“The toughest thing to do in politics is to do the right thing when your supporters think the right thing is something else.”
Pat Toomey, US Senator
In early January we reported on the heavily pessimistic views of the British public for this year which is nearly behind us, as established by an Economic Research Council survey. How right they have proved to be: war in Europe, a rapidly falling standard of living across the world, and political instability here in the United Kingdom. 2022 is not a year to remember.
Our focus is mainly on the search for a more egalitarian form of capitalism leading to greater sharing of resources and potential, and more respect for others. But, while the majority of our comment looks for a better way forward, war and politics have demanded otherwise on many occasions during this year.
Let's hope that, as we approach 2023, we are at the low point of that realised pessimism, at the nadir of the economic cycle, and at the point when tyrants recognise the limits of force and suppression of individual freedom. The next two weeks give us a chance to reset the dial — we must do better in 2023.
During an interview on CNN to mark his imminent retirement from the US Senate, Pat Toomey — a Republican who stood up to Donald Trump — spoke of economic freedom as his key guiding purpose, and there are many who would agree with him.
But dig a little deeper — is he speaking for all as an aspiration, or on behalf of just those who already enjoy it?
The fact is that 2022 has shown us everything that is currently wrong about our economic model and the extent that freedom is experienced. It has shown us how the huge trade imbalances, about which we spoke on 14 March, have brought the world to its knees by application of energy strangleholds and disrupted supply chains. As for freedom, autocracies across the world are cracking their whips, leading people to undertake desperate attempts at migration.
It's time for political leaders such as Pat Toomey to turn their attention to how economic freedom for all can be enabled, and that has to start with respect for the individual at all levels of society. Only by experiencing a genuine sense of economic freedom can people achieve a world at peace with itself: freedom by itself might sound good, but without the resources to provide for food and shelter it can be a hollow concept; meanwhile reliance on others for subsistence removes most of what's left in terms of self-respect.
So, the journey towards participation for all needs to start in 2023; those who speak of economic freedom need to embrace the aims of egalitarian capitalism. This means:
- taking a close look at how we approach the opportunity for empowering disadvantaged young people through the human cycle of life and death; this is the essence of inter-generational rebalancing.
- It means finding ways to use the technological revolution as a worldwide tool for individual empowerment: not just to spread knowledge, but also to spread stock ownership and wealth creation in return for data storage and harvesting.
- It also means significant, and much more focused, targeting of the safety net for those who still can't benefit from economic freedom: by not allowing universal welfare provision to act as electoral bribery, subsidising the wealthy while failing to meet the basic needs of the poor.
These should be the key objectives among democratic nations in 2023, enabling us to demonstrate to the autocracies that there is a better way forward in which individuals everywhere can enjoy a sense of economic participation.
We will be continuing to advocate this transformation of society, building on progress already achieved. The ‘Share’ enterprises include The Share Foundation, which has just published its annual review demonstrating how inter-generational rebalancing can work in practice, and which is currently engaging in conversations with charities in California and France to replicate empowerment for disadvantaged young people, using starter capital accounts and incentivised learning.
In Cambridge, the SHARE four-year research programme is now underway, and a new charity called Share Alliance is being formed to oversee these developments. We hope to host an initial conference based at King’s College, Cambridge during the second quarter of next year.
The journey towards a more egalitarian form of capitalism will include research, education and training, advocacy and implementation: some of which can take place nationally, while some call for global treatment. These are ambitious targets but, if we are genuine about wanting a world whose inhabitants are at peace with themselves and with others, we need to make the case for change — not just within autocracies, but also with the rich and powerful.
Meanwhile Share Radio will continue to provide a communication vehicle for this change to a new generosity of spirit which can move us forward in 2023.
Gavin Oldham OBE
Share Radio