More Praise for With Liberty and Dividends for All
While Thomas Piketty proposes to tax private wealth, Peter Barness solution is to pay everyone dividends from wealth we own in common. Both approaches should be taken very seriously.
James Boyce, Professor of Economics, University of Massachusetts
In this unprecedented time, Peter Barness splash of common sense is just whats needed to spark a movement.
Frances Moore Lapp, author of Democracys Edge
Writing from a free-market perspective, I have long been concerned about the radical transformation that is occurring in our society. With this book, Peter Barnes shows how a system of universal dividends can simultaneously undergird a broad middle class and make possible a thriving market economy.
Dwight Murphey, author of A Shared Market Economy
In the last three decades, the wealthy have received most of the benefits of economic growth, with typical workers seeing little or no gains. Barness proposal to reverse this process with an equal distribution of income from co-owned wealth is worth serious consideration.
Dean Baker, author of The End of Loser Liberalism
If youre concerned about ever-growing inequality, you must read this book. It brings light to where theres only been heat and points us toward a solution that will work for all.
Richard Parker, author of The Myth of the Middle Class
It takes wisdom to transcend seemingly irreconcilable tensions on the issue of inequality. Peter Barness simple idea is grounded in such wisdom.
John Fullerton, President, Capital Institute
Elegant, powerful, pragmatic, and hopeful. This book will change the debate about whats mine and whats ours.
David Morris, cofounder, Institute for Local Self-Reliance
In this eloquent and powerful book, Peter Barnes identifies a major step toward a fair and just society. Better, he does so in the tradition of our Founders, who worked hard to ensure that every citizen would enjoy equal access to common sources of well-being.
Barry Lynn, author of Cornered
WITH LIBERTY AND DIVIDENDS FOR ALL
ALSO BY PETER BARNES
Pawns: The Plight of the Citizen-Soldier
The Peoples Land: A Reader on Land Reform in the United States (ed.)
Who Owns the Sky? Our Common Assets and the Future of Capitalism
Capitalism 3.0: A Guide to Reclaiming the Commons
Climate Solutions: A Citizens Guide
WITH LIBERTY AND DIVIDENDS FOR ALL
How to Save Our Middle Class
When Jobs Dont Pay Enough
PETER BARNES
With Liberty and Dividends for All
Copyright 2014 by Peter Barnes
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First Edition
Paperback print edition ISBN 978-1-62656-214-1
PDF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-215-8
IDPF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-216-5
2014-1
Interior design/art: Laura Lind Design. Editor: Elissa Rabellino. Cover design: Brad Foltz. Proofreader: Henri Bensussen. Credit cover art: iStock.com/peterspiro. Indexer: Katherine Stimson. Production service: Linda Jupiter Productions.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are
Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
From the US Declaration of
Independence
One Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and
justice for all.
From the US Pledge of Allegiance
For Jonathan Rowe
CONTENTS
PREFACE
I wrote this book because Im appalled by the decline of Americas middle class and outraged when our leaders mislead us about what we can and cant do to stop it.
That said, Im not by nature an angry person, and this isnt an angry book. Im a practical person who has started and led businesses for most of my working life. I want to fix capitalism rather than scuttle it. I therefore take a seasoned and, I hope, reasoned look at how our economy presently distributes income and how it might do so better in the future, without in any way diminishing liberty.
We must face the fact that jobs alone wont sustain a large middle class in the futurethere just arent, and wont be, enough good-paying jobs to do that. This means we need broadly shared streams of nonlabor income. The best way to create those streams isnt with taxes; rather, its with dividends from wealth we own together. Such dividends make political as well as economic sense. They rest on conservative as well as liberal principles and can unite our country rather than divide it.
Dividends of this sort arent redistribution; theyre a way to allocate income fairly in the first place so that theres less need to redistribute later. Nor are they government transfers or private charity. Rather, theyre legitimate property income.
Dividends from co-owned wealth wont only halt the decline of our middle class; theyll have ancillary benefits as well. Theyll dampen capitalisms overuse of nature and, at the same time, supply enough debt-free purchasing power to keep our economy humming.
Of course, Im fully aware that just because an idea makes sense doesnt mean it will be adopted. Powerful industries and individuals will fight dividends from co-owned wealth. On top of that, our political system is so dysfunctional right now that it can barely keep our government open, much less fix our economys deeper flaws. Still, I advance this simple and sensible idea because, while system changes dont happen often, they do happen occasionally. A crisis comes, and suddenly what was once unthinkable becomes not only plausible but necessary. Think back to the 1930s and 1940s if you want reminders.
