From kowens@teleport.com Wed Oct 15 23:11:28 1997 Date: Wed, 15 Oct 1997 10:57:29 -0700 From: Jeff Owens Reply-To: homestead@listserv.oit.unc.edu To: homestead@listserv.oit.unc.edu Subject: Homestead Finance (essay) Looking at that title "Homestead Finance" triggers images of ledger sheets, bank accounts, and budgets. This is what most of the world views also and it is ridiculous. The assumption behind all this is that finance is what we use to measure and build wealth. It is what pays the bill and keeps us out of trouble. Ha! That is mostly myth. Helen Henderson wrote an excellent book on the subject which was directed at the world bank. She showed how a small wealthy country could be convinced it was poor because it had no money or modern technology. Next, business would come in and pay the people to remove their resources and work for paper money. This they could exchange for technology. In effect the country was raped, its traditions lost, in exchange for a little technology it could not maintain. In other words they became truly poor. Homesteading can easily fall into the same trap if we are not careful. The way out is to look at that word "wealth" and define it. This is what Helen did. She showed the world bank that loaning money to bankrupt a country is not good business. The object of business should be to increase wealth and make a country stronger. So, first it is necessary to understand a countries strengths and count the number of people who are grinning and happy. On a homestead the wealth is mostly in the land, animals, plants, people, and relationships. Money is mostly a nuisance which is needed to interact with a predatory society. All this can be said with an old quote: That man is richest whose pleasures are cheapest. -- Thoreau So.. how does one spot a rich homesteader? My answer would probably be: by a big grin and no debt. ---------- Jeff Owens (kowens@teleport.com) Zone 6-7 Permaculture Underground house, solar energy, reduced consumption, no TV