Interesting article Dr., I have enjoyed reading it.
Can you further clarify what you mean by "mutually beneficial community based 'proof of gift' economy". I want to make sure I am interpreting this in parallel with what you intend.
The reason I personally would want a "million dollars" is to share it in meaningful ways with others. I have so much I would like to share. I certainly do not want to live in a society with an economy based on burdening citizens with debt in such a way as to create contemporary indentured servitude. A "debt based" economy and "debt based" life blows hard.
Now having the ability to responsibly borrow something (money, a lawn mower or whatever) and demonstrate my character and integrity by paying it back or returning it directly to the source is to me a useful tool. I really wish our society had not abused debt. Heck there are so many things useful tools that currently mankind uses as weapons against itself. In the end this is all up to humans making decisions, acting and behaving with real world impact - negative or positive. Guns do not kill on their own, people pull the triggers.
As we humans explore ways to share and exchange information, goods and services this idea of reputation as currency is an interesting place to be. I know I have a different reputation among various groups of people and with different individuals. If I take someone like Mozart for example. He had a reputation for being a flake and a flamboyant womanizer - he also composed some of the most wonderful music ever written...
Anyway, just barely musing here. I'd better just address my potential pondering in a unique post.
To end my comment, I would like to contribute to Steemit and the world at large. Integrity calls to me, I want to do what I do for reasons that feel right to me. I hope that I can develop my reputation based on my integrity and find my way, it is very challenging at times.
Integrity always gets my vote.
It will, indeed be hard to "equalise" reputation, or posts, like we do with money goods and services.
Can Steemit do something for the emotionally or morally bankrupt? Can it do something for farmers in Africa (to prevent corruption)? How practical is Steem?
I get lovejoy's idealism, and your broad definition of being in debt made me think long and hard. On some things there is no absolving of debt - although Catholics would beg to disagree.
So, every time you need to borrow something you have an IOU situation? I never looked at it like that. I always thought I was merely on neighbourly terms with the lawnmower example. Whole of life is one big debt, in that sense (and those who do karma work say so up front). Not everything can be levelled out, returned, paid off.
I sense some kind of inflation somewhere down the road with too many gifts never given/needed. I don't know enough about economics to know why it cannot work to not have an economy based on money, but I sense it can't: for one thing money keeps more subtle and sacred matters out of the nitty gritty. What if we were to cheapen our souls in barter?
The evaluators have all the power. Here is where we must change things, methinks. What are we going to value if not time (which per definition would make my post unequal to that of one quote copy/pasted? What is this currency symbolic of if also not energy? You can only reciprocate impeccability with impeccability. That leaves those in training out of the loop, creates new divisions, or gives us elders, which are not much on trend at the minute.
I don't want to sound Marxist, but how about if everybody had some of your million dollars to begin with instead of waiting for you to hand it out?
Just trying to think out loud with you.
I suppose you don't quite trust everybody would be as sensible with it as yourself? So we still need bank-managers in this ideal world?