do we really need a money system?

[FreeJoe]

33. This brings back memories

I went through almost exactly the same thought process when I was younger. Alas, I don't think the world would be a better place. I am certain that my life would not be.

Without money, how would I obtain the things I need to live (food, shelter, clothing)? The fact that my wife does all of our gardening is because I have proven so inept at it. I did volunteer work for Habitat for Humanity and found that I am lousy at construction work. I haven't tried making clothing yet. My point is that if I had to produce all of the things that I consume, I would live a much, much poorer life.

I could trade for the things that I consume. I could find someone that is good at producing food and given them something that I produce. That would be inefficient because I would spend a lot of time trying to find people interested in the things I can do for them that also have things that I want. It would be particularly challenging when I want something complex like a bicycle. I don't see a barter system creating bicycles because of the complexity of gathering all the raw materials, transporting them, and assembling them.

It would be lovely if everyone contributed to society without the need for something in exchange. The problem with that is that people would contribute much, much less. When I decide how much I'm going to do for other people, how much I will get back from them in return plays a big part in that decision. I do a fair amount of volunteer work, so I know that, absent any direct benefit, I would still do things for other people, but I would do much less of it.

So to me, we need money as an efficient means of exchange so that people can trade goods and services without having to barter. We cannot rely on altruism because people, without getting benefit from their work, will work less and society will be poorer for it.