircut (provided you are skilled in these things) you gain LETS credit which you can then use to ‘buy’ vegetables from someone who has grown some or you might use your credits to buy some accounting from the accountant. This scheme is working well in many regions.
Make a local bank – one which will lend to small businesses without charging them high interest and lots of fees. That way, businesses in your locality can open up and jobs can be created.

The point is to make a monetary and economic system which is outside the old system.

The old system is taking money away from people and in it, people with skills are being left with no way to use them.

A new system must give people due pay for their skills and it must promote a well balanced community which has jobs for all and a monetary system which sustains all.

The same principle applies for healthcare, education, housing and all the necessities of life.

The three important principles are:

Evaluate the problems you are facing in these areas and
Find workable solutions which are outside the old way of thinking - then..
Put the ideas and methods into action.

How simple is that?

The answers are right there, if we just look for them.

If we make a more spiritual community and a more unified civilization we will move forward into the 21^st century with confidence – knowing that for the first time in the history of mankind, we are making positive progress!

We are about to revamp our website but you are welcome to visit the old one and see some of the concepts we are teaching people.

Visit: www.alterquest.org

Friday, January 30, 2009

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 20:42:27 GMT

Well, it’s official. The recession hit our home when our younger son was made redundant last week. Although he knew it was a possibility and although he has parents who, as intuitive futurists and with George being a retired economist, predicted this economic disaster years before it happened, it was still a shock.
We are suggesting that our kids try everything to get their careers back on track.
Further education may be an option – but there is then the uncertainty about whether they will be able to find employment when they finish.
They can also continue to apply for any positions which are advertised and they can cold call companies (although we’ve heard that businesses are getting tired of being contacted by people needing work.)

The other option is to multi-task and try a variety of things. They could keep applying for jobs, they can keep cold calling, they can learn new skills, they could start their own small business or try to make an online business.
It’s not enough to go through university or college any more. Sure, this shows that you have brains and intelligence and are hard working but when you come out of university with the degree, companies are still going to ask “Have you had experience?”

Every day now we are hearing about more and more people who are losing their jobs. How are so many families going to survive?

The answer lies in creating a new system – a system which runs outside the current, failing civilization.
The answer lies in gathering people together so that we unite and come up with new ideas which will work to give us a better standard of living than we have in this old system of society.

If any of us want to survive we are going to have to shape our society and our world, to make it the way it needs to be, to sustain all humanity.

We are going to have to make a new economic system.
We are going to have to create small businesses and local economies.
We are going to have to produce our necessities locally and not import them from China and other countries - because if China goes under, we will have put our 'eggs in one basket' and that basket has broken!

We will have to create new infrastructure and in doing so, create more employment.
We must have our own food supply, our own water and energy supplies, our own banking and currency system and provide our own clothing, ecologically friendly transport, housing and more...

We CAN do this.
All we need is the blueprint.

AlterQuest has those answers!

Our book "AlterQuest, Shape the Future" has the whole blueprint for a new society which, at a small cost of $30.00, could save you, your family and your community from complete devastation, while empowering everyone to find solutions which really work!

Want to know more?

Visit our website: www.alterquest.org
Or contact us on: globalanswers@alterquest.org

What sort of world do we want?

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:21:16 GMT

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What sort of world do we want to live in? Do we want to have peace, tranquility, to live in harmony with nature and with our fellow man …or are we willing to settle for what we have right now?

If we settle we accept that greed, hatred, deceit, crime, pollution, conflict and war are OK and we will just put up with these.

We will then allow ourselves to live in poverty and fear because we feel trapped and helpless.

We will allow our leaders and the corporate bosses to sack us or give us low paying casual jobs - even though we have to have money to survive.

We will put up with an economic recession which was not made by us.

We will continue to cut law enforcement, schooling and healthcare and will be dictated to about what we eat, drink and wear – because some large multinational corporation holds all the strings…. OR….

We can say “enough is enough. We’re not going to take this any more. We are human beings trying to live on this planet and the system we are forced to use is not benefitting us one little bit! We will not put up with this any more.

We don’t want to live in poverty.

We don’t want to live in fear.

We need the necessities of life and we deserve to be treated with dignity and care.

We are citizens of the planet Earth and if the old way is wrong then it’s time we all stood up and created a new way of living.”

It’s now the 21^st century and we can no longer put up with the old ways. These outdated systems caused great hardship for many and in a 21^st century world all people should have the right to progress and live in a world which is good for all humanity – and not just for a select few!

So, how can we move forward?

Positive People Power is the answer!

Men, women and children, in every locality, must come together to make new rules and create a new society – one which is fair and just for all and one which gives us the opportunity to live in peace and harmony, with job creation, free healthcare and education and one based on spiritual values.

It’s time to make positive change.

It’s time that every person had a say in shaping our present and our future.

If we leave everything as it is, we will be like nomads wandering aimlessly in the desert, never knowing our final destination but…

If we stop and re-group and make a plan and map out our journey, ultimately we will get to where we all want to be.

Please visit www.alterquest.org and be part of that journey!

There are ways to survive the economy

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:49:32 GMT

While the world is struggling to find answers for the current economic crisis we, the citizens of this planet are left direction-less.

It seems that, despite the talk and the bailout strategies, we are no further forward.

Could it be that it’s time to re-evaluate the system we have been using for life?

Here at AlterQuest we predicted this time of economic downturn. We knew it was inevitable and we knew that the governments of the world would not have any long-term, sustainable answers.This is because our governments have continued to use the same, flawed system for centuries now. It didn’t work from the beginning and yet they refuse to find a new way.

If you ask the US politicians they are either for a bailout or against it, for the US auto makers. Hey guys, wait a moment, these auto heads made this mess. They refused to stop making the gas guzzlers. They sided with the oil cartels and made vehicles which predominantly used oil as fuel. When they could have made hybrids, they refused - and now they want to be bailed out?
Even if they get their wish, that won’t stop speculators from buying and selling auto shares like confetti. These speculators don’t care whose shares they buy - as long as the shares make a profit and then they can ditch them.
So, while there are still speculators who can make or break a company without a second thought, why should we prop up these companies?
Now, if a shareholder is a worker in the company and has a vested interest in making the company progress and flourish then they deserve shares.
These grassroots workers CARE about the company they would have shares in. That is real investment!

So, stop speculation.
If a person buys shares in a company they should have to keep them for a year or two and not be allowed to ditch the shares on a whim - or merely to make a quick profit. Each share has a value far beyond its monetary one.
Each share is an investment in a company which makes products you believe in and its an investment in that company’s workforce.

So, apart from giving shares only to those who will respect their value, what else can we do?

Our economy is in dire straits and this is due to a lack of money. Well, to be precise, there is still the same amount of money on the planet it’s just that the majority of people aren’t getting access to it. A few greedy people are hogging it all.

The answer may be to print as much money as we need, just to solve the problems. We could print money to make hospitals, schools, businesses, food production, clothing etc. This would create jobs.
For too long we outsourced jobs to other countries and we stopped producing our own necessities. This was crazy! and we’re about to reap what we have sown.

The problem is… it wasn’t the average person who made these crazy decisions and yet we’re the ones who are being punished the most.
That said, it may also be necessary to by pass the old, warped financial system and create a whole new one.

You think this isn’t possible?
It is ABSOLUTELY possible! In fact, communities all over the world are already doing this - and guess what? They are THRIVING!
Imagine that!
They are creating jobs.
They are making a good standard of living for their citizens.

So, if you think this is a plan, let me tell you that if more of us think outside the box we will all be better off.

AlterQuest is about new ideas and new, 21st century thinking.
Buy our book and you’ll find the whole blueprint.
Visit www.alterquest.org and learn more.

Can new governments bring in positive change?

Sun, 09 Nov 2008 00:31:34 GMT

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This week was very exciting.

For a start a new President was elected in the USA and billions of citizens all over the planet are hoping he has some ideas.

There was also an election in New Zealand but the people there voted in a conservative, right wing government so it remains to be seen whether this will be a good or bad thing for the citizens of that nation.

In the meantime, life goes on for the other six and a half billion people who live on the Earth. We continue to struggle on a daily basis, to make some sense out of the system we are forced to live under.

Millions of people are still being laid off from their work. Millions more are under-employed or have to take on two or three jobs just to try and make ends meet. In the meantime the price of everything continues to go up and we find ourselves in an untenable situation.

So, what can we do?

Should we just continue to play ‘catch up’ and acknowledge that under the present system we are all disadvantaged? Or should we endeavor to create a new civilization – one which is fair and just for all mankind.

Whether we stay as we are – and accept our fate or we change to become a progressive society on a progressive world, is entirely up to us.

All you need is a blueprint – and AlterQuest has it!

It’s simple and it’s achievable.

It just involves people being proactive instead of reactive.

In other words:

If you know your company is laying off staff, start looking for a new job, a new career, or form an AlterQuest Network of local people who want to make (and support) small business in your locality.

If the price of food is getting out of reach, start growing some things yourself. Or start a community garden. Perhaps you can unite with others and buy in bulk from local farmers. You can also make a farmer’s market where the local producers come and sell their produce directly to the community – thus bypassing the hypermarkets and middle men. This benefits both the community and the farmers.

There are many other ways you can circumnavigate the current crisis. All you have to do is think outside the box and join, or form, an AlterQuest Network where others who wish to shape their future are willing to find practical answers for the issues you’re facing.

How to survive the stockmarket crash and economic downturn.

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 06:02:29 GMT

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How to survive the stockmarket crash and economic downturn.

This economic turmoil is something we at AlterQuest have been warning people about for many years now.

It seemed obvious that the financial system we were using as a basis for our civilization was wrong and was totally one sided. A few people got very rich while the rest of us floundered or at best, kept our heads above water.

Now the media is finally telling the truth about this crazy monetary system we’ve been using on this planet - and it’s about time!

The burning question on everyone’s lips is “How are we going to survive?”

Well, as I said, at AlterQuest we have been waiting for this day and we have answers – truly sustainable answers which can help individuals, families and communities to re-create their reality and survive these stressful times.

How can we do this?

We have gathered as many ideas and workable methods as possible from people and communities all over the world. These guys have already put their thoughts into action and are better placed to withstand the buffeting the rest of the world will go through. These communities have found systems which work either in conjunction with the old world system or which run regardless of how much the old world systems collapse.

Do you want to be able to put food on the table?
Do you want to have a job?
Do you want to have medical help if you need it?
Do you want to have money?

All these things… and more… are POSSIBLE.

They will just happen in ways you did not foresee.

AlterQuest has answers.

For US$29.00 you can buy our book which gives you everything you need to start building a community which can withstand the outside influences of the economic recession/depression and the stock market turmoil.

$29.00 is a small price to pay for your very survival!

Visit www.alterquest.org to find out more.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 21:53:03 GMT

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The world seems to be in disarray again.

Oil prices are still high, although they have fallen from their peak.

Russia is menacing Georgia and now making nuclear threats towards Poland.

More people are being made unemployed, although our governments would have us believe that employment levels are steady - but we all know that the figures are botched and if you have even a part time job which doesn’t bring you sufficient income to pay for the basic necessities such as rent and food, you are still considered well employed.

What are we supposed to do?

We, average people who have to live on Planet Earth, are being held to ransom in every way. We know that the governments and (self appointed) leaders of this planet have no answers and yet we don’t know where to turn for solutions.

This week the largest provider of telecommunications in Australia, Telstra, which just happens to need a lot of lines to China, because it is a major Australian sponsor of the Olympic games, supposedly had a communications outage which affected businesses, free call phone numbers, telephone lines and high speed internet. This company makes a large profit and its chairman (imported from the USA) gets thirteen million dollars in wages, yet it is cutting jobs, especially technicians and line maintenance jobs, and it wonders why a major telecommunications meltdown occurs.

Funny enough, there was absolutely NO mention of this problem in the media at all. The hushed the whole thing up - leaving those of us who were affected - and this was a large percentage of people across Australia - thinking it was just our line which was down.

The outage took 5 days to repair. I had no internet for a whole working week - from Monday to Saturday! Today is Sunday and I can finally relate this story.

The reason I’m telling you this story is not because I’m totally frustrated and because I felt completely helpless all week but because I’m tired of having these large corporations rule my life.

They have a say in what we will eat, drink, wear, live in and whether we have communication with each other. In other words, they have WAY too much power!

So, what’s the answer?

Positive People Power!

This is where groups of regular people come together and create their own circumstances…. make their own food supply, take control over their own telecommunications, and generally find new ways to promote well paid jobs which allow people everywhere to have dignity and a way to live without having to scrimp and save on the necessities.

I hope you agree and if you do, log on to www.alterquest.org

and join the network of people who want to use people power in their locality - to make things better for all - and not just a vested few!

"Help! The stock market is crashing."

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:58:23 GMT

“Help! The stock market is crashing”

That’s the catch cry from millions of investors all over the world who are looking in dismay at the situation with Wall Street and the escalating price of oil.

But how did this happen? Why are stocks falling? After all, many companies are making mega bucks, so why is this not helping?

The truth is, the very people who invest on the markets are the ones who are causing it to fail.

Greed was good – or so they said in the 1980s. It didn’t matter how you made it, as long as you earned the money – and lots of it!

Companies, in their lust for even bigger profits, slashed staff numbers by the billions, all over the world – especially in ‘first world’ countries. They realized that a person in a ‘developing country’ could do the same job and would demand much less pay. There was no ethics or morality surrounding the decision – it was purely motivated by greed.

So, the cycle was … company makes profit…company wants more profit… company lays of staff in its founding country… and hires people in a third world nation. The business continues to make even more money by cost cutting and other heartless measures and the bosses get higher and higher salaries for themselves. As long as the profits kept coming, the stock holders were happy.

Then the unimaginable happened!

The people who had been laid off couldn’t find new, well paid employment and they had no money left at the end of the week. With less available funds, these guys just quit spending. They didn’t buy the products from the big greedy corporations because they couldn’t afford to do so.

Oh what a calamity!

Then the stock market got jittery.

What’s that, you say?

The big corporations are not making as much profit this year? How could that be? We better ditch their stock and find another company to invest in – one which is still making mega dollars each year.

Oh no. How could you investors be so fickle?

Why are you deserting us?

What posses you to be so greedy?

Hmm. I wonder where they learned those ideals?

In the meantime, the price of everything we need to survive as human beings on this planet is continuously going up.

The oil companies are making billions of dollars profit and yet the price of oil is still being manipulated so they can make more.

Those who invest in oil drive the price up year after year.

Each summer they say “Goodness, we didn’t expect everyone in the Northern Hemisphere to travel and since there is such a demand for oil at this time, we must profit from this and tell the ‘consumers’ that it’s their fault for wanting so much of this product.

Each winter they say “Goodness, we see that everyone is using more oil for their heating, we must profit from this and put the price up even more.”

So, each year the price of oil goes up further - pushed by unbridled greed.

But wait…. What’s this? The people are fighting back?

What are they doing? They’re making hybrid cars and finding new sources of energy! How dare they do that!

Now, I may have tried to jest about the situation, but the reality is that the very people who speculated on the price of all our human needs are the very ones who have priced themselves (and us) out of the market place.

These big businesses and speculators are kind of terrorists.

Just think about it.

What do terrorists do?

They hold us to ransom and demand a big payout.

They put fear into us and threaten to take away our liberties.

They are bullies.

They are mean.

They make us afraid.

They undermine our ability to live in peace.

So, if these guys are terrorists, can we fight back?

Absolutely!

Now it’s time to arm ourselves – not with weapons but with the power of numbers!

Sheer numbers of people, who say “We won’t take it any more!” CAN change this reality.

Sheer numbers of ordinary folks who have had enough of the greed, of the inequity, or the immorality, of the oppression, can – and MUST – take a stand!

There are over six billion people on this planet and till now we’ve let others have all the power and all the say. We have just been tossed about like small ships on a rough sea.

Well, no more!

Unless – and until – we stand up and say, “We are going to find new, more ethical, caring, responsible ways to live” we will always be downtrodden.

This is the 21^st century, people!

We are educated and smart.

We know there has to be a better way to live and it’s up to us to find it.

If we don’t do this, we will always be beholden to a few greedy people who seize power and make us subservient to their ways.

There has to be a better way.

There IS a better way!

This is ‘The employment loop of madness.’

A. Corporations get rich by giving the majority of us low-paying jobs. We have little money - and what we do have is eroded by ever increasing taxes and higher prices for the necessities. We go into debt just to stay alive.

B. Since we’re poor, we can no longer afford to buy as many of their products, thus corporations make less profit and have to find other ways to cut costs. This means the retrenchment of thousands more regular folks.

C. When we lose our jobs, we may only be able to find lower paying, part time or casual positions. Now we have hardly any money available.

D. Since we have no spare cash, we cease buying. If we don’t spend, the corporations sell less and make less profit. To appease their stockholders they cost cut yet again, put prices up and…. Yes, you guessed it…… They cut even more jobs!

Oh what a vicious cycle.

But you know what?

Karma happens.

When there are so few people left with disposable income, these greedy, self-centred bunch of multi-national corporations and their shareholders find that you cannot continuously ‘bite the hand that feeds you’ because sooner or later you will also be bitten!

Consumer-speak.

There is a new language which has sprung up around the current system of economics and in recent times many new words have become commonplace in our world.

Politicians, corporations and the media use these frequently.

I call this ‘consumer-speak.’ In a moment you’ll see why.

· Consumers = People (Oh how I hate being called a ‘consumer’.) I’m a person with feelings and not just some nameless percentage of your profit margin!

· Downsizing = We lose jobs.

· Restructuring = Big business makes more money. Our needs get lost in the scramble.

· Economic Market = The uneven monetary system on which our world is run.

· The Economy = How well corporations say they’re doing. This has little to do with the standard of living for the rest of us.

· Materialism = Shop till you drop and this will make you happy. (I say “Really?”)

· Voters = Those who must be pacified with temporary bribes – until the political party gets elected or re-elected and goes back to appeasing the lobbyists.

· Economic Reform = Policies to enhance the power of corporations at the expense of everyone else.

· Privatization = Selling off the very things all people need to survive, such as water, power and the right to produce seeds, plants or food crops, so big businesses can own these and have a legal right to increase the price of supply and decrease the efficiency and reliability of the goods or service.

· Supply and Demand = the more demand for a product, the higher the price. The lower the demand, the lower the price.

We should all be saying, “Stop hiding the truth behind words and quit lumping us into categories.”

So, what’s the answer to the falling stock market?

If we regular folks just sit and wait till the whole thing collapses, we will be in a heap of trouble.

Perhaps it’s time to start building a new infrastructure and an alternative economic system – one based around micro-economics and community businesses and a system which encompasses fairness and equality for all men, women and children.

Let’s not wait.

Let’s do it today and then we won’t merely be small ships on a rough sea – instead we will be an armada of ships making for smooth sailing to our peaceful destination.

Karen Fiala N.D. & George W. Fiala B.Com (Economics) are the Founders of AlterQuest – an organization dedicated to gathering people from all over the globe, who want to make positive change for themselves and mankind. The AlterQuest new book “Shape the Future” offers a multitude of new ways to overcome the old ways.

See: www.alterquest.org

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 05:29:58 GMT

What’s affecting your life this week? 14^th January, 2008.

Employment – how you’re being affected and ways to sort out the problem.

Ø Citigroup Inc reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss running into billions of dollars this week and because of this the company is expected to announce thousands of job cuts.

That means, like so many other high flying corporations do, when the going gets tough and the highly paid bosses make a mistake, the workers get canned.

How unfair is that?

In order to save the money and perhaps dig the corporation out of the hole it dug, it will ruin the lives of thousands of loyal employees.

So, where are these people supposed to go once they are laid off?

Who will look after them and give them enough money to live off?

Their outlook is bleak.

Ø Meanwhile in Michigan, the Democrats are bypassing this region in the Primaries. I guess they don’t think it’s worth putting in an appearance.

Michigan has upwards of 8% unemployment, which is the highest in the USA. So the people there might like to know what a Democratic nominee might have in mind to help with the problem. Maybe no politician has solutions for the unemployment issue – especially if they continue to use the old rhetoric and the same tired, out of date system.

There ARE solutions which could enhance the economic system and could promote jobs in any region but this would involve thinking outside the box and using innovative new, 21^st century ways of living – so don’t expect your average political figure to know about these.

So, now you’re asking “Is this really possible?”

Absolutely!

But this involves going outside the old system of, “greed is good” and “what’s good for the corporate world will have to be good enough for the rest of us.”

So, how can we overcome the lack of jobs?

The answer relies on forming a community-friendly local economy which provides good quality jobs where the employees are well paid and happy.

"Globalisation (APEC) is not about trade. It is about power and control. It is about the reshaping of the world into one without borders ruled by a dictatorship of the world’s most powerful central banks, commercial banks and multinational companies. It is an attempt to undo a century of social progress and to alter the distribution of income from inequitable to inhuman." Paul Hellyer, former Canadian Deputy Prime Minister

Solution 1: Make local money.

In Ithaca, New York, over 1,000 participants started to take control of their local economy by running a system which allowed many people to work as part of a community again. They printed their own money called Ithaca HOURS and all the locals were able to trade in these. The HOUR is the equivalent to Ithaca’s $10.00 note because this equated to working for $10.00 per hour. Notes are issued in five denominations (2hr, 1hr, ½ hr, ¼ hr, 1/8 hr) and can be used to buy many goods and services. This system goes further than LETS because it can be used to part-pay mortgages and rents in a participating credit union and can be used to get medical treatment at some healthcare facilities.

The HOURS system works for everyone. The Ithaca organic farmers are held in high esteem and get paid very well for producing the localities’ fresh, healthy food. The community realized that having local agriculture plays a really important part in their well-being.

The Ithaca system is working extremely well. They’ve discovered new ways to provide for each other and have replaced their dependence on imports.

There are now similar systems set up in communities all over the world.

The benefits of HOURS:

HOURS expand the local money supply.

HOURS promote local shopping.

HOURS double the local minimum wage to $10.00 benefiting not only workers but businesses, which find more customers.

HOURS help start new businesses and jobs.

HOURS reduce dependence on imports.

HOURS make grants to non-profit community organizations.

HOURS make zero-interest loans.

HOURS stimulate community pride.

Many local communities throughout the world have begun to use a LETS or HOURS-type system very successfully.

www.ithacahours.com

Fact: Of the largest 100 economies in the world, more than half are not countries, but corporations. Australia’s largest company has a revenue greater than the GDP of Cambodia. Corporations, especially those operating in many countries have the potential to bring opportunities or perpetuate suffering in the areas where they operate.

Solution 2. LETS.

There’s a system up and running which is proving to be a big success for many communities. This is LETS (Local Energy Transfer System). LETS is a type of barter system where each individual or family can barter products, food, skills or experience in exchange for local LETS credits. These credits are then used for ‘purchasing’ items such as food, clothing or crafts or for services e.g. accounting, plumbing, building, hairdressing, sewing, gardening or baby-sitting (and more).

What’s so good about this system? Firstly, anyone can join right away. You don’t need to apply for the job. You can be younger than 15 or older than 65. You can be a stay-at-home Mom or a great-grandfather. Everyone who’s got a skill or a product which might be of use can join. The LETS group we belonged to had grandmothers who planted vegetable gardens for a hobby. It had grandfathers who still knew the art of woodwork. We had Moms with young children who otherwise couldn’t work in the ‘real’ workforce but they do so within the LETS group. They could mind children, sew clothes or make extra homemade meals - all while staying at home and earning LETS credit. With this currency they could then barter for organic food, have a haircut, ‘buy’ a well-deserved massage, find a participating holistic health practitioner or even purchase a holiday.

In 1992 the residents of the Beara Peninsula, on Ireland’s Atlantic coast, set up LETS in their community. As a result, their difficulties are minimized if the Irish economy falters or the tourist season fails.

How do you find out if there is a LETS group in your area? You can start by looking in the white pages of your telephone directory or try typing it into a search engine on the internet. If there isn’t a group in your area, you can always start one with in conjunction with your local AlterQuest Network.

Solution 3. Micro-finance.

The Grameen Bank - an example of community aid with a purpose.

The Grameen Bank of Bangladesh is a bank which issues really low interest loans to the poorest people in the community. Higher interest is offered to people who are willing to invest or save at the bank.

Now that’s an excellent community orientated banking system! It’s one which gives underprivileged people a chance to help themselves and it’s a bank which encourages the local community to help itself through development of small businesses.

The investors in this scheme aren’t just investing money in the Grameen Bank, they’re investing faith that fellow humans who may not be as well off, can make viable economic decisions, if only they’re given a chance.

Here’s an interesting fact: The Grameen bank insists that loans are given to people who must work in groups of five or more. This encourages the community to work together and support each other.

Kiva is another organization which offers microfinance to those in third world countries who might like to start a small business and yet even if the amount needed could be as small as $50.00, it is impossible for the person to ever accrue that amount. Therefore generous benefactors in the USA and other countries, ‘loan’ the money to the potential business owner and the person is then able to begin their new career.

This system would also work in 1^st world countries – although the start up costs might be a little more.

Solution 4. Start your own business.

Use your talents, find your niche and start a small business. People all over the world are doing this in order to go outside the normal job market. Those with special talents are making clothing, designing new products, inventing better gadgets or starting other home based small businesses.

If you don’t have a talent, go back to college or night classes and learn a skill. You never know where it might lead.

Gone are the days when job security in a large company was a sure thing. You really need to diversify.

Fact: Right now approximately 23% of the world’s population owns about 83% of the wealth. That leaves the majority of us - i.e. 77% of the planet’s inhabitants - sharing a mere 17% of the wealth.

This can’t be right!

This can’t be fair.

Solution 5. Encourage a local community economy.

Communities versus the big guys.

Henry Winkler, (alias The Fonz on ‘Happy Days’) when asked what is wrong with America today, said, “We need to humanize America and not merely have profit as a goal for life.”

Well, Mr Winkler, you are a very wise man.

Supporting your own community means money spent will be kept in the local economy. This gives people the courage to start their own companies and, at the same time, seize the chance to make their region prosper once more.

Since, in the past, we used to have almost one hundred percent full employment, we must, at that time, have used a formula which worked. Now that so many people have no work, it stands to reason we’re currently using principles which are inherently flawed. So, what did we do in the mid 20^th century which allowed most people to work – and can we use this format again?

Here at AlterQuest, we believe we know the answer.

When times were good small to medium businesses flourished.

There were no multi-nationals seeking to own and operate everything. The workload was more evenly shared and the ‘dog-eat-dog’ mentality did not exist.

Small businesses had many benefits but two important ones were:

1. They employed people from the community.

2. They made up a large portion of the local economy.

These factors guaranteed that more people had jobs and thus they had the capacity to spend. There were no superstores and mega malls and your money remained within the community. So, if you worked in the local shoe store, you bought your food from the near-by mini-mart, your vegetables from the produce store and meat from the neighborhood butcher. Staff in those shops then spent their income at other stores and businesses. If everyone shopped locally these small companies could make sufficient income to hire more staff. The new staff would also spend, thus money circulated and this lead to even more job creation. This system had a positive flow-on effect for the whole town or city.

One other positive aspect which couldn’t be overlooked was the personal attention in small stores. When everything was local, the staff knew you personally and cared about your needs. You weren’t just a ‘consumer’, you were a person. These were places to stop, say hello and chat for a moment. The shopkeeper would usually offer you his best wares. He wanted to keep you as a good customer and your loyalty meant something to him.

Oh what a difference from the impersonal service we get now.

Today store or brand loyalty equates to nothing more than a plastic rewards card. (Buy here and get points for a gift).

In the 1950’s, 60’s and mid 70’s, small business abounded but towards the end of the 70’s things began to change. Enter the large hyper-mart and supermarkets. These guys promised reasonable quality at greatly reduced prices and at first, this seemed like a wonderful concept. Here we had enormous superstores where we could purchase almost everything in the one place. No more shopping at the shoe store for footwear, the butcher for meat, the pharmacy for drugs or the fishmonger for fish. Now everything was centralized.

What a great idea….. Or was it?

These hyper-companies brought their own management from a distant city. They were an imported hierarchy – puppets, whose strings were pulled by an even larger dynasty.

The Head Office had no connection with your town. They just wanted to ‘conquer’ your area, so they could put another pin on their corporate map – thus keeping their shareholders very happy and very rich. They triumphed very efficiently and systematically.

All seemed well, for a time. We now had mega everything and began to see shopping as a leisure activity. Malls had stores, cafes and even cinemas – all designed to draw us to their doors.

As with all things which seem to good to be true, there was a dark side hidden beneath the exciting, modern facade. Although the small family- run companies had kept their profits local and were happy to employ more staff if their business needed it, large corporate stores and malls were beholden to their shareholders and needed to make ever-greater profits EVERY year. They opened massive stores run by very few staff. The people who were employed received minimum wage and were forced to live on the ‘breadline’. If any of these multi-national corporations didn’t make their sales and profit expectations in a given year, they simply ‘rationalized’, which is a fancy word for cut the number of staff and pay the rest less wages. They never saw the resulting devastation. They were too busy running everything from their head offices in ‘Corporate Land’, far, far away.

These mega businesses had big bucks to spend on advertising and they also had bulk-buying power. The more they advertised, the more they sold. The more they sold, the lower the price they received from the manufacturer. The appeal of lower prices sucked us to them, like ants to a cake.

Soon this mega world began to take over our services as well as our goods. In order to compete, medium-sized professional businesses such as accountants, lawyers and doctors, found they also had to merge, standardize and downsize. Nothing was safe. Big was better – or so we were told.

So what happened to the families who ran the small businesses and the locals they employed? You know the answer. They didn’t have a level playing field on which to compete. Being ethical and not wanting to be aggressive merely for profit, they were left out in the cold. Customer loyalty was gone - everyone had gone to the mall.

These mega companies use us. They say they bring jobs to our area. This isn’t true.

They say they will make the economy better for all. This is also a lie.

Their sole motivation for being in our towns is to make profit for themselves. They employ as few staff as possible and sack most of these, if they don’t meet their fiscal expectations. We go into their stores and buy their products then queue for ages because they don’t hire enough staff to man the checkouts. They hire kids and ignore anyone over 18 because they would then have to pay an adult wage.

What’s the real bottom line?

These guys suck the life out of our neighborhoods!

So, for all you people who have a job but feel that it may not be secure or for those who have been made unemployed, through no fault of your own, we say, “It’s time to find answers.”