Hours as a form of currency? Better than paper!
But it's not exactly hours ...
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Joby Weeks explains Mountain Hours
With a last name like "Weeks", this guy is 168 hours rich!
Also:
http://vimeo.com/38005334
Statistics don't lie, people do.
What I like is they clearly don't want to be a monopoly:
http://mtnhours.com/?page_id=139
Copy Us!
Do you want to create a mtnHours type local, organic currency system for your town?
http://community-currency.com
We hope you do, and we can agree to accept each others Hours! There are Hours systems in Ithaca, NY, Madison, WI, Columbia Gorge region WA/OR, and others nationally, and internationally.
As each is denominated in the same unit they can be traded without outside parasitism/usury/manipulation. This is a powerful way for organic, local communities to bond together, and cooperate to get products which are not created in their own community.
Checkout the community-currency.com for “best practices”, strategies, and scripts to help make your local currency a success!
OK, I'm reserving:
"Beach Hours!"
http://beachhours.com
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Last edited by RonRules; 07-08-2012 at 12:16 PM.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
+1776
Hope for America.
Years ago I developed a concept for money based on time and it is a part the ideas for the "crazy" post in my sig. 'Sunshine Patriots Inc.' Presents: "Who Wants To Be The Billionaire?"
No one here wanted to be the Billionaire.
What's the limit on these hours?
My personality type: INTJ - please forgive my weaknesses (Not naturally in tune with others feelings; may be insensitive at times, tend to respond to conflict with logic and reason, tend to believe I'm always right, tend to be unwilling or unable to accept blame )
One-to-one exchange with US dollars right now. One hour = $10.00 US.Originally Posted by hazek
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Ithaca had their "hours" currency since 1991!
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Ithaca went wrong by splitting their money by 1/2, 1/4, 1/8. Colorado's Summit county went metric with their hours instead, making the divisions work out better.
The Ithaca 1/8th hour is just worth $1.25 when it should really be worth $1.33 (That $0.08 is really an 8% tax!)
I'll use minutes and seconds for my beach hours:
"Here, you can lay down my beach towel and I'll pay you 12 beach seconds. Thanks!"
Statistics don't lie, people do.
X-Dollars anyone?
Statistics don't lie, people do.
I think I'm wrong here. (just correcting myself in plain view). The fact that 8 is not divisible in 60 is irrelevant. What matters is that it is an honest fraction of the base note which is 10 hours. 1/8th of an hour = $1.25. The 60 does not come into play.
The problem with the 1/4 and 1/8th fractions was with the cash registers that don't handle fractions. The stock market also got rid of fractions about 10 years ago.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Several minutes into two videos and I've been told a lot of things like, "it's exciting", "it's exciting" but no one has gotten to the basic fundamentals, if it has any.
Last edited by Carson; 07-08-2012 at 01:58 PM.
http://photos.imageevent.com/stokeyb...singleTiny.jpgClick to embiggenhttp://photos.imageevent.com/stokeyb...yvaluetiny.jpgClick to embiggenhttp://photos.imageevent.com/stokeyb...strialtiny.jpgClick to embiggen
Adam does ramble on quite a bit.
The short version is that Mountain Hours are really a local currency tied to the Dollar, meant to encourage local spending. It won't save you from the Federal reserve.
It appears to be used to buy pot a lot.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
why not used gold and silver
That and bitcoins?
My personality type: INTJ - please forgive my weaknesses (Not naturally in tune with others feelings; may be insensitive at times, tend to respond to conflict with logic and reason, tend to believe I'm always right, tend to be unwilling or unable to accept blame )
Actually, division by twelve is even better than decimal.Ithaca went wrong by splitting their money by 1/2, 1/4, 1/8. Colorado's Summit county went metric with their hours instead, making the divisions work out better.
The Ithaca 1/8th hour is just worth $1.25 when it should really be worth $1.33 (That $0.08 is really an 8% tax!)
I'll use minutes and seconds for my beach hours:
"Here, you can lay down my beach towel and I'll pay you 12 beach seconds. Thanks!"
1
1/2
1/3
1/4
1/6
1/12
all fit evenly, and they all fit evenly into the 60 minute hour too.
1 = 60min
1/2 = 30 min
1/3 = 20 min
1/4 = 15 min
1/6 = 10 min
1/12 = 5 min
There is a small but active group of people out there agitating to depart humankind's decimal based numerical system and move to a base-12 system, and their position has a lot more merit than at first on the surface it may appear.
Apparently base-12 is an order of magnitude more functional than base-10. It would just take some getting used to.
I don't like the concept of hours at all. I am a master of my trade, and as such, what I can do in one hour is much beyond what some newbie could, and even beyond what most other masters (who have let themselves get fat and out of shape) can too.
CPT Jack. R. T.
US Army Resigned - Iraq Vet.
Level III MACP instructor, USYKA/WYKKO sensei
Professional Hunter/Trapper/Country living survivalist.
Not advocating this currency, more in the way of devil's advocate...
You could always farm out an apprentice's labor at $10/hr to give yourself a proper exchange rate.
Base 12 numerical system:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duodecimal
http://www.dozenal.org/
Been looking at it for some several years, and I'm convinced. If we as a humankind were smart enough to transition to base 12 instead of base 10 (despite the whole fingers and toes thing) we'd be a lot better off in the long run. I actually understand base 12 math WAY more naturally than base 10.
And yes, you can still use the decimal point, only it would probably be called a "dozenal point" lol.
Just curious, what makes a legal currency and what makes an illegal currency? Is this currency legal?
Intriguing idea...like the concept of competing currencies...but I'm not sure I understand the fundamentals of mountain hours.
So a mountain hour is pegged to the dollar AND one hour of labor? How are mountain hours convertible to dollars? Are there a store of dollar reserves on hand to meet the exchange rate? How are all hours the same? If I require training to perform a job...shouldn't I be able to charge more to cover my cost of training? If what I provide is more expertise than effort...wouldn't be logical to pay me for my expertise and results as opposed to my efforts? If I produce a mud pie, I can still receive mountain hours? If my hour of labor is made more productive with capital/tools...shouldn't I receive more than just one hour?
Who issues mountain hours? A central source? What determines the rate by which they can create 'hours' in excess of the actual hours they contribute? If this is a mutual debit/credit system, what is to dissuaded perpetual debt from one party? My friend sells me 1 mountain hour to watch tv. I have a credit that I use to spend into the economy. My friend says, yeah, I'm in debt of 'mountain hours'...but so what? I'll just use another currency from here on out (like dollars). What is the disincentive to remain out of debt if there is no interest on debt?
I don't want to be too much of a contrarian...but this doesn't make sense to me. I like the idea of community debt/credit systems in some circumstances. For example, I take part in paperbackexchange.com, in which I can buy books from other book sellers if I sell books (I have to list 10 books for acquisition to start before I get credit). So in essence we are buying and selling books for book credit/debits. In this case, yeah...each book is valued the same which isn't entirely accurate, but by and large this works out.
I believe using and acquiring any currency is legal. The problem is with the IRS and not legal tender laws. I don't know how or if there are exceptions, but I believe you are taxed for most non-dollar transactions as a barter transaction. And you must pay the 'fair-market value' for the good or service you received. This is obviously complicated (if I do computer work for my neighbor and he gives me cookies...what was the 'fair-market value')?
I don't believe that Mountain Hours is an alternative currency, because it is tied to the dollar. Mountain Hours are also not directly tied to an hour of labor, because that value changes with the laborer.
It would be nice to see lawyers make the same as sewer pumpers, but then that would not be a free market.
flame on
I think Mountain Hours are for pot smoking hippies wanting to get the minimum wage increased to $10.00/hr.
/flame off
Bitcoins are an alternative currency. The upcoming Greek Drachma could be, if set up to float without a central bank (unlikely)
The Chinese Renminbi was fully tied to the dollar (now tied in part since 2005), but most people would consider it separate currency.
The question of what makes an alternative, independent, currency is not obvious.
I once used a 5 Euro note to do a small transaction in Canada. Is that the use of an alternative currency?
Last edited by RonRules; 07-08-2012 at 07:29 PM.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
I'd like to sit in just once in a meeting of the "Dozenal Society of Great Britain". I picture a haughty bunch of tweed-wearing snobs.
They made a neat clock though:
http://www.dozenalsociety.org.uk/apps/dozenalclock.html
Statistics don't lie, people do.
You learn something every day:
It is possible for people to count on their fingers to 12 using one hand only, with the thumb pointing to each finger bone on the four fingers in turn.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Troll heaven:
Their forum!
http://z13.invisionfree.com/DozensOnline/index.php?
These guys are serious geeks. Here they talk about three person chess:
http://z13.invisionfree.com/DozensOn...?showtopic=568
They want bitcoins to be based on the Dozenal system
http://z13.invisionfree.com/DozensOn...?showtopic=389
Statistics don't lie, people do.
From the Dozenal Society of America: A special newsletter on the history of the DSA.
Am I the only one who thinks this funny?:
"Our editor, Henry Churchman, a lawyer from Iowa, had become ill and the Bulletin had ceased publication. I was convinced that this vacuum was in a large part the cause for our dwindling numbers."
Also the page numbers are listed as: "On Dozen Two 12", (meaning 14) "One Dozen Four 14" (meaning 16) ...
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Their awards timeline is in the dozenal system.
But actually they're cheating here because they have the decimal dates in parenthesis.
I am disapoint.
Last edited by RonRules; 07-08-2012 at 08:16 PM.
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Dozenal elections seem to go very smoothly:
On the other hand getting manufacturers to want to make calculators is difficult:
Statistics don't lie, people do.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Connect With Us