Equity Economics: National Wealth Index (NWI)

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• published: 09 Nov 2015
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Eileen's idea: https://www.facebook.com/somethingsea/posts/949165228490149 "My proposition is that we re-craft money, changing it from a debt-based system to an equity based system. By doing so, we can collectively capitalize what matters most to us all as human beings—both the objective material productivity of our species AND the subjective, nonmaterial quality of life that we all seek. The proposition is that we place an initial valuation (National Wealth Index) on both the economic system and the society as a whole. The Index would include GDP, the national infrastructure, the environment, all unused natural resources, the health and well-being of the people, the creative and productive potential of all our children, the quality of care we provide to the sick and elderly, the diversity and robustness of our various ecosystems, the sustainability of our practices, the peacefulness of our relationships around the world, and so forth. We would then issue adequate currency to 'capitalize' all that, and distribute some percentage of it to all our citizens in the form of an annual social dividend (which creates a basic income for everyone). The balance would be distributed to local communities, the various economic regions we identify, and some would be reserved to fund the operation of the whole system. Now consider the fact that we presently need about $3 trillion in infrastructure repair and upgrading that we 'can't afford.' Under this system, we would simply issue $3 trillion in new currency that would be collateralized by the value of the infrastructure it was intended to fund. No debt needed, and no taxation required to pay for the construction efforts. The capital would flow through the system and support jobs and local infrastructure projects, that would in turn enhance business productivity and improve the quality of life for the citizens. That would INCREASE the National Wealth index at the end of the year, which would then trigger a higher annual dividend for the citizens. If we failed to properly maintain sustainable resource use, the NWI would fall. If we polluted rivers and streams, it would decline. If people did not feel satisfied with the quality of life, it would decline, and so on. Conversely, if we upleveled the educational system and more kids were enjoying and staying in school, the NWI would rise. If we made sure we didn't tap resources faster than they are able to self-replenish, it would rise. If we cleaned up the waters and air, and focused on addressing climate change for the benefit of all humans, it would rise. If we made peace with our enemies and began to work with them rather than destructively compete with them, it would rise. This process holds a powerful advantage in that it engages people in the long-term projects necessary for human society to thrive because it provides rewards in the short run for incremental positive changes. It enables us all to be on the same page as to what benefits us all without requiring people to cough up their earnings to pay off the debt accumulated by satisfying the needs of the citizenry. It creates win/win paradigms, in that if YOUR kid gets well educated and is healthy, MY dividend goes up. Perhaps the only severe disadvantage is that it gives the people power over the present oligarchy, which threatens the status quo and makes it difficult to gain the needed buy-in for its social implementation."