I read the first edition of this book around 12 years ago. It changed my life and put me on the path to where I am now – trying to build the commons economy (Dave Darby, Lowimpact.org). It explained the problems inherent in our money system – that if the thing that we buy and sell things with in communities is also something that can be accumulated, hoarded, extracted from communities and dumped in tax havens, then that’s exactly what will happen. And it has – big time. It also suggested an alternative – mutual credit. In a mutual credit system, there’s nothing that can be extracted and accumulated, because in effect, it’s an accounting system for who’s done what for whom in communities. If you sell, your account goes up; if you buy, your account goes down – but we’re talking numbers in accounts, not something that can be grasped and snatched away from communities.
In 2019 I was lucky enough to interview the author, Tom Greco. Tom is now bringing out a new edition, that will be released chapter-by-chapter, for free, as text and audio. We’ll be posting them here, and recommending them highly.
Chapter 1: My purpose and journey (text)
Now over to Tom for an introduction to the series.
The first edition of my book, The End of Money and the Future of Civilization, was published by Chelsea Green Publishing in 2009. While it remains as relevant and timely today as it was when first published the printed book has been out of print for several years.
Having recently had the rights reverted to me by my publisher, I have decided to begin publishing a revised, updated, and expanded edition of the book. It will first be published in serial form, as freely downloadable chapters on my website, Medium, and elsewhere, as I complete them. The text of each section will be accompanied by an audio narration by Ken Richings.
Upon completion of the series, I plan to compile the various chapters and sections into both a print edition and an e-book edition. For the new edition, every chapter will be edited, some rewritten, others may be dropped, and new ones added to cover the changing financial, economic, and political circumstances, and to address more recent developments, including the emergence of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, blockchain technology, and smart contracts. That particular chapter will elaborate and expand upon what I’ve already written and published in my articles, Bitcoin, Blockchain, and the end of money as we’ve known it (2022), and Bitcoin, Blockchain Technology, and Crypto-Currency (2016).
The serial publication may not be on a regular schedule, but I’ve made it a priority to complete the series by the end of 2024.
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I just got a copy of the first edition and I’ve been reading the update. I’m really enjoying both.