Elements of the systemic design
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The Pluralist Commonwealth is a schematic model of a political-economic system based on the development of a robust vision of community democracy as the necessary foundation for a renewal of democracy in general. “Pluralist” to emphasize the priority given to democratic diversity and individual liberty; “Commonwealth” to underscore the centrality of new public and quasi-public wealth holding institutions that take on ever greater power on behalf of the community of the nation as a whole as the twenty-first century unfolds.
The model projects the development over time of a (pluralist) variety of new ownership institutions, ranging from locally anchored worker-owned and other community-benefiting firms, on the one hand, to state, regional and national wealth-holding public institutions, on the other. These ultimately would take the place of current elite and corporate ownership of the preponderance of large-scale capital. Over time a fundamental shift in the ownership of wealth would slowly move the nation as a whole toward greater equality. Private smaller firms and high tech innovative enterprise are also envisioned in the model. The changes would also help finance a reduction in the workweek so as to permit greater amounts of free time, thereby bolstering both individual liberty and democratic participation. As population continues to grow, the model also moves in the direction of, and ultimately projects, a long-term devolution of the national system to some form of regional reorganization and decentralization—a strategic move important not only to democracy and liberty, but to the successful democratic management of ecological and other pressing issues. Click on the categories to the right for more information on each of the elements as well as links to articles, papers, and other work in each area. Much of the work includes material that can fit into multiple categories. |