timsellers.net/blog

22/02/07 : Blair, cars, tax, money and stuff

I was thrilled today to receive a personal Email from Tony Blair. Well, I say personal - about 1.7 million people received the same message . . . yes, I was one of those people who signed the Road pricing petition. Not because I'm a petrol-head or anything - although I shamefully admit to finding Top Gear entertaining - in fact I'm quite green minded. I agree that there should be fewer cars on the road. I just don't think this sort of tax works. I'm also not overly fond of the idea that my car will be constantly tracked.

There are two problems making people pay to use certain roads at certain times.

1. If you happen to live (or work) in the wrong place, you're pretty much buggered.

2. The fact that poor people [Warning: anti capitalism rant ahead] will be affected while the rich can carry on and do whatever the hell they want (at the slight inconvenience of shelling out more cash).

Actually, If I had my way, there would be no such thing as money. People would still work, but only for the minimum hours necessary (as there wouldn't be a capitalist system to support, with the ridiculous number of steps between producer and consumer where profits have to be made on every step of the way and too much stuff is made and everyone is in competition with each other etc. etc. etc.). Everything people needed would be provided so there would be no point in stealing anything. Concepts like "greed" and "poverty" would die out.

This subject has popped up in conversations before and people generally think life would be boring with no "challenge" if there was no cash to desperately try to grab. Surely there are better challenges than making money and trying to gain power? What about making the world a nicer place to live in? What about creating great works of art, having the freedom to do so without following trends and fashions?

[pointless rant over, night night]

UPDATE:  Charlie Brooker seems to have the same opinion of money as me (although, as one commenter points out, he does at least have some).