3DN whole system
Whole Systems
- It appears to me that it would be possible for a person to understand in detail the internal function of every organism/organization that currently exists and still be thinking in two dimensions. The internal function of orgs, and all business plans that I have seen, are concerned with through put. That is, the org acquires resources, processes them and produces an output. For human orgs, if the org is successful, the output is exchanged at a profit that allows the org to acquire more resources and repeat the process. Understanding of this process is linear. Input -> Output or throughput. People then look at each org, analyze how the function of that org affects their interests and label it good or bad.
- What people seem unable to comprehend is that each such org is participating in a larger system (in the broad sense) that encompasses whole cycles of production and consumption. At this level, we can analyze the processes in terms of roundput. That is, the process by which all things are produced and consumed. The concept of spherical integration is a construct I use to distinguish what I mean from the predominately linear view of process. At this level, each org is merely doing the best they can given the structure of the system. I cannot say that one org is good and another is bad as all orgs are just trying to find their niche in the throughput. Those orgs that are successful control more resources and actively work to perpetuate the structure.
- There are several problems (dangers) with the existing structure at the spherical (roundput) level. First, like the dinosaurs the system is growing larger in the drive to a global economy and absorbing what used to be a diversity of semi-independent spherically integrated systems of local commerce. Like the dinosaurs, the bigger and more complex that the system gets, the more vulnerable it becomes to changes in the environment. Second, with each org charged only with maximizing its throughput, the system has left a huge percentage of the human population outside. Since these individuals have no skills to contribute to the throughput of any existing org, they are simply left out of the system. The longer those left out are unable to participate in the system, the more likely that they will turn to crime and violence, thereby changing the environment and posing a threat to the existing structure. Third, with each org charged only with maximizing its throughput, the system is wasting potential on several levels. It wastes the potential of humans who are not participating, it wastes the biological potential of the planet, and it wastes materials and energy.
- However, I do not want to waste my time in a futile effort to change the existing structure. ( you (Larry Victor) have said something similar – start a process that leads to metamorphosis) Efforts to change the existing structure would be like confronting the Tyranosaurus head on. I think you would get eaten.
- What I can do is create new orgs that are designed to take advantage of the weaknesses in the existing system. I can design processes that internalize production and consumption cycles that allow these new orgs to approach “whole” system status – or - approach spherical integration. Initially, each org must produce throughput to be able to acquire resources that can then be used for roundput. Fortunately, there is so much waste in the existing whole system that it is fairly simple to see niches for the required throughput.
- That is what the Self-help Corporation is designed to do, employ the humans now being wasted by the existing system to make use of the wasted energy, materials and biological potential. Rather than then striving for throughput efficiency, it is designed to acquire roundput proficiency.
- I find the predominance of two dimensional thinking limits the possibilities that people are able to grasp. In both the social justice and environmental discussions I have had, I have encountered people sincerely concerned with the affects of the existing system. When I suggest a particular course of action, they respond that my proposal is interesting and then go back to discussing how they might coax the dinosaur to behave differently. I believe that they can see only the two dimensional aspects of my proposal.
- I believe that a planetary system of human organizations would be much more stable if it consisted of stable whole system components. At the same time, there are aspects of the existing system that are compatible with the proposed design. I see it as in the interest of humans to retain the capacity for the highly efficient automated production of goods, particularly tools that then can be used to produce roundput in the component systems.
Back to Introduction
Back to Table of Contents
