Distributism

[barnhart]

I've been casually watching Mondragon for years, I certainly wish them the best. The fact they exist at all as an alternative to market capital is inspirational. But it's not a perfect arrangement, I've heard some critiques, it's possible the scale has grown to the point of loosing some of the founding principles.

If my memory serves me, they absorbed a smaller co-op that formed when the workers refused to leave the building when the owners wanted to liquidate. They were able ink contracts and keep operational because the local law enforcement refused to lock them out. Eventually it went to court and the owners settled on a buy out program with the workers becoming owners. I don't think this type of worker organization would survive in the US, the law would likely side side with capital and shut them down. This type of labor action is a little beyond my comfort level, but the origins of Mondragon sound more peaceful.

[temporal1]

Interesting. Some people think it is basically the same thing as socialism.

Socialism is a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole. (source:Wikipedia) Distribution sounds more like neighbor/church family/ families/business owners helping each other do well in their chosen professions, but not being regulated by those people as a whole. I like the idea where a construction company owner doesn't add more crews, but gives someone else the opportunity to start his own business with a crew.

I have seen this with a specific local trucking company, where when someone wanted to buy his own truck and branch out on his own. The trucking company actually loaned the money for the individual to buy his own truck and then the company gave some of their business to him.

I cannot get onto Wikipedia (blocked for some reason),
but the definitions I saw for socialism said that the means of production, etc. is owned & controlled by the state, and handed out according to their determination of need and of resulting productivity for the whole society.
I think that the wiki definition is accurate in terms of socialism as a theory (on paper), but the examples we can observe are different.

Anarchy sounds terrible - we've been taught to think that way - but it DOES work to a large degree on a small scale,
such as in a tribal society, where there is no industry requiring large investments of capital.

I also think it could work in small somewhat isolated agrarian communities, or in a colony situation, but in large scale environments there are *always* going to be outsiders who come in to manipulate it for their own personal gains.

as usual, you bring unique+valuable perspective.
i’d never thought of anarchy as anything but terrible! new thinking here.

overall, as is so frequently the case, shifting human matters to gov control is something to resist.

the video content is fascinating. not impossible.
possibly the ideal would always be limited to governments ALLOWING distributism to exist, in localized groups, as you describe.
if i understand, it is allowed in the U.S. and other countries .. in the form of subcultures. i believe this is positive, so long as folks are free to come+go.

if/when gov tries to impose it, things go bad. gov can’t well micromanage large pooulations, esp when diverse.
too cumbersome. and fraught with potential for incompetence+corruption.

scriptures are full of accounts of people working ordinary earthly jobs, and owning businesses, as well as accounts of kings+slaves.
there was no gov-ordered “socialism” as understood in today’s political environment. Jesus worked! His apostles worked.
it was a non-issue. part of being human. work was equated with eating. expected.

whether people were poor or prospered, the ideal was to “give of oneself.”
not to be a government system or program. it’s in spite of gov.

not to be missed, scriptures reflect, generosity is not “naturally” increased with wealth.
wealth+ease are known not to automatically bring out the best in Christians.

[Josh]

I also think it could work in small somewhat isolated agrarian communities, or in a colony situation, but in large scale environments there are *always* going to be outsiders who come in to manipulate it for their own personal gains.

… which also happens under market capitalism

[Neto]

I also think it could work in small somewhat isolated agrarian communities, or in a colony situation, but in large scale environments there are *always* going to be outsiders who come in to manipulate it for their own personal gains.

… which also happens under market capitalism

Yes, and too often it isn't even 'outsiders'.