The laws of exchange:
Life pursues survival, both in the material and non-material realms.
Survival here means being in the best possible condition for as long as possible.
Survival in the material realm is achieved through survival factors.
The true value of anything lies in its value as a survival factor.
The exchange value of anything is the value acknowledged to it.
Virtually all survival factors are produced by someone.
To produce means to bring into existence; the water in the aquifer is the resource, whilst the water coming out of the tap is the product.
The division of labour increases the production of survival factors.
Therefore, survival is based on the production and exchange of survival factors.
The ethics of survival stem from the observation that cooperation, honesty and mutual aid yield the best outcomes for everyone, whereas conflict, dishonesty and betrayal yield the worst outcomes for everyone. The criminal is unable, or unwilling, to see beyond their own nose.
Every exchange of survival factors takes place under one of the four conditions on this scale, with the best at the top and the worst at the bottom:
- Exchange in abundance: giving more value in exchange for what is received.
- Fair exchange: giving equal value in exchange for what is received.
- Partial exchange: giving lesser value in exchange for what is received.
- Criminal exchange: giving no value at all in exchange for what is received.
In the subject if the exchange, the product, is the further stage of criminal exchange: the malicious product.
The definition of malicious is: knowingly and intentionally harmful.
Whereas an ethical product is a real survival factor, a malicious product is not just valueless, but it's a knowingly and intentionally harmful product.
It can therefore be said that criminal exchange has two stages: the first is giving no value at all in exchange for what is received; the second is harming in exchange for what is received.
Exchange in abundance and fair exchange are ethical because they reward the production of survival factors, and thus contribute to their abundance.
Partial exchange, criminal exchange and malicious product are unethical because they penalise the production of survival factors, and thus contribute to their scarcity.
To put the impact – and therefore the significance – of exchange conditions into proper perspective, one need only note that monetary manipulation, arguably the greatest crime against Humanity in the entire history of humankind given its consequences, is, fundamentally, a criminal exchange.
As a result of these laws:
Ethical exchange - exchange in abundance and fair exchange - is a foundation of Good.
Unethical exchange - partial exchange and criminal exchange - is a foundation of Evil.