Economic, political, and legal systems

The world is a very diverse planet. Aside from the giant numbers of insects, plants, and other animals, the planets population varies a lot just within the human realm. Each continent has countries or states, and in each of those countries or states are either states or cities which are all populated with very diverse cultures.

Along with the diverse cultures come diverse economic systems. Those economic systems seem to vary between continent, country, and even state. In the most primitive of cultures, the economic system is not as structured. There are several reasons for this, but the main reason is that they are not sophisticated enough to use currency other than simple objects. Bartering and foraging are two economic systems that have been adopted by more primitive cultures.

In more advanced and more complex economic systems, there is a division of labor. This division is evident in primitive cultures, but not to the extent it is in more complex systems. There is an obvious gap between labor classes. Property rights also come into play in more complex economic systems.

Because different economic systems around the world hold different currencies as valuable, there are several different modes of consumption. Minimalism and consumerism are the two different types of consumption. Minimalism explores the idea of having less because the culture demands less. The opposite is the case for consumerism, or the way America is today.

Along with different economic systems, there are different political systems as well. Smaller cultures have very different political systems compared to larger cultures and nations. Small cultures may use tribes as a political system. Elders have the most say, hunters, and women and children may have the least.

Gender has always been a nasty bridge to cross, especially in the political realm. In some cultures, females are not allowed to participate in the political process, while in others, females hold the highest political positions.

Legal systems vary from culture to culture as well. Some have more extreme forms of punishment, while others are more humane and civil. A more primitive culture may have more extreme penalties for lawbreakers compared to a more civilized legal system such as the US.