The Commonwealth
ReturnWe, The Commonwealth
With these 95 Statements declare our claim to dignity and equitable prosperity in perpetuity.
Grievances
We, The Commonwealth:
- reject the idea that the primary purpose of life is to maximize financial gain and material possessions
- reject the notion that competition between people is the only way to drive progress
- reject the idea that human worth is based on monetary or material value
- reject the idea that having access to reputable education is a privilege
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over environmental protection
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over social cohesion
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over human rights
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over global cooperation
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over sustainable development
- reject the idea that economic growth should be prioritized over the rights of future generations
- reject current economic modalities and dogma predicated on infinite expansion and growth of extractive processes
- reject systems and processes of inequality in all forms, recognizing them as part of the same class struggle against systemic mechanisms detached from human experience
- reject social divisions, seeing all life as equally vulnerable, fleeting and precious, yet brutish when social contracts become misaligned
Asymmetric Observations
We, The Commonwealth:
- see the information asymmetry baked into the system between financial service providors and consumers
- see the information asymmetry baked into the system's perspective of itself stemming from its dependence on lagging indicators and flawed economic models that don't adequately account for the human experience
- see the information asymmetry present within financial and crypto media coverage
- see the information asymmetry present within credit ratings agencies
- see the information asymmetry present between goods and service providors and consumers
- see the information asymmetry resulting from paygated access to data of public interest (RIP Aaron)
- reject information asymmetry as the moral hazard it represents, seeking transparency in all social contracts
Systemic Observations
We, The Commonwealth:
- see the cronyism and nepotism prevalent within our current systems of value and power
- see the self dealing prevalent in the system and the caste system it produces and perpetuates
- see and live with the negative reality of taxation without representation that's become too commonplace
- see and live with the negative consequences of allowing lobbyists to write legislation
- see and live with the negative consequences of a monetary system detached from the human capital it derives its value from
- see the live with the negative consequences of allowing for the rapid and complete consolidation of industries
- see and feel the effects of widening inequality as cost of living outpaces wages
- see and feel the impact of reliance on a global marketplace in an era of increasing resource scarcity
- see both the ability and necessity of routing around compromised actors to adapt to new economic modalities
Social Observations
We, The Commonwealth:
- see and live with the negative consequences of living through the social media age
- see and feel the statistically supported degradation of attention spans stemming thereof
- see and feel the statistically supported increase in mental health issues stemming thereof
- see the proliferation of astroturfed toxicity and the contrived tribal lines it exploits and perpetuates
- see and live with the negative consequences of normalizing the idea of an "attention economy", reducing human existance to a single, scalar value
- see and live with the erosion of real connection as people have grown acustomed to becoming lost in their screen
- see and feel the increased burnout stemming from the always connected, always working culture we've cultivated
- see and feel the growing anxiety about our future and the negative impacts of unchecked overproduction
- see and fully understand the role our extractive financial systems play in our slow motion self immolation
- see, feel and live with the negative consequences of historical levels of disttrust of the system
Core Beliefs
We, The Commonwealth:
- believe Construcal Law represents a pure model for natural, sustainable growth
- believe Stafford Beer's Viable System Model represents a generalized pragmatic form thereof
- believe it is vain to trust in salvation by indulgence letters
- believe with great power comes great responsibility
- believe "think global, act local" is cheese, but a good starting point for change agents; the onus being on action
- believe Murray Bookchin's ideas on Communalism represent a generalized pragmatic form thereof
- believe the power of heroic communities is greater than the burnout causing dependence on heroic individuals
- believe intentional communities increase information bandwidth and opportunity potential
- believe information asymmetry represents an existential threat to capitalism and democracy that should be actively reduced and negated
Value System (Definition of Social Capital)
We, The Commonwealth:
- demand a value system that prioritizes human dignity
- demand a value system that enables human opportunity
- demand a value system rooted in ethics
- demand a value system compatible with the resource scarcity age
- demand a value system compatible with Constructal Law
- demand a value system driven by data
- demand a value system that people can understand
- demand a value system underwritten by clearly defined reserves of value
- demand a value system who's trust mechanic is the elimination of trust
- demand a value system with full transparency of all variables
- demand a value system better equipped to smooth out boom-bust cycles
- demand a value system that doesn't reduce human experience to a single scalar value
Identity
We, The Commonwealth:
- demand a network of value that puts people in control of their data
- demand a network of value that compensates fairly for any data shared
- demand a network of value that enables named, pseudonymed and anonymous personas
- demand a network of value that aims to streamline processes through unidirectional dataflows
- demand a network of value that bakes transparency into its processes
- demand a network of value that promotes consortiums over corporatations
- demand a network of value where corporations are in fact _not people_, with the _people_ steering the ship held responsible for their decisions
- demand a network of value seeking to pair have-nots with haves in accordance with needs in time
- demand a network of value prioritizing vertical mobility and an aggregate increase in positive social capital vectors over time
- demand a network of value where the people are represented at the decision making table
- demand a network of value that bakes in the ideals of free association and free movement into its core
Social Contract
We, The Commonwealth:
- observe the inequalities hard coded into our current set of social contracts
- reject all social contracts that perpetuate inequality in all forms
- will seek alternative economic vehicles wherever necessary to vote daily with our consumer choices
- will create alternative economic vehicles wherever lacking or deficient to forge the new economy of the commons, for the commons, by the commons
- will forge partnerships and consortiums as relevant and mutually beneficial
- will seek to advance financial literacy education, making understandable both the currently employed mechanisms of plunder and their alternatives
- will seek to advance opportunities made available to creators, researchers, philosophers and mad scientists
- will seek to enfranchise the disenfranchised, and develop the value network and its tools with regionalized global needs in mind
- will seek to leverage pooled resources to underwrite mandate guided investments and social insurance pools
Governance
We, The Commonwealth:
- demand governance be rooted in reality from the perspective of people within the network
- demand governance allow new ideas to flourish regardless of access to capital
- demand governance contain checks and balances accounting for threats to the org
- demand governance define clear metrics and KPIs to provide clarity of context for decisions
- demand governance leverages data paired with KPIs to build automations into its systems
- demand governance defer to data in any remediation procedures
Action
We, The Commonwealth:
- are no longer willing to accept the status quo
- will build our new world better, together
- will expand our network's reach further, together
- will never stop experimenting and seeking improved models, ever
- will aim to define for future generations what the viable system model of "social capitalism" looks like
- will share our research in order to become an unstoppable hydra of economic change
- will share our tools in order to empower change agents globally
- will prefer direct action to delegated responsibility
- choose dignity, love, solidarity and compassion
Declaration Of Agreement
We, The Commonwealth, agree on enough of the above statements to work together building something new, daring and, if successful, epoch defining together. Each Citizen of The Commonwealth will aim to apply their unique perspectives and skills to the challenges defined, and will reflect on the 95 Statements to keep open eyes for applications of its principals in their daily local contexts.
If you agree, sign up to be kept in the loop for launch of The Commonwealth Capital Model and the Citizen DID system, when you'll be able to declare your agreement on-chain and help sculpt the triumph of the commons, by the commons, for the commons.
Together, We The Commonwealth #WTCW
