Technocratic economics

[Lynx]

This is a rough outline, based on what I have learned so far.
In a technocracy, the following sectors would have priority:
- Food
- Shelter
- Social services
- Transportation
- ?
- Discretionary consumer items
- ?

On the production side, the goals are to:
- improve the energy efficiency of production, as well as load factors
- improve infrastructure, as this is a major factor in energy efficiency
Production infrastructure includes power plants, factories, transportation links, and resources (re. the condition and maintenance of primary and secondary resources).

On the consumption side, the goals are:
- to reduce energy consumption by sharing certain items (consumer side load factor)
- improve infrastructure (homes, buildings, cities)
- make greater use of pre-ordering for discretionary consumer items
- encourage free trade of unwanted and no-longer-wanted items where possible
- recycle all materials that can yield quantifiable energy savings

The overall economic goals are:
- to distribute an equal share of available energy credits for each person once every 2 years (this represents total energy produced minus energy consumed by production of goods, and operation and maintenance of infrastructure)
- to maintain the highest standard of living through the most efficient use of resources, that is environmentally sustainable.


I need help with this framework so I can get a better idea how technocracy is supposed to function.

[RevSkeptic]

Emergy Accounting (http://www.dieoff.org/page232.pdf)

eMergy evaluation (http://www.dieoff.org/page170.htm)

[Lynx]

Originally posted by [email protected] 14, 2007 11:09 pm
Emergy Accounting (http://www.dieoff.org/page232.pdf)

eMergy evaluation (http://www.dieoff.org/page170.htm)
I'm having trouble comprehending these documents. Calling it emergy (energy memory) is confusing.
Do the transformaties consider the expected lifespan of power producing devices and resource pools?

[Dimentio]

A technate would not be a planned economy, but neither a price system. It is working in that way that each person is entitled to own an equal amount of the production capacity of the entire system, using an emergy certifikate with this capacity.

She could then use the certifikate to order the system to produce what she wants to have.

It is often called energy accounting, but emergy accounting might be more suitable since we also aim to uphold some form of compensation to nature so that future generations could have a high standard of life as well. Thus, the cost might derive a bit from future compensation measures as well.

Energy Accounting (http://en.technocracynet.eu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=84&Itemid=137)

Alternatively, the forum (http://en.technocracynet.eu/index.php?option=com_fireboard&Itemid=63)

[Dimentio]

Originally posted by Lynx+December 16, 2007 02:00 pm--> (Lynx @ December 16, 2007 02:00 pm)
[email protected] 14, 2007 11:09 pm
Emergy Accounting (http://www.dieoff.org/page232.pdf)

eMergy evaluation (http://www.dieoff.org/page170.htm)
I'm having trouble comprehending these documents. Calling it emergy (energy memory) is confusing.
Do the transformaties consider the expected lifespan of power producing devices and resource pools? [/b]
That is because we have already examined that PDF on our forum, and found it to somewhat correlate to what we aim for, but in a skewed way that is'nt fulfilling any of the potential which a technocratic plan would move us at.

[Lynx]

Well, if we wanted to reforest an area or restore topsoil, or improve infrastructure, it is obvious that doing these things would consume more energy in the immediate and shorter term, while returning this 'investment' as energy savings or energy capacity in the future.
Its nice to see the basic premise covered in more detail. The general idea as I understood it was to calculate energy input for each transformation, and do this for each type of product. Feedback from one product as a component of another would also be recorded, and extend this to cover the entire cycle (from resource to recycling to material waste). In a 'perfect' cycle the only waste would be entropy?

[hajduk]

Originally posted by [email protected] 14, 2007 07:01 pm
This is a rough outline, based on what I have learned so far.
In a technocracy, the following sectors would have priority:
- Food
- Shelter
- Social services
- Transportation
- ?
- Discretionary consumer items
- ?

On the production side, the goals are to:
- improve the energy efficiency of production, as well as load factors
- improve infrastructure, as this is a major factor in energy efficiency
Production infrastructure includes power plants, factories, transportation links, and resources (re. the condition and maintenance of primary and secondary resources).

On the consumption side, the goals are:
- to reduce energy consumption by sharing certain items (consumer side load factor)
- improve infrastructure (homes, buildings, cities)
- make greater use of pre-ordering for discretionary consumer items
- encourage free trade of unwanted and no-longer-wanted items where possible
- recycle all materials that can yield quantifiable energy savings

The overall economic goals are:
- to distribute an equal share of available energy credits for each person once every 2 years (this represents total energy produced minus energy consumed by production of goods, and operation and maintenance of infrastructure)
- to maintain the highest standard of living through the most efficient use of resources, that is environmentally sustainable.


I need help with this framework so I can get a better idea how technocracy is supposed to function.
technocratic solve the problem about material issues but not with soul issues,this is not mean that religion must involved but how technocrat will solve the problem about racism or violence in familly?

[Jazzratt]

Originally posted by [email protected] 20, 2007 09:04 pm
technocratic solve the problem about material issues but not with soul issues,this is not mean that religion must involved but how technocrat will solve the problem about racism or violence in familly?
Technocracy doesn't purport to be a "cure all" (as far as I'm aware), the kind of society it is implemented within will also have an affect especially on the, as you say, "issues of the soul".

[Dimentio]

Yes. Technocracy do not aim to administrate the affairs of the human being, who herself is responsible for her life and what she would like to do with her share. Some people see that as a weakness, but I look at it as a strength.

[Led Zeppelin]

Why is this in Opposing ideologies?

Moved to Learning.

[Q]

Originally posted by [email protected] 16, 2007 02:53 pm
A technate would not be a planned economy
Why not? As I understood technocracy it sounds pretty much as an integral part of a planned economy. How can you account for anything without planning how much energy you'll need in the future, without determining how much energy you produce, etc? In short: without a planned economy? Or are we using different definitions of the term?


It is working in that way that each person is entitled to own an equal amount of the production capacity of the entire system, using an emergy certifikate with this capacity.

She could then use the certifikate to order the system to produce what she wants to have.
That sounds very much like "Star Trek" in which someone orders a cup of hot tea in a replicator. Very neat, but for the time also very unrealistically.

[Dimentio]

Originally posted by Q-collective+December 22, 2007 11:03 am--> (Q-collective @ December 22, 2007 11:03 am)
[email protected] 16, 2007 02:53 pm
A technate would not be a planned economy
Why not? As I understood technocracy it sounds pretty much as an integral part of a planned economy. How can you account for anything without planning how much energy you'll need in the future, without determining how much energy you produce, etc? In short: without a planned economy? Or are we using different definitions of the term?


It is working in that way that each person is entitled to own an equal amount of the production capacity of the entire system, using an emergy certifikate with this capacity.

She could then use the certifikate to order the system to produce what she wants to have.
That sounds very much like "Star Trek" in which someone orders a cup of hot tea in a replicator. Very neat, but for the time also very unrealistically. [/b]
You should be able to predict the production capacity and it must be above a certain minimum level to ascertain that scarcity is not going to appear. But the production won't be centrally planned.

Each individual is given an energy certifikate consisting of an equal share of the production capacity to which that individual would have exclusive usership rights (the production capacity which the individual "owns" is attributed to the capacity and not the means of production).

When the individual for example is ordering a radio, the technate is obliged to produce a radio. It s the users who are deciding what is going to be produced for themselves, not those who are managing the production.

You should read the articles about Energy Accounting (http://en.technocracynet.eu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=84&Itemid=137) or visit the the forum (http://en.technocracynet.eu/images/stories/images/enter_forum.jpg). I mean, surely you haven't read those articles if you ask questions like this. If the technate is to be defined as a planned economy, it would be the most decentralised planned economy imagineable.

I know what you are going to write, that some people will try to over-consume. But be ind mind that the energy reflected in the Energy Certifikate which is replenished corresponds to the total production capacity divided on the amount of consumers. Thus, it will be impossible to consume too much, and the system will regulate itself.

[Lynx]

Still, wouldn't there be uncertainties, as with any complex system? Business plans going awry are very much a hallmark of capitalism.

Is the capitalist method of production analogous to throwing spaghetti against a wall to see what sticks? What would the technocratic alternative be? In general, you can continue, improve or evolve an existing product, or begin a new one through invention or innovation.

Would we see an inventor's corner or 'proposed new stuff' channel? Would it be necessary to market such improvements? Would it be more efficient to have everyone pre-order personal choice items? Would subscription plans be worthwhile, for example signing people onto a particular product, with the guarantee of future upgrades?

Lots of questions, sorry :(

[Dimentio]

It would be more energy-efficient at least when it comes to products. When it comes to invention, that area still needs development, but when it comes to upgrade, we could minimise resource waste by modularising the micro-parts of a chain of products, so that you won't for example need to waste your computer if the card gets worn out.