“Those Who Make Peaceful Revolution Impossible, Make Violent Revolution Inevitable.” JFK
There are two kinds of revolution. There are peaceful revolutions that are won and lost on the battlefields with ideas, reasons, persuasion, and mutual respect. And there are violent revolutions that are won and lost on the battlefields with force and weapons including guns, bombs, grenades, drones, tanks, ships, planes, destruction, bloodshed, death, and mutual contempt.
In March of 1962 then President John F. Kennedy warned, “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable.” In August of 2023, America sits on the brink of revolution with the violent forces of fascism gathering on one side, and the proponents of a genuine political democracy gathering on the other.
Despite the fact that it exists, neither side is currently offering a viable solution to the existential threats (poverty, racism, ecological destruction, and war) that face the modern world. Check out the following explanation and see if you wouldn’t prefer to make peaceful revolution a tangible reality in order to avoid the inevitable violent revolution if we fail.
Economic Democracy/Economic Freedom
Make every individual American, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, or political persuasion (including Trump voters), an OWNER OF INCOME PRODUCING CAPITAL ASSETS while creating NO GOVERNMENT RED INK! Sound impossible? Read on.
Here’s How In Three Simple Steps
1. The Federal Reserve (as authorized by the Federal Reserve Act, section 13, paragraph 2) through local banks, could make an ANNUAL, $10,000 LINE OF CREDIT AT ZERO PERCENT INTEREST accessible to every American.
2. These funds could only be monetized (turned into money) by the purchase of qualified, income-producing capital assets (stocks, machines, land, etc.) that will predictably PAY THEMSELVES OFF with PRE-TAX DOLLARS from FUTURE EARNINGS/DIVIDENDS in 3 to 7 years.
3. As each ANNUAL line of credit pays itself off in 3 to 7 years, the dividends would continue to flow and they’d become an ANNUAL INVESTMENT INCOME for their new, economically empowered owners.
More specifically, have a look at THE NUMBERS BELOW.
According to a CPA’s calculation, in their 12th year of life, the AVERAGE AMERICAN would have invested $130,000 and PRODUCED over $9,000 of investment income. In their 18th year, they’d have invested $190,000, PRODUCED over $18,000 of investment income, and college is suddenly affordable.
In their 40th year, they’d have invested $410,000 and PRODUCED over $50,000 of investment income. In their 65th year, they’d have invested $660,000, PRODUCED almost $90,000 of investment income, and retirement is suddenly affordable.
And cumulatively, over 65 years, the average American would have PRODUCED OVER $2,500,000 of investment income and a life full of economic freedom!
There’s NO GOVERNMENT RED INK because each capital loan transaction is INSTANTLY BACKED by CAPITAL CREDIT INSURANCE that accompanies every transaction in case an investment falls short of expectations.
Every American thus becomes an owner of income-producing capital assets and an ECONOMICALLY PRODUCTIVE/ EMPOWERED MEMBER OF SOCIETY.
And in the process, the economic roots of POVERTY, RACISM, ECOLOGICAL DESTRUCTION, and WAR, are undermined, while the number of people capable of paying taxes DOUBLES! This in turn systematically REDUCES TAXES on those who still pay them.
And since PRODUCTION ALWAYS PRECEDES CONSUMPTION in the Economic Democracy paradigm, inflation is rendered negligible.
That’s it! Sound crazy? Let’s quote the indefatigable Nelson Mandela who once said, “It always seems impossible UNTIL IT’S DONE! If you’re intrigued and want to know more, here are 12 objections to Economic Democracy you might like. For further details check out CESJ.ORG.
12 Objections to Economic Democracy and 12 Responses…
1. That sounds like a SOCIALIST plot to me. Bernie would love it. But I don’t!
On one hand, we agree it does everything that Bernie and the Progressives want to do. So, it’s easy to misconstrue Economic Democracy as a socialist strategy. On the other hand, it’s fiscally conservative! It not only avoids creating any government debt, but it reduces taxes, and it allows our nation to start paying down our $32 trillion-dollar national debt as well. Real conservatives should absolutely love this!
Think of it this way. Socialism is all about public (government) ownership. Capitalism is all about private (corporate or individual) ownership. And it doesn’t take a genius to see that Economic Democracy is all about spreading the ownership of income-producing capital assets out into the hands of individual Americans (we the people) across the USA. So, it’s definitely a free-market, universal capitalist strategy, not a socialist strategy.
2. Where does all that money come from?
For starters, there’s NO MONEY CREATED UNTIL a new productive opportunity is identified, vetted, and a purchase is actually made. When the participant is ready to pull the trigger, the Federal Reserve creates the funds, the purchase is made, and the entire transaction is instantly collateralized by Capital Credit Insurance which accompanies every transaction. So, there’s no risk for the government or the individual participant.
3. The real question is, how will that new capital be financed?
If the wealthy use their “past savings” to pay for the new capital, they will own it. If the government uses tax dollars or goes further into debt to pay for the new capital, the government will own it. Economic Democracy enables “we the people” (meaning every individual citizen) to have equal access to the means (money and credit) needed to pay for and own the new capital that will produce the new goods and services we consume. Economic Democracy empowers everyone - NOT just the few - to participate in the ownership side of the economy, so they can GENERATE INCOME FROM THE CAPITAL THEY OWN.
4. Won’t all that new money flowing into the market cause massive inflation?
There will be lots of new money flowing into the market, but not without a comparable amount of production PRECEDING and actually CAUSING the new money to be created. The imbalance that creates inflation is literally impossible in this paradigm.
5. So, what does the Economic Democracy paradigm have to say about taxation?
We would SIMPLIFY TAXES to the point that individuals and corporations will no longer need an accountant to do their taxes. We would minimize if not eliminate all taxes that discourage diffused, individualized ownership of income-producing capital assets.
For example, qualified corporations that feature full voting rights and full dividend payouts would have corporate profit taxes eliminated completely. The profits distributed as dividends would be taxed as individual income. Adults earning less than $30,000 and minors earning less than $20,000 would pay no income tax. So, a family of four (2 adults and 2 minors) who earned $100,000 or less would pay no income tax.
Over half of Americans make so little that they’re unable to pay income taxes. By creating equal capital ownership opportunities for every citizen, we will DOUBLE the number of individuals who are capable of paying income taxes, while REDUCING income taxes for those who currently pay them. Everyone will become an economically productive/empowered member of society. In the process, we’ll be able to fund governmental requirements and start paying down our $31 TRILLION national debt.
6. Does Economic Democracy appeal more to conservatives or progressives?
To be honest this strategy appeals to BOTH SIDES. It appeals to the fiscally conservative Republican who wants to rein in spending and live within our means. It also appeals to the liberal Democrat who wants a level playing field where everyone has an equal opportunity to prosper. And since it systematically promotes independence from the government (i.e. freedom), the only people who disapprove of the Economic Democracy are autocrats who want to control “we the people.”
7. Has Economic Democracy been pilot-project tested to see how it performs?
Yes and No. The basic mechanics of this strategy have been thoroughly tested in the roughly 8000 employee-owned companies and 11 million employee-owners that have been created over the past 50 years. And Economic Democracy is really just an expansion of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) strategy that aims to provide all Americans an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from ownership of the new wealth being created in the American economy every year. However, it has yet to be formally tested in a national setting.
8. Wouldn’t this strategy create a financial incentive to have too many children?
On the contrary, statistics indicate that as family incomes increase the tendency to have more children actually decreases.
9. How can a child make the kinds of investment decisions required by this strategy?
Parents (with the fiduciary advice from a local banker) will have to make these decisions until the child turns 18 years of age.
10. If your predictions are accurate, everyone will have at least enough money to cover their basic necessities. Under such conditions nobody will be willing to take the low-paying, boring, repetitive, mechanical, meaningless jobs that so many have to take today in order to keep a roof overhead, food on the table, and clothes on their backs. Who will do that kind of work?
Artificial intelligence (AI) is in the process of gobbling up all those kinds of jobs anyway. That’s what AI is good at. On the other hand, most people will want to avoid sitting around and wasting their lives. Under these conditions, people will be FREE to spend their lives doing things that are productive and meaningful to them instead of being industrial sharecroppers or wage slaves.
11. How will I know if an investment is solid enough to be “qualified.”
Let the investment banks and insurance companies be your guide. Both are notoriously risk averse. They specialize in minimizing risk. If they turn the investment down, it’s probably a poor (or unqualified) investment.
12. Who’s the primary proponent of the Economic Democracy Act?
That would be the Center for Economic and Social Justice, headquartered in Arlington, VA. More information on the Economic Democracy Act is available at CESJ.ORG.