“Zero Money”: First Principles Thinking About Monetary Value
Change the Money, Change the World (27)
Addendum 3 — Political strategy and tactics: DiEM25 Tech Sovereignty 1
Democracy in Europe Movement and the The Progressive International
Commentary 1: This addendum will provide commentary on the specific agenda for Technological Sovereignty on the platform of the Democracy in Europe Movement DiEM25. This addendum will consist of five postings (27 to 31). DiEM25 is the regionally developed leading model for The Progressive International. Commentaries will be grouped under the links to which they refer, so often these need to be referred to to see the context. The DiEM25 platform is divided into five agendas, The other four are European New Deal, Transparency, Refugees, and Green New Deal. I will only be providing commentary on platform links of the Technological Sovereignty agenda, but of course all these platforms are unified in allegiance to “democratization” within the identified elements in the set of each of the five agendas. With any set, its elements comprise the dichotomy of positive in opposition to negative manifestation of the natural first principle of the absolute idea of “democracy”.
My most important thought about DiEM25 as a whole is its need to be clear about its ontological foundation. That ontology, it is proposed, is best an ontology of Subjective/Objective Idealism, as was thoroughly presented in blog posts 5 and 6 in the main essay of which this is an addendum. To be as brief as possible, commentary adheres to the idea of “democracy” as positively reflected in our objective reality only when there is allegiance to a specific understanding of the sovereignty of every individual as a subject in relation to all others. That sovereignty remains sustainable only to the degree that human action has egalitarian objectives and egalitarian means for attaining them. The insight necessary for the highest degree of egalitarian sustainability is that Consciousness is the unifying fundamental of equality reflected in and between all individuals.
1. Introduction: For Democracy to Be Possible, Technology Must Be Democratised
Commentary 2: This introduction to the Technological Sovereignty agenda of the DiEM25 political platform goes only so far as to define technological sovereignty as “the right and capacity of individuals to take self-determined action in technological innovation”. This right and capacity is not something anyone lacks so the assertion that it defines that sovereignty is an understatement. Though the text of this introduction touches on the need to recognize that power needs not to be concentrated for the benefit of the few, this is actually the most critical issue to be emphasized. Even the few, like everyone, have the right to exercise their capacity, so this is not the key assertion for a demarcation of what tech sovereignty is. The political resistance for technological sovereignty should above all else focus on exposing any moral failure in the responsibility of governance in allegiance to fundamental human equality. Resistance means means knowing how to expose the failure of the few to serve the many. At the same time it means knowing how to install a transition to a new paradigm.
The Tech Sovereignty platform introduction amply lists the types of inequality in global society and rightly attributes it to a lack of transparency and accountability in the current economic power structure. The solution as described is clear: end the socialization of costs for the whole of society while the profits are privatized for the few controlling the power structure. Is no big secret. This description is flowered with all the hope and benefits of human creativity possible in a cooperation of the private and public sector that shares equally those benefits for everyone. But alas, unfortunately not all are empowered in our current economic structure — gosh, really? Its not surprising that the introduction is a call for transformation of that structure: the central power of society, embodied in technology, should be the domain of all its sovereign individuals. Obviously, but how?
What is surprising is that this introduction has no compelling strategic vision of the key disruptive technological change necessary. What technological innovation can be a vehicle creating a novel economic paradigm that actualizes a democratizing of the current society? All we get in this introduction is lamenting the current systemic situation and the cry for “democratising” it, along with the promise of some tactics if we continue reading. The words “ideas and strategies” are used in the text, but that is not helpful. There is a strategy and then there are tactics to accomplish it. “Ideas and tactics” would be better; but tactics for doing what, beyond the catch-all “democratizing”? What is that strategy which will definitively change the world, that strategy that will be the intent of all tactics? This should be anticipated in the introduction.
Yes, the power structure has to be decentralized, but isn’t that power essentially about monetary governance. Shouldn’t we state the ideas and strategies will be about changing the monetary and fiscal policy that is exacerbating continuously the economic disparity generated by centralized power. The key disruptive technological change will be ending the printed fiat money inflationary economic model. It will be ended with technological money of fixed scarcity, decentralized in its distribution of wealth generation on a global computer network. This network will be of secure inviolable transparency and accountability. In these commentaries, this strategic vision will be brought to focus in every tactical element being presented in the DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty agenda. This is because my essay is about “Change the Money, Change the World”. A highest register tactic within which is subsumed all others is to utilize blockchain managed crowd-funding of all tactical actions. Here is the complete platform outline with links to commentary on the sections of the platform they cover:
DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty 1 (Commentary 1 to 2 Current post)
1. Introduction: For Democracy to Be Possible, Technology Must Be Democratised
DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty 2 (Commentary 3 to 7)
1.1. Three Interlocking Transformations to Achieve Technological Sovereignty
2. A Digital Commonwealth for the 21st Century
2.1. Democratising Platform Monopolies
2.1.1. Strengthen ePrivacy Regulation in the EU
2.1.2. Enforce Platform Interoperability
2.1.3. Stronger Antitrust/Cartel Laws
DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty 3 (Commentary 8 to 12)
2.2. Towards a Digital Commonwealth
2.2.1. Democratising the Economy
2.2.3. Introducing Digital Rights
2.3. And What Would the World Feel Like?
DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty 4 (Commentary 13 to 15)
3. Free Knowledge for Democratic Innovation — the Role of Intellectual Property and Education
3.1. Transforming Intellectual Property (IP)
3.1.2. Public Money, Public Code
3.1.3. Free and Open Knowledge and Licensing
3.1.4. Right to Repair and Open Standards
3.1.5 Tackling Planned Obsolescence
3.2.1. Democratize Tech Regulation
3.2.2. Education and Tech Sovereignty
3.3. And What Would the World Feel Like?
DiEM25 Technological Sovereignty 5 (Commentary 16 to 18)
4. Democratising Innovation and the Economy
4.1. Democratising Innovation Funding
4.1.1. EU Funding for Public Value
4.1.2. EU Funding for Purpose Before Profit
4.1.3. Participatory Budgeting for Innovation
4.2. Democratising the Economy
4.2.1. Support Platform Cooperatives
4.2.2. Innovation for the Common Good
4.3. And What Would the World Feel Like?
Change the Money (1) Preamble — Monetary value true by nature
Change the Money (5) Introduction (1) — Zero Money & First Principles
Change the Money (8) Part 1 (A) The technological solution
Change the Money (10) Part 2 (A) The Naming of the Beast
Change the Money (12) Part 3 Ending Inflation and embracing deflation
Change the Money (13) Part 4(A) — Phases of transition 1
Change the Money (17) Part 5(A) — Adoption, adaptation & activism
Change the Money (25)Addendum 1 — Politics: Author & Ontology
Change the Money (26) Addendum 2 — On the series of addendums
