A World Order

Billy and Jane were sitting at a table playing chess. He was pushing a Queen’s Gambit. Jane was just starting to build her defence. Around them chickadees sang while crickets chirped. The wind blew the elm’s leaves in harmonic accord. A dove cooed in a nearby copse. The gaming duo was temporarily lost in an invigorating yet brief, harmless encounter. In the end, one will win; one will lose; no one will be worse off.

Today’s governments depend upon debt to finance their day-to-day operations. If they can’t meet obligations, they default. Corporations use a similar scheme. Some have an interesting habit of going bankrupt every 3 to 5 years. Their game seems to revolve around diluting the impact so that no single shareholder gets greatly affected. For instance, in the last four years 23 resource sector companies have experienced an equity loss of $650 billion. Not to worry, it’s only a game. If you invested in the services sector as well then your portfolio is probably still doing better than the government’s. The future shouldn’t be worse off.

Losing a game of chess may make you wiser. Losing value in a government’s currency may doom a culture. Losing value in your portfolio may dim your future well-being. Losing Earth’s natural ecosystem will end Billy’s future, Jane’s futures and yours. Can the world afford such a game?
Gold Crown

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