Is money necessary?

Answer 1

Unfortunately yes. I've been trying for years to think of a way the world could run without money and I ain't found one yet! All the same. I think we should have limits on how much money people can have (any people, factory and media owners or any multinational) In fact I think there shouldn't be multinationals. Every country has enough brains to produce their own products without someone else coming in and creaming off their profits and manipulating the market. If you can think of a way to do without money let us all know. Money does seem to be the root of all evil.

Answer 2

unless you word your question carefully youre going to get answers that are all over the board like you have here - people are answering the question that they assume you are meaning to ask - so i am going to reword the question to what (i assume) you intended

could we create a world that was, in most ways similar to the modern world, yet money wasnt used? (and still things would work out on a sociological level and practical level - in other words, things didnt collapse in short order - like regress to violence etc)

heres my answer to my/the new question : there is only one way for such a thing to work - all people - that is, all people everywhere in the the world, must have their basic necessities met first - then the question is how do you "earn" any luxuries that you are interested in having - i am assuming we all recognize that different individuals have different appetites for luxuries - (i am also assuming there can be some kind of agreement regarding what constitutes basic necessities - problem - where does education fit in? and health care? - admittedly this is a big assumption) anyway.....several years ago i imagined such a society and at that time i imagined the luxury thing would be handled through friends / connections - in other words people who were willing to donate something to you simply because they cared about you more than they cared about most people - but (backing up) the basic necessity thing is crucial - trading will certainly not stop until that condition is met - and anything which is used to to trade conveniently, fits the definition of money - so (connect a few of the dots yourself here) my conclusion is ..... any society where money was not necessary would be a Star Trek like society - extremely advanced - especially regarding the production of basics (or the "providing" of basics - again go back to health care - IF every single person could have their health care problems / needs met with the ease that is shown on Star Trek (swipe a gizmo across and its healed) then we would be approaching a point where money was optional - furthermore (to emphasize) i think "money" will remain the preferred method until we can make things "materialize" as is done in Star Trek - to the best of my knowledge, that technology is not entirely outside the realm of possibility - but (obviously) it might be a few more weeks before we get to that point (that was a joke) ---- so..... phewww - thats a long way of saying .... yup, we still need it

Answer 3

In an "is money necessary for you to keep breathing" kind of way, no, money isn't exactly a necessity. You can exist, think, feel, contemplate the stars, do a lot of things without money. However, in certain societies it's completely necessary in order to make life comfortable and worth living. For example, just meeting your basic physiological needs (warmth, food, water) is impossible without money in American society. Even if you wanted to just wander into the woods one day and begin living off of the land, hunting/growing your own food and living like Davy Crockett, you'd still need to purchase the land you were on or you'd be arrested for trespassing. You'd probably also have to buy other things (primary supplies like lumber for a house, seeds for vegetables, a weapon to hunt with) to live off of indefinitely.
On the other hand, there are peoples that live in Africa, Australia, the jungles of South America, etc., who get along without ever having had money. They live established lives of self-sufficiency and manage just fine.
So I suppose the answer is, yes, you need money if you want to live in modern society. But it's not necessary for general survival.

Answer 4

Ask a homeless person living off the streets for the past few years if money is necessary. Usefull yes, but necessary?

We could say the mission houses that feed-clothe-sometimes shelter him/her are funded with money, but to the homeless there is no cost . . . . or solution.

Now before we go down that road, know that SOME homeless persons are not capable of holding a job due to mental or physical handicaps (or both). There is a very fine line between us and them.

Know that you are Blessed.

- c

Answer 5

Money as we know it is an outgrowth of the barter system. It was not always easy to find something to trade for something you wanted because of the difficulty in establishing equivalent value. For example, was one wagon wheel worth one pig or a pig and a half? As a result, gold became a medium of exchange because it had a recognized universal value and was easily divisible. Finally, when it became inconvenient to carry around large bags of gold, people started leaving their gold in the care of a warehousman, who issued them a paper reciept. People then traded using the paper receipts, which were backed up and redeemable in gold. Eventually the warehouseman realized he did not have to have 100% backing for the paper receipts he issued, and began using the gold deposits for something else. In a very brief nutshell, this is the origin of the paper money we use today, although now in the US it is backed by nothing other than the faith people have that the Federal Reserve will pay (what it will pay is uncertain, since Federal Reserve notes are nothing more than a promise).

Answer 6

Presently yes, unless you trust all those you have dealings with to be honest and fair and you are willing to put up with the inconvenience of the barter system.

Or you are willing to join a very small community of like-minded individuals who will selflessly consider the good of the group before themselves and allow an appointed individual to manage dealings with the monied section of society (unless the community is completely self sufficient).

Or we all accept a type of advanced credit card system where credits can easily be added to and subtracted from our account/card for every purpose for which we now use money - from paying bus fare, tipping, salaries etc. to buying a house. This would be ultra-convenient but the principle behind it is the same - only using a universally applicable card instead of differing denominations of paper and coin.

Answer 7

No, money is not necessary. Many people exist in this world without one cent to their name. They do not even know what money is. Tribes still exist in the deepest parts of this world perfectly content and living in true happiness. They live with what is provided them from the land and animals.
But money is essential in our culture because of the economic structure we live in. We need money to maintain in this part of the world.There is nothing wrong with having money...just how we use it...money is a tool...nothing more and nothing less.
With that in mind...can anyone out there spare five bucks for a fellow Yahoo answer person? Thanks!

Answer 8

Money is necessary because humans refuse to work without reward.
Pity really.

Answer 9

Yes, it is because we're in the world of present civilization/modernization with hundreds of countries worldwide competing economically and the prosperity of each nation is one of the key agendas for national developments. However, I personally regard it as my financial assistant when I need to buy some books, food, services, etc, therefore, unless I have less money or none, I can't afford them.

Answer 10

Yes there are many things in this world that are more important than money.
But look at it this way, what if you had someone you had to take care of, from a child to just someone you care for deeply.
I would want to make sure I could give them the best life I possibly could.