Where Effort Was Currency
The Dawn of Value: An Analysis of the Pre-State Economy Where Effort Was Currency Introduction: Before currencies were minted and markets were built, and long before philosophers wrote their first theories, humanity practiced economics in its purest and most primitive form. In the pre-state era , value was not measured in gold or silver, but by a direct and simple equation: the economy equaled direct effort. This article explores the foundational principles of the first economic system known to man. Labor as Absolute Value: In the societies of hunters, gatherers, and primitive farmers, there was no separation between work and daily life. True wealth was the ability to exert effort to secure food and shelter. This system, based on direct physical effort, represents the core concept of "Proof of Work," where an individual's productivity was the measure of their value to the group. Environmental Technology as a Value Multiplier: Early humans were not merely prisoners o...