This is why wise kings of old, in order to establish a social order, made all units of measurements consistent. Fairness in transaction begins with measurements; in a word, the kings wanted to introduce fairness in all transactions. If every merchant had his own different balances and weights, it would create chaos and inevitably lead to fights and bloodshed. (Copied content from Ilchi Lee’s book)

Even today, different parts of the world use different units of measurement and worth. The U.S. still insists on using the mile and pounds while the rest of the world, with some exceptions, uses the metric system. However, since the conversion between the two systems is accurate and universally accepted, there is no source of conflict except for the cumbersome calculation required. The same goes for currency, with each country having its own system of money. Such differences in units of measurements are not sources of conflict in the world.

What is a cause for conflicts and arguments is the different value that each person places upon the same thing. Even if a “Mickey D’s Quarter-Pounder” is a quarter-pounder whether measured in kilograms or pounds, each person and each society places different worth on the same amount of hamburger. This is because each person and each society has different standards by which they measure value. Until now. we considered such differences to be a matter of fact, obvious and ubiquitous.