S2 E26 Citizen Seed Funding: An Investment in Our Future

Episode discussion topics <ul><li>We're on the hunt for solutions and one or more of the various flavors of universal basic or supplemental income programs looms large. The more that MVP and RWJ look into these ideas, the more water they seem to hold and more potentially beneficial their side effects. They are even coining a new term and tagline for it: Citizen Seed Funding empowering generations to come. This idea aligns with the tenants of Doughnut Economics and is reminiscent of that comment regarding life having the propensity to leave conditions conducive to life. In this regard, seed funding would have the potential to be as restorative and empowering for generations of people in society, just as seeds beget life. </li> <li>We all deserve freedom. Part of being free is having your own agency to choose. That extends to the capitalist market systems we have in place. People should be empowered to a position of choice when it comes to whether or not to participate, under what conditions, and for how long. Today we're born into it and have to scramble for better odds (through relationships) and/or leverage (demanded skills), but it's not how it has to be. People can be born free to choose how and when to participate in the commercial economy. They can use it to serve a need and not become beholden to it. And we will participate in sufficient quantities, because it's quite lucrative, even with a universal basic or supplemental income feature installed.</li> <li>How's it work? It can work a multitude of ways, however for illustrative purposes, here's what it looks like: The government keeps depositing stimulus checks into people's accounts who make less than $40,000 USD. That's it. </li> <li>How do you pay for it? Again, a multitude of ways, but they should be limited to revenue streams that are not fickle or place an undue burden on economic activity. The easiest places are from wealth, estate transfer, and market activity (buy/sell) taxes. We'll be diving in more in the future.</li> <li>Then what? Just wait