See video A world without money | Jade Saab TEDxUniversityofEdinburgh

see also what is money and Alphabetical List Benefits of Eliminating Money

In its simplest form, money is just meant to be a means of exchange. Rather than bartering, that is say a cow is worth 2 pigs, supposably the market system establishes a value so that both cows and pigs have a price and it makes it easier for buyers and sellers to trade. Well that's the way it's supposed to work in theory.

However it seems there are many situations where money just gets in the way. Or perhaps the lack of money is what gets in the way. Even though there might be underutilised resources, such as unemployment, we are told that certain things cannot be achieved because of the lack of money. A much needed hospital, school or counselling service cannot be provided because of the lack of money. Yet the labour to provide these items or service, is available, in the form of the unemployed, underemployed and the underutilised employed. Even the materials could be available if the above were used to mine or create the materials. The argument is put that the cost of all labour is to high. The price cost of labour only exists because of money. If money didn't exist, the cost of labour to build the hospital or school or provide counseling would be nil.

I have used the word cost, above.

From an Internet dictionary:

Cost:noun: an amount that has to be paid or spent to buy or obtain something.

The Inference here is that if you do not pay or spend, ther is no cost to obtain something.

Paid or spent implies money.

The argument against the above proposal, is if there was no money, all labour would not be paid. So how would people live. How would they get food and the necessities of life. If there was no money and no bartaring there would be no need to sell goods and services. The concept being that everyone just takes what they want. The argument against that is that some people would hoard or just be greedy. Take more than others.

But isn't that exactly what's happening with money now?

It's very easy to hoard money but not so easy to hoard physical things.

As soon as I start writing about cost vs benefits, the usual thought is, this implies money. What I'm writing here is the cost vs benefits of money. Therefore I thought I would have to exclude money in this part of my writing. But on reflection I can't do that.

Money actually cost money. The traditional way this is thought of is interest on loans. But it goes even further than that. Physical notes and coins cost money to create. In fact over the years the lower denomination of coins cost more to produce then their face value, such that they have been eliminated. Notes have to be printed. They have only a limited life and so have to be replenished. Removed from circulation and replaced with new printed notes.

However this would seen to be only a minor part of the cost of of money, considering that the majority of money is only figures in computers. But then there's the cost of maintaining those figures in the computer's. I get the impression that's not much, but the bigger cost is maintaining the security of those numbers.

That security is not something that can be easily automated. Somewhere along the line it has to be done by humans and some humans are greedy and want to the able to have that digital money, numbers, in computers that, with our current system, belongs to others. Because of those people other people have to check and secure the figures representing money in computers

Then there is the accounting for all the money. That's so immense thers even an occupation for it, called accountancy.

Criminality and a big part of the legal system is another cost of money. The lawmakers, law enforcers and penal system mostly are about, directly or indirectly, the security of money.

Later on on this page I will give multiple examples when money gets in the way and each one is basically the cost of money.

I only see a few benefits of money.

• convenience
• store of wealth

However while researching this I found others that espoused these benefits of money.

• security
• freedom
• power to pursue your dreams

However these three do not apply to money per se, but only apply if you have sufficient money.

Apparently there are people that died because they dident have enough money to buy food Not because there was no enough food around, it's just that they dident have the money to be able afford the food.

“Hunger and under-nutrition are the greatest threats to public health, killing more people than HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Each day, 25,000 people, including more than 10,000 children, die from hunger and related causes.”

From:

https://www.un.org/en/chronicle/article/losing-25000-hunger-every-day

Also from the same source:

“However, 75 per cent of the world's poor reside in rural areas and most must buy as well as produce food. It is already evident that many smallholder farmers, who constitute the large majority of agricultural producers, cannot benefit from high food prices. They cannot boost production because they lack access to financing, agricultural inputs, such as seed, fertilizer, power and markets. As a result they, too, are struggling to feed their families.”

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human Affairs (OCHA) ,recons that, ther is enough food in the world, its just that not everyone can access it. Part of the reason for that is money.

In the case of most wars, somebody profits financially while other people die.

War Profiteering

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_profiteering

A quote from this article. “The Reserve Bank made an admission this week: its policies, so far, aren't achieving their key targets.”

Government say they leave the Reserve Bank to control the money supply, therfore that part of the economy. But the reserve bank admits it can't achieve its targets. And it also appears thay have been not able to do so for some time.

So that begs the question why have a reserve bank and money?

Henry Miller on money with quotes from him

https://www.brainpickings.org/2014/08/04/henry-miller-on-money/

When Money Gets in the Way of Corporate Ethics

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2017/04/17/business/dealbook/when-money-gets-in-the-way-of-corporate-ethics.amp.html

Hedonic treadmill

“The hedonic treadmill, also known as hedonic adaptation, is the observed tendency of humans to quickly return to a relatively stable level of happiness despite major positive or negative events or life changes.”

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonic_treadmill

WHERE DOES MONEY COME FROM?

https://neweconomics.org/2012/12/where-does-money-come-from

Born to Choose: The Origins and Value of the Need for Control

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2944661/#BX1

Why Losing Control Can Make You Happier

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_losing_control_make_you_happier

“Ironically, the more successful we are in life, the more time scarcity we feel. Findings from a recent study help shed light on why this is the case. Researchers asked participants to play the role of consultants. While one set of students was paid 15 cents per minute for their time, the other half received $1.50. Later, once the project was over, these students were asked how stressed they had felt for time—and it was the higher paid participants who felt more presure”