Decentralized funding and changing the world through technological revolution

in #technology5 years ago

One area that I am really excited about in the future is the potential of project funding. I know that this happens now to some degree and on the Steem blockchain it is in its infancy at projects like @fundition and through @utopian-io but, there is a great deal more to come and Steem will likely be one of the core blockchains that support it.

Currently, nearly all large scale developments are funded by centralized authorities of one kind or another and often they are incentivized through the profits available, not the people who are in need. Yes, there is a demand component here as we are the ones who purchase their products but the problem is that governments and corporations work closely to mutually influence each other to meet their various agendas, often leaving out what the majority requires.

I wrote a post yesterday about destroying national borders and part of this is going to be through how we as a global community organize ourselves. At no time in history has there been a way for a populations of such diversity and distance to be able cooperate and align a large number of goals yet now, blockchain allows it.

Essentially, blockchain is just a ledger but what it does is empowers users to manage their transactions themselves and trust the transactions of others, even in an anonymous environment, even without ever knowing each other. It has the ability to make strangers members of the same tribe and allows people to be the member of many tribes.

When it comes to value of currencies, they are just held stories so all it takes to change one for another is for a majority to decide one over another and in time, people may come to realise that the centralized banks and debt peddlers are not as well intentioned as they claim as they manipulate purchasing power by creating inflation and driving value upward to a few who then have the power to decide what gets funding and, what is ignored. This process means that what is likely to get funding is that which is going to spiral more of the same and draw value from lower levels to an ever increasing and narrow peak.

But, once this concept of what is valuable changes and people start trading more directly cutting out the middlemen operators, there is going to be an increased ability for targeted private funding and what that means is that what gets supported is what the community itself chooses to support. This is not going to be as straightforward as it sounds and will be a continual negotiation but, the technology that exists now and where it will develop will support this negotiation at a global level.

What is possible is that people as stakeholders in a global system are able to invest directly into various projects that they find important or beneficial and in turn, be able to get value back from those same projects if and when they are able to offer return. What would be currently constrained by law and technological limitations to organize this, will be come the normal order of business as people from all over the world will be able to micro invest in communities all over the world.

As I see it, scientific research, large scale engineering, new technologies, schools, hospitals, disaster relief and all kinds of other functions that are largely managed by corporation and government will increasingly become the responsibility of the communities themselves. This takes more than technology, it take a change in the philosophies of how we live our lives, a paradigm shift.

Why I think that Steem will be a core part of this future is because of its social network nature and at some basic level, it is already functioning much like a system needs to if there are 10 billion people relying on it. The other day I was talking about Steem competition and how there is a massive amount of space for hundreds and thousands of blockchains to run concurrently. Most will be specialized for various tasks like smart contracts or standalone projects but chains like Steem are able to house the social development and allow the connection of people to investment target.

It also allows for management and distribution of resources quickly and cheaply to where they are needed at the local level and what that means is that we as a global community will be able to structure and organize ourselves in ways that are much more sensitive to the individuals within the system.

If you think about the ideas of a Universal Basic Income (UBI), the only way it can really work is if it truly is universal and currently, there is only one technology on earth that is able to manage that level of organisation at a global spread, blockchain. This is going to be increasingly important going forward in the next decade or two as automation of industry will continually push people out of employment.

If this is left to governments and corporations to manage, they will favor systems that are aligned to their agenda which means to continually increase profits, regardless of the suffering caused. As long as it isn't them. The only way we as a global community have a chance of changing this is if we as a global community decide to fork their source of value out of our lives, making them useless. If the 99% agree to use crypto instead of fiat, what happens to the fiat currencies? What happens to the debt owed?

Yes, it isn't going to be a simple and painless process but if we are to get into some position where there is some basic opportunity to flourish from the smallest to the largest, it is us who have to make that move. No authority will ever fund their own demise, we have to fund ourselves. The blockchain allows this, it allows for the finest-grain of funding available and it allows for it at all levels given the chance, given the green-light go ahead by us, the people.

It all sounds very idealistic but for any of us or our children to have a chance at anything more than mere survival at the mercy of authority while under the constant threat of geopolitical and economic conflict, we need to start developing and using our tools better. This means that we need to continually find ways to fund ourselves while continually finding ways to cut the tethers that bind us to the decisions of agenda'd authority.

This is not an easy road and it is likely to come with a great deal of trial and error and plenty of mistakes, suffering and failure along the road but we are on the cusp of a revolution like the world has never seen before. One where rather than acting through government proxy, we are all at the negotiating table with a chance to empower all in the room.

What makes us powerful in this world is not the money we hold, it is what we all choose to consume with it. Resetting the debt cycles, rethinking the economic models and then choosing what to fund in this world is what can not only empower us but, bring us together to solve the problems no government or even group of governments can.

The environmental problems we face takes technological revolution we can fund. Dealing with automation jobless we can tackle and rather than make people irrelevant, empower them to be their best. And the constant threat of war and violence between states claiming t have the best interest of humanity in mind, can end overnight. We just need to buy differently, and that includes the story we have been led to believe that we are powerless to make a difference in this world.

It is Bullshit. Don't believe the fairytale.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]

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Cutting out the middlemen off Charity fundraising sounds very appealing to me. I was just about to rant about how NGOs keep ripping off recipient victims. The rise of blockchain will eliminate that in time

The rise of blockchain will eliminate that in time

For the basic functions, it already is/could do more just through the precision of allocating funds.

I certainly hope for this to happen as current methodologies favors elitism which is not a fair way to distribute wealth or innovation. The regulatory concerns on what Ethereum was able to achieve is unfortunate to see as it has dried the market for ICOs as many have fled to more traditional alternatives which only benefit few in the larger ecosystem. However, as these efforts become more decentralized and many communities grow together with funding, we may very well be able to accomplish a system that is fair and innovative for the benefits of the community it serves.

Continued decentralization makes us headless and unassailable if we choose the path together.

Removing the middleman (governments & corporations) would be a really good thing for the people. However these middleman are VERY powerful. At the very least they will demand 'their cut'. I would like to see it otherwise, but I'm just realistic here.

It could get to a point where their cut is no longer acceptable to pay. All it takes really are alternatives.

I hope so. But all I see is taxes getting higher and higher (I live in Belgium, so unfortunately I got some experience in this). People just pay. And almost all crypto transactions can be traced with analystics tools that are powered by AI that's getting more effective by the day. I read a few weeks ago that even transactions with Monero can be traced back in about 50% of the cases right now. It will be impossible to hide.

Cool futuristic view! :) Yes we change the game...

@tarazkp, Yes, in my opinion also Steem Blockchain and Steem Economywill going to become one of the great contributors in Crypto Sphere and new projects always in search for the Established communities and search for the ways to raise the funds and for sure many projects will going to get attracted towards the Steem Economy.

And yes, we have to stay away from the Fairytales because we all are creators and we can create our reality and there is no question in it, but before that we have to understand our role so that we can focus towards right directions to achieve right results.

Wishing you an great day and stay blessed. 🙂

but before that we have to understand our role so that we can focus towards right directions to achieve right results.

To understand our role takes personal examination which many people are no longer willing to do in this world unfortunately. If they did, most of the problems would drop away at the start.

This is practical and true point.

yes @tarazkp, you are absolutely right.

Steemit in recent months has had great growth and support here there is potential that it will be a good currency if it will go far

At the beginning of each change everything is a bit more difficult but it is normal while things are adapting and improving

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