QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS -- 4 official source: Prout in a Nutshell Part 18 cross-references: none this version: is the printed Prout in a Nutshell Part 18, 1st edition, version (spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic Edition. 1) Question: What should be the system of share distribution in co-operatives? Answer: PROUT advocates the phase wise socialisation of agricultural land which should be managed by farmers co- operatives. In the initial phase of transition to co-operative management, land shares should be in the hands of those who are land holders. That is, initially the shares in agricultural or farmers co-operatives should be distributed on the basis of the land vested in the co-operative. When the co-operative system is fully implemented in the agriculture sector, there will not be any distinction between landholders and non-landholders, as all members of the co-operative will be collectively responsible for the management of the land. However, this stage can only be achieved after the proper psychological preparation of the people. In the co-operative system there should not be any scope for interest earning shares; that is, there should not be profit earning shares in co-operatives. Rather shares should be according to the production of the land. If there are profit earning shares in farmers or agricultural co-operatives, then these shares will be sold in the share market, capitalists will buy the shares, the rate of share prices will fluctuate according to share market prices, and co-operatives will become commercial enterprises. Similarly, in industrial co-operatives there should be dividend earning shares and not profit earning shares as in bank interest, otherwise these co-operatives will also become commercial enterprises. If there are profit earning shares, the spirit of the co-operative system will be destroyed and co-operatives will go into the hands of the capitalists. So, there must not be any preferential shares in any farmers, producers or consumers co-operatives, only dividend shares. Share holders with preferential shares earn a fixed amount of interest from their shares regardless of whether the organisation makes a loss or profit. Preferential shares are like the sonja system in agriculture. In the sonja system, share croppers get a fixed amount from land owners when they initially agree to cultivate their land. This is given regardless of the amount produced by the share cropper, even if there is crop failure. Dividend shares earn a dividend which is defined as a return on the basis of the net profit earned by the organisation. Share holders must be people of high grade morality. In co- operatives, voting rights should be on an individual basis and not on the basis of the number of shares a person holds. In capitalist countries shares can be purchased. Democracy in capitalist countries is a farce because votes can be purchased and poor people cannot fight elections. Neither the commune system nor capitalism can solve human problems. Only the co-operative system can solve all sorts of social, cultural and national problems. 2) Question: What are service co-operatives? Answer: This type of co-operative will not be in the arena of producers or consumers co-operatives. They are a very subtle type of co-operative coming within the arena of cultural co- operatives. Let us take the example of doctors. Doctors should start service co-operatives. These co-operatives may also be called physicians service co-operatives. Suppose a doctor is not able to open his or her own practice, he or she may form a service co-operative with five or ten other doctors. Such a co-operative is an intellectual service co-operative. Doctors who have less capital and cannot afford to establish their own practice can also work in this type of co-operative. Such a system will solve the unemployment problem of doctors. In addition, doctors can start research through these co-operatives, although a doctors job is 99% practical and hardly 1% theoretical. Besides service co-operatives, there are several other types of co-operatives which include farmers co-operatives, producer co- operatives, consumer co-operatives, banking co-operatives, housing co-operatives and family annuity co-operatives. The day is fast approaching when intellectuality will rule earth. The commune system has failed -- we do not want communistic mania or philosophical phobia. Intellectually developed human beings will rule the earth, and for this the co-operative system is indispensable. 3) Question: Is there any role of positive and negative microvita in establishing PROUT in this whole universe, especially amongst the downtrodden people of the universe? If so, what is the role of positive and negative microvita? Answer: Any principle or theory should be based on logic, not sentiment, and it should be for the entire human world. The upper plexus is the abode of positive microvita and is the approach of synthesis. The lower plexus is the abode of negative microvita and is the approach of analysis. So the lower plexus is the favourite field of negative microvita. Now, do you understand the effect of negative microvita on the lower plexii? Communists are only concerned with the lower plexii so their minds are gradually becoming crude. So there is an important role of positive and negative microvita in establishing PROUT. PROUT will be established by spiritual aspirants because the approach of spiritual aspirants is synthetic. Spiritual aspirants see one in many, not many in one. Finally, many become one. So positive microvita has a more important role in establishing PROUT. 4) Question: What is the difference between a minority and a strong minority? And what does the term "weightage" mean in politics? Answer: A minority is less than 40% of the population. A strong minority is between 40% and 50% of the population. Weightage is the preferential allocation of parliamentary seats to a minority over and above what it is logically entitled to. For example, suppose in a country 38% of the population belong to one community and 62% of the population belong to another community. In a house of representatives of 100 members, the former community should have a representation of only 38 seats. If more than 38 seats are allocated to it to appease any sense of social insecurity it may have, these additional seats are considered as weightage. The weightage system does not occur in the case of strong minorities. In the past, in the Bengal parliament, there were 250 seats. Representatives were elected to 200 seats and nominated to 50 seats. That is, 50 seats were reserved for minorities and outstanding people from different fields. At that time 45% of the population belonged to one community and 55% of the population belonged to another community. To appease the former community, 120 out of the 200 seats were reserved for it, leaving only 80 seats for the latter community. This was not the correct approach because the former community were not a minority, but a strong minority. 5) Question: What is the mathematical nature of Proutistic philosophy? Is it omni-static, statico-dynamic, dynamico-static or omni-dynamic? Answer: Omni-static is a sort of negation, cynicism or nihilism. Statico-dynamic has some dynamism but is retarded by staticity, while dynamico-static also has some dynamism but only leads to the degenerative state of extended stagnation. Only omni-dynamic movement can bring about the all-round welfare of all creatures in creation. In omni-dynamic movement there is continuous movement from crudity to subtlety, leading to everlasting progress and the effulgent radiance of spirituality. Proutistic philosophy is omni-dynamic. 6) Question: What is the nature of Proutistic progress? Answer: There is simple progress and accelerated progress. In accelerated progress there is simple accelerated progress, progressive accelerated progress and compound accelerated progress. Proutistic progress is compound accelerated progress. Compound accelerated progress is not the same as compound interest, which is equivalent to progressive accelerated progress. Rather, it is a higher stage of acceleration. 7) Question: If the land is bountiful and the per capita income is very high, does it mean that the all-round micro-psychic connations or the all-round micro-psychic aspirations of the people are fully quenched or not? Answer: No. To quench the all-round micro-psychic longings of the people, there must be the following: (1) Psycho-spiritual education. There can be balkanisation of society if there is no psycho-spiritual education. (2) Rule by moralists. (3) A balanced socio-economic structure. (4) Ever-increasing purchasing power. If the per capita income is Rs. 50,000 and the price of the quintal of rice is Rs. 80,000, the condition of the people will be very bad. 8) Question: Now that Marxism is dead, what should be the role of PROUT? Answer: The physical death of Lenin took place long back, and now the intellectual death of communism or Leninism is taking place. In the West there is individual capitalism and group capitalism. In the East there is less individual capitalism and the predominance of state capitalism. The system of gaining support in capitalism is through money, and the system of gaining support in communism is through fear. For example, in India the villagers of Mindapore, Uluberia sub-division of Howrah, Hoogly and Burdwan in Bengal are politically subjugated under the fear of the Communist Party -- the communist leaders are unmasked. Now intellectuals are finding place for a new alternative -- PROUT. Generally, since 50% of society are good people, 25% are ordinary people and 25% are evil people, if you organise 50% plus 25% then 75% is gained by PROUT. Carry the message of PROUT to the people. The futility of Marxist ideas has created a vacuum. You must fill this vacuum up with Proutistic ideas. 9) Question: How far can there be an adjustment between totalitarianism and the fundamentals of democracy? Answer: Totalitarianism gives strong administration which is good, but there are also demerits in this system. What are the merits of totalitarianism? In totalitarianism the government is strong, it is true, and power is highly concentrated. If the dictator is a strong moralist then the standard of morality of the society may rise very high. The military strength is increased and all the policies and planning of the government will be easily materialised. Most of the merits of the government are there. But the main demerit is that the public voice is suppressed. Humanity wants that it should have proper scope to express its psyche though one or other media of human expression. This is wanting in totalitarianism. In democracy also merits are there and demerits are there. The merits of democracy are never properly expressed. This is the main demerit of democracy, where the people are more socio- economico-politically conscious, conscious as human beings, to some extent. But where this consciousness is lacking, there will be a mere farce. I did not say that this is the case with India, but India to some extent is like this. Have you understood? 10) Question: Say whether barter trade is suitable for an advanced country or a backward country -- a developed, developing or undeveloped country? Answer: It is suitable for a developing country, but not where the number of surplus goods -- say raw materials -- is limited or few in number. Bangladesh has a surplus in jute and hide. For that country, barter trade is suitable. Where the number of surplus goods is not much, barter trade is not required. 11) Question: When a world government will be formed, should there be any world militia? Answer: There is need for a world militia because there may be inter-planetary fight. 12) Question: Why was everything in communist countries done under the dark veil of the iron curtain? Answer: Because they were conscious of the loopholes in communism and they did not want the world to know what they were doing. 13) Question: Is there any psychological loophole in the commune system? Answer: The workers can not feel oneness with the job. If farmers feel it is their own farm, they will get good out-put. 14) Question: What is the bonus system and the piece work system? Answer: In capitalism production is for profit. The amount of the bonus is usually fixed. The actual profit is hidden from the workers and goes directly to the owner, so workers do not get any incentive to work harder and better. In communism production is for the state. Workers do not feel oneness with the job so there is little incentive to work. In PROUT production is for consumption -- our industrial system will be based on consumption. Profit will be minimised, so capitalists will not get the scope to exploit the workers and there will be rational distribution of wealth. The time involved in the production of commodities can be viewed from three angles -- the time allotted to complete some work; the time taken to complete some work; and the time saved to complete some work. In the bonus system the calculation of the bonus will be on the basis of the time saved, and the money value of this calculation will be given to the worker. This will be the incentive in the bonus system. In the piece work system, the incentive is calculated in a different way. Suppose we are manufacturing machines. The labour, etc. involved in the cost of production is set, so the market price will be the cost of production plus a rational profit. P = C + Y. A rational profit is about 15%. This amount or part of it will be distributed amongst those who manufactured the machines. This will be their incentive. As they get more incentive, workers will try to manufacture more machines. This is not the case in state capitalism because workers get fixed incentives which become part of the salary. Incentives should encourage greater work and better quality work, so they should be directly linked to production. When this system is adopted the per capita income and the standard of living of the workers will automatically increase. This is how incentives should work in the piece work system. 15) Question: Shall we support the recent cry for more power to the states? What is our policy? Answer: We support economic decentralisation. So, that much power which directly concerns economic decentralisation should be in the hands of the states or the concerning lower level governments. Otherwise, how can they materialise their economic power that is vested in them due to decentralisation? 16) Question: Human history is the history of collective psychology. How can we define collective psychology? Answer: The average psychic momentum derived from the unit psychic momentum is the momentum of the collective psychology, whose manifestations are the new events on the pages of history.