The compassion capitalism makes invisible

Editors note: Some folks are curious – others are concerned – that some people in a Copiosis will not be able to receive Necessities if they have to rely on other people to provide them at no cost. The following question, offered by “Donna” allows us to address this concern:

 

I did notice that there was a stipulation that someone must contribute something to society in order to receive “necessities”. What if they can’t?  

Copiosis Economies aren’t just about tabulating inputs and compensating with outputs. They are more about being nice and making other people’s lives and the planet better. As such, measuring “contribution” only needs be approximated.

Of course, there will likely be people who will not want to contribute to others’ lives. There also will be people who “can’t”. For the former, People will still provide Necessities to them: except in the most extreme cases, most communities today support even the most introverted and anti-social, so long as that person is not harming anyone. In Copiosis that will happen even more. Why? Because those who do provide Necessities to such people will be paid of course.

Those who “can’t” contribute to society are treated even better. Anyone who takes care of people unable to provide for themselves (or others) will receive way better pay than people who do so today. I imagine they’ll also get much more satisfaction from said work as well. That’s because people doing that will be doing it because they feel compelled to do it – out of love, or out of compassion for others, or out of a desire to express themselves this way. In other words, it will be their passion. Today, some number of people who take care of these people do it for “work”. They have to earn a living, so they have chosen to do this work for whatever reason. Some do it as their passion, but many of those people often get bitter or jaded for a number of reasons. Politics, BS regulations and dictums from their higher ups, and interpersonal conflict with peers often sours the emotional “return” these people receive from doing this work. Often too, capitalism forces companies to make choices that aren’t always in the interest of those being cared for in order to make money and generate profit.

In Copiosis, some of that stuff remains. There will still be personality conflicts within organizations. But there will no longer be higher ups who tell you what to do. They can try, but because you don’t need that work, you can tell them to shove it. Businesses no longer exist as they do now. They don’t have to generate “profit” – they actually can’t make money at all. People working in organizations that take care of people who can’t contribute to society get paid only when they do things that make other people and the planet better. There is no cost restriction keeping them from doing whatever they can to make other people better, so you can imagine care for these folks to improve dramatically.

Thinking about it, those who “can’t” contribute to society, actually contribute something significant in Copiosis, that is made invisible in Traditional Capitalism: they offer the opportunity for a compassionate person to express that compassion and get paid for it.

 

If not you, who?

Who would want to express their compassion and take care of such people if people doing it now only do it to earn a living? More likely than not family members. In Copiosis Economies, mothers get paid for raising their children, adult children get paid for taking care of their aging parents, those who care for the disabled (in whatever way that may be) earn income for their efforts. In many of these cases today, income from this real work is either non-existent or paltry. In Copiosis, people who will do this work will do it because of who they are.

There will always be people who can’t take care of themselves or can’t (or won’t) contribute to society. Those people offer the right other people an opportunity and this is their contribution to society. In Copiosis, where ever there is a problem, an opportunity exists for someone to make income. Solve the problem and you get paid. The good news about that is problems that need solving will be solved by people passionate about that problem. And those who don’t give a rip don’t have to!

 

3 thoughts on “The compassion capitalism makes invisible

  1. Much of the language used to explain Copiosis is borrowed from a market economy – but does not have the same meaning. Everytime I see the word “pay” I have to convert it in my mind to “reward”. To be ‘paid’ is to have a demand satisfied – a debt is ‘paid’ and a creditor is pacified or appeased (which implies that there is an antagonistic relationship between the creditor and debtor. But in Copiosis, there is no debt.

    Also, the idea or concept of money is not the same in Copiosis as it is in our market economy. Rather than being created out of debt, it is created whenever a gift is given to another. I prefer to think of money, in a Copiosis economy, as a token of gratitude given by the community to an individual to encourage more of the giving behavior.

    1. Yep, you’re right Don. It’s a challenge as we struggle to communicate a construct that hasn’t existed. Yes, “pay” is not likely the right word. Going forward we’ll use your suggestion “reward” instead. “Token of gratitude” may be more of a challenge to use over “money”….let’s mull that one over!

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