What If We Have the Right to the Capital our Capacities Warrant?
From money with strings to money without strings
When we contemplate the power that issuing money will give us in the R Credits system, it is critical that we develop a vision for how we want our economy and society to look. Rather than going into all the social justice and environmental issues we will want to address, it might be useful to look at a fundamental issue like access to capital. In our current economic system, most of us can only get access to capital by appealing to an individual or organization that has money, such as a relative or a bank for a loan or a charity for a grant. The money usually has strings attached, so we have to tailor what we want to do to what the provider of the money wants done.
A new question arising from a new money system
What would happen if we were to adopt the idea that we have a right to the capital (money) that our capacities (abilities) warrant (justify)? In other words, what would happen if we assured each other, that in the economy and society we will be creating, our highest value is to provide each other with the wherewithal to do what we want to do? What would happen if we were to pose the question to each other: What would you like to dedicate your life to? Since we will be in a position to provide the capital for whatever that may be, the question is a real one.
What would you like to dedicate your life to?
What would you like to do to serve the needs you perceive in your community? What capacities, talents, ideas, and ideals do you have that you would like to make your life’s work? What is most important to you? What would make you jump out of bed every morning eager to get to work doing? What would happen if this is what our society and economy were all about? Do you have a right to the capital your capacities warrant?
Imagine your grandchildren’s futures
In order to make this more real, imagine that we are talking about the situation we want for our grandchildren and great grandchildren. Imagine that our great grandchildren grow up in a world in which they know that, when they are ready, they will have this question to answer: What do you want to dedicate your life to? And, in answering that question, they will know that we, their community, can provide the money for them to do it. Those children will be free to follow their dreams. Rather than settle for a merely adequate job just to make money to live on, they will be free to pursue a calling that serves the community in a way that brings them joy.
If we embrace the idea that everyone has the right to the capital that their capacities warrant, we can indeed create a society that benefits everyone.