From: ladasky@netcom.com (John J. Ladasky II)
Subject: Re: Community based economy?
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest)
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1993 21:44:13 GMT

In article <1678600023@igc.apc.org>,
Dale McMillen <dmcmillen@igc.apc.org> writes:
>
>> I'm glad to see that Dale believes that community-based economics
>> should be offered and encouraged, not enforced.
>
>John Ladasky (and the rest of y'all),
>
>What did I ever say to make you think I wanted to force absolute localism
>down your throats?

Hi, Dale,

	You never gave me the impression that you, personally, advocated
100% community-based economics.  However, some of my fellow Greens do, and
I thought it worthwhile to bring up some specific examples of situations
in which transnational economics are vital to our future.

	I also raised this concern because local labor leaders have taken
an interest in the Green Party, but are concerned about the degree to
which community-based economics might cost them their jobs.  I would like
to see the Greens develop a precise definition of community-based economics,
perhaps broken down by industrial sector in order to make it clearer to
people who might like to join us.

>Regarding your example about needing a world-wide market for alternative
>techonologies, I do not see this in conflict with community-based
>economics.  The point is that the more a community can provide for its
>local needs, the stronger (and more socially just and ecologically
>sustainable) it will be, up to a limit.

	We're in complete agreement here.  I find it ridiculous that I
live in what used to be one of the nation's richest agricultural areas,
the Santa Clara Valley, and yet 99% of my food comes from an extraordinary
distance - even a lot of things that used to be grown here.  (Garlic,
strawberries, and mushrooms continue to be grown locally, but not much 
else.)  The Santa Clara Valley, you see, has become Silicon Valley.  
IMO, my community needs to rezone for higher density, and uncover some of 
the ground beneath the asphalt.  Some of the rediscovered land could be
turned loose, and some of it could be zoned for the kind of local farming
that once existed here.

	The same goes for energy production.  We get intense and nearly-
continuous sunshine in the Santa Clara Valley for about seven months of the
year.  I don't know how much power is lost in transmission from the Diablo
Canyon nuclear plant or Sierra Nevada hydroelectric installations, but I
would wager it's quite a bit.  Community-based solar power is, IMO, a 
better way to go.

>Perhaps we should start looking at some sort of community product
>index like the GNP.  Maybe we could call it the CPI.  What percentage
>of the CPI should be locally based, what percentage regionally based,
>and what percentage national or international.  I would agree that
>100% locally based would not be a good idea.  As you mentioned, this
>would preclude development of your AIDS devices.  It would also tend
>to make the community unbearably parochial.  But, would you agree
>that 100% internationally based is not desirable either?

	Of course.

>It would seem to me that the goal should be that the more the item
>is essential for everyday living (housing, clothing, food, heating),
>the better it would be to produce it locally.  The more the item
>is knowledge or information based, the more desirable it would
>be to have a mixture of local and global interaction.

	Great!  This is exactly the kind of thinking I hoped to 
encourage - not just saying that we believe in community-based economics,
but when, where, and how community-based economics are appropriate.
I'd like to see this kind of thinking make it into our platforms, too.

>Dale
>
>P.S.
>
>Region 11 of GPUSA is the Mid-Atlanic Region (NJ PA DE MD DC VA WV).
>What type of on-line access did you want?  I have posted some stuff
>in the topic "NEWS ABOUT THE GREENS"

	Well, maybe an organizational breakdown, a charter, a copy of
the national platform, etc.  Things probably better mailed than posted.

-- 
== John J. Ladasky II ("ii") ========================= ladasky@netcom.COM ==
"Great composers do not borrow -	     "Talking about music is like
 they steal."  - John Ladasky	      ~ -     dancing about architecture."
(quote stolen from Stravinsky, who    o o     - Elvis Costello?  Laurie
 stole it from a statement made by     >        Anderson?  Frank Zappa?
 Pablo Picasso about painting, who    \_/    -------------------------------
 stole it from...)			     "Property is theft." - Groucho
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