Bill Gates proposes a move toward capitalism for the lower 1/3 of the words population. It will be interesting to see how well this works.

His wants businesses and individuals to help people and nations out of poverty and grow into contributing members of a true capitalistic world economy.

So here is my contribution. This is a six part solution to the world’s problems. This outline was developed by determining the root cause of the problem and looking for a path to solve the problem. It identifies what needs to be done.

1. Solving the energy problem is the first step. Declare energy and its infrastructure as an essential necessity of life. Without energy you can’t have true or new capitalism. If you don’t think so then you are part of the problem. Try becoming part of the solution and figure out how to better solve the problem.
a. We need to make energy as inexpensive for the world as possible. By making renewable and ecologically responsible energy in vast quantities to drive the cost of energy down to the lowest possible price.
b. This will reduce the need for non-renewable energy sources like oil, gas, and coal. These will now become resources for products that can satisfy the increased demand that will be generated by the new capitalism.
c. We have the technology to make all the renewable electricity the world needs today and for the foreseeable future. True capitalism will reward those that invest in and develop the new innovations and technologies that will satisfy the ever increasing demand for more energy that will always be present.
d. We need true capitalism to move this technology out into the world and start building the infrastructures that will be needed to support all the new world prosperity that will be created by this one step alone.
e. As the cost of energy comes down, the cost of producing and providing goods and services is reduced. The cost of moving goods is reduced.
f. The cost of goods and services will be based on its value to society and less on its energy content.

2. Solving the water problem is step two. Water and its infrastructure are essential to life. Solving the energy problem will make this possible. Using inexpensive energy to make water available when and where it is needed.

3. Solving the food problem is step three. Food and its infrastructure are essential to life. With energy and water you can produce food wherever you need to.
By driving down the cost of the first three necessities for life – you will develop a foundation and infrastructure that will allow you to solve the remaining problems. The first three solutions are sequential – the next three are not.

You can’t have true capitalism without the infrastructure gained by solving the first three problems. Solving these six problems lays a social foundation needed for people to maximize their potential, focus on satisfying social needs, personal fulfillment and the pursuit of happiness.

Greed and self fulfillment at the expense of others would be the same as steeling – immoral and criminal.

Jobs will be created to satisfy solving all the problems outlined by this solution. Value will return to jobs and positions that have been eliminated by the high cost of energy, food and water. The cost of manufacturing will be normalized by reducing the shipping cost to a world valued price. The price of labor will start to normalize around the word. Prices will start to reflect social value instead of energy value.

Any economy that refuses to solve the first three problems will not be able to compete with the economies that do.

4. Solving the housing problem is step four. Having a place to live is a necessity. Making sure that adequate land and resources are available for the people to live and grow. Goods and services will adjust in cost and value. The cost to produce new energy efficient housing will go down. The cost to renovate and update existing housing will go down. There would be a need for more trade skilled workers to build and maintain housing and buildings. As the cost of housing is reduced and people are able to find jobs that are valued by society – they will be able to afford housing.

5. Solving the medical coverage problem is step five. Access to medical coverage is a necessity. As the cost of living comes down, the cost of good medical coverage should also come down. As more people are competitive employed in the world economy and more jobs are created in the technical, social and medical sectors of the local economies. It will become more expensive to not provide health care.

6. Solving the education availability problem is step six. Education is a necessity. People need to be able to go to school to develop to highest level they can achieve. We need to make education readily available to everyone.

Help define and solve the problems that will make the necessary changes. We each have the ability to make a difference.

Second, the notion that unfettered capitalism is the most expeditious way to feed the poor and improve the infrastructures of poor countries is naive and dangerous. Even Adam Smith noted that types of intervention are needed to preserve the integrity and power of free market forces. In nations that suffer from corrupt or short sighted leadership and cumbersome bureaucracies (that is to say, all nations), we need to bring modified capitalism to bear ASAP if we want to stabilize prosperity and lift the billion+ people who are simply out of the virtuous globalized capital loop. Gates point is that more innovative approaches to capitalism will benefit everybody, and he’s spot on.

If companies aren’t paying people enough, those people are unable to buy the products and services that those companies provide, and everyone suffers. Contrary to popular belief, the rich don’t benefit from the rest of the population being impoverished.

In the US, our problems lie with an out of control credit industry. A high availability of credit - the ability to easily spend money you don’t have - pushes down wages and pushes up prices.

However, in the third world things are not so simple. Their poverty stems from political and, ultimately, cultural flaws (just as bribery is culturally acceptable in Mexico, etc.). And no amount of “new capitalism” or aid money is going to mend a culture.

I see him running for president someday.

When Corporations, like GW Bush is now realizing, begin to “Prime the pump” a bit, then profit can be made again. Jesus of Nazareth had the best idea. Sell all you have and give it to the poor. You think, what?!?!? That is an alien concept. But, He’s saying, if you take care of the poor that buys your products, prospertity will be had by all.

I won’t criticize Bill Gates. Despite my many blue screen errors, I like Microsoft Windows. I also like Ubuntu.

From this position it’s very easy to criticise. I’ve no true idea of the hardships others face. I can only try and imagine but I’ll never really know what it’s like for someone, living in a poor developing nation, with no hope of an education, with a future they don’t control and a government that exists for the benefit of themselves not the people. I have no idea of the true magnitude of how that would crush me, I can only assume.

What Bill Gates is suggesting is giving the opportunity and choice I have in my life, and you in yours, to those people really in need. Whatever argument you use about how Bill Gates got to where he is today, you cannot for a second seriously argue that our form of Capitalism isn’t better to the poor than a cruel dictatorship and no hope of freedom at all.

Helping the poor ? Why the heck does anyone by himself need to own as much as millions of others ? How about capping individual wealth such as that of Gates at 100 million and redistributing the rest? That will truly get the world economy moving and release unstoppable creative forces that will ring in our new millenium in a positive way ! It will release the poor from their slavedom. Re-boot !!

china@crossroads - I agree.

Now focusing on the world’s ills, Gates has simply turned those ills into his competitor and he is bringing his money, his connections, his innovation, and his passion to win to the table.. and I look forward to the day where his efforts bear fruit.

oh, wait a second. they have….kids in Africa are now getting malaria pills and mosquito nets, children in China are getting AIDS meds, researchers all over the world have received funding to tackle both issues, etc etc.

What Gates is preaching is not a new capitalism, or even a new economic model, his is trying to bring economic benefit to the bottom of the pyramid by showing his peers (the people who make decisions that impact the world) that there is good money there.

It is not a new concept by any means, but neither was DOS when he saw the value there.

r
http://www.china-crossroads.com

capitalism will not change not matter what gates saying cause the world can’t be change by a computer guy!

I don’t care what anybody writes about Bill Gates, the Gates Foundation will make a difference in the world, where disease and starvation is killing millions of people who frankly don’t give a toss about pc’s. What does money, oil, fame mean when you have an hour to live?

Gates made his money as far as I know by being shrewd , clever and acting in a proper business manner. Nobody handed him anything , he worked his arse off to build microsoft , he paid taxes , offered jobs and even made hundreds millionnaires. Gates does not owe the US people anything. He could go and spend all his money on big toys like larry ellison or sergey and page but instead he wants to help people.

If larry and page blew their money on stuff will the same people be saying they sold out on the US people ? hell no.

Bill did business and he did it better than the rest . Good for bill . Yours all jealous asses if you say bill sold out. lets see you all go and build and empire and still refrain from being shrewd and instead being nice and considerate to your competition. then lets see what empire you build.

Its a dog eat dog in business people. get real

I guess it always good to see former assholes reform. Maybe because Microsoft is getting kicked in the ass by Google, Gates figures he’s to old for this monopoly stuff. Might as well try to save the world with all the money he’s obtained through that “old kind of capitalism”.

Unlike people like Bono , G8 summit leaders etc whom come up with either false promises or short term effects bill actually has looked into the problem.

The problem in helping poor people is that too much aid is given and the bulk is stolen by corrupt leaders or wasted whilst the other half has to be earmarked for western companies. Unless the poor nations earmark that money for western companies to receive in sub par contracts then the richer governments refuse to give aid. its a silly world we live in.

Its the whole concept that oxfam have always had ” give a man a fish and he can feed his family for a day , give him a fishing net and he can feed and educate / lift his family out of poverty for a lifetime “.

Bill unlike most of the worlds billionaires ie google founders, yahoo founders , oracle etc wants to help people instead of fly round in jumbo jets and have expensive toys.

Techcrunch , thanks for covering this issue , it better than that fickle crap you reported on about google giving out a few million.

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http://www.xencasino.com

What’s your suggestion here - Microsoft DOESN’T act in its own interests, goes bankrupt, putting thousands of people out of work? From Radiohead to Jimmy Wales, these people are all doing the same thing: earning as much money as they can. Bill Gates just happens to be very good at earning money.

When we have Bill Gates the philanthropist, we have those talents that made Microsoft such a powerful company being put to ending malaria, tuberculosis, starvation, drought, and perhaps even some of the never-ending wars. Sure he’s doing it because he wants to feel good about himself - why do you give to charity? Or do you consider releasing a free plugin for Ubuntu to be on the same level as helping to end AIDS? Wouldn’t it be great if he taught Somalians how to be a ‘Microsoft’ in the face of an ‘IBM’?

If you people can’t just give someone credit for actually doing something to change the world then you should take a long hard look at yourselves.

Or, rather, he’s trying to broaden the definition of utility to include the thriving of the human race, a terrible thing to do.

It’s funny to watch the intertrons smart, rational crowd rabble around, often claiming to be libertarians, without a basic understanding of how Rational Choice works.

Fun times.