News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 25

As usual, there is nothing new under the sun with the news affecting the effort to get legislators to adopt the Economic Democracy Act.  Still, the effort goes on.

Some Thoughts for the Present and Future

 Pope Leo XIV, the newly elected leader of the Catholic Church, faces many challenges in applying Catholic social doctrine to solving today’s problems such as the growing wealth, income and power gap in every nation; widespread poverty; destruction of the environment; conflict-driven immigration; growth of State power; the decay of families, and many others.

JTW Podcast: Why Are So Many Americans Poor?

 Today’s podcast delves into the causes of poverty in America, as examined by Louis O. Kelso and Patricia Hetter.  The discussion debunks common misconceptions about why people are poor, such as lack of education, laziness, or living in impoverished areas, and argues that the main reason is the lack of accumulated wealth and productive capital.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 24

 This week’s news items are a replay of past weeks that suggest the only way to solve a lot of the problems affecting the economy is to adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

The Issue is Power

 Everyone needs power.  It’s essential if you want to take control of your own life and become virtuous, as Aristotle pointed out.  The problem is how to get it legitimately and how to use it to control your own life and not others.

JTW Podcast: The Who . . . What . . . Why

Today we present a very brief overview of the career of Louis Orth Kelso, the lawyer-economist and corporate attorney who developed the theory of binary economics.  This podcast, “The Revolutionary Ideas of Louis O. Kelso: ESOPs, CSOPs, and Binary Economics” dives into Kelso’s groundbreaking work which transformed economic theory with his invention of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and Consumer Stock Ownership Plan (CSOP).

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 23

 Admittedly there is a depressing sameness about the news items these days, but with a little hard work and a lot of luck (or maybe the other way around) we might be able to change that in the coming weeks.  In any event, a lot of the chaos which has been spreading throughout the global economy would be dramatically lessened and perhaps even completely eliminated by adopting the Economic Democracy Act:

Saving or Investing for Retirement?

 According to a recent article in Fortune magazine, “Boomers” are being forced to “unretire” due to inadequate savings.  That’s bad, of course, but the real point of the article is a wonderful (wunderbar?) new proposal in Germany.  The idea is for the government to fund retirement accounts for children between age six and eighteen.  Cash would be deposited, and the interest would compound.  As described by Fortune,

JTW Podcast: The Thoughtful Rebel’s Guide to Economics

Today we present “The Thoughtful Rebel's Guide to Economics: A Lecture by Louis Kelso.”  This 1969 lecture delivered by Louis Orth Kelso at the College Editors’ Conference scrutinizes the inefficiencies and injustices of the world's economic institutions.  “Rebelling” against conventional economics, Kelso argued that the prevailing economic systems operate under several false assumptions, such as the belief that only labor produces wealth, and full employment should be the ultimate goal.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 22

Admittedly, there is a depressing sameness in the news items this week and the previous weeks, but a lot of that is due to the extreme uncertainty of economic and monetary policy under political regimes existing in the world.  That being the case, we still present some of the more important or at least the least repetitive news items affecting the Just Third Way, many of which could be solved or at least ameliorated by adopting the Economic Democracy Act:

Fight Fiercely, Harvard

 Those of you who remember the very early songs by Tom Lehrer will be familiar with the gentlemanly fight song he wrote for his alma mater, Harvard.  If not, well you can listen to it here, if you are (or ah) really anxious to hear it.  That, however, is not the point of today’s posting.

JTW Podcast: What Louis Kelso Knew

Today we present “The Revolutionary Economic Insights of Louis Kelso.”  In this comprehensive exploration of Louis Kelso's economic thought, Patricia Hetter Kelso delves into the dichotomy between thinkers characterized as foxes and hedgehogs, referencing philosopher Isaiah Berlin’s taxonomy.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 21

 Economic chaos continues to reign supreme.  This will continue to be the case until people realize that something different is possible and push for Congress to adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

The End of Private Equity Firms? No Way!

A few years back a member of the CESJ board of directors expressed concern over the Economic Democracy Act and the necessity of shifting new capital formation from past savings to future savings.  There was also the issue of phasing out governments monetizing deficits by emitting bills of credit (the constitutional form of “creating money” out of nothing).

JTW Podcast: Labor’s Great Mistake

The full title of this podcast is “Labor’s Great Mistake: Rethinking Full Employment in a Capitalist Society.”  In this video, we explore Louis O. Kelso's seminal 1960 article, “Labor's Great Mistake: The Struggle for the Toil State.”  In the face of the fixed belief human labor is the only true factor of production and thus a “job” is the only way to gain income, Kelso argues against the conventional wisdom that full employment is an ideal societal goal.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 20

Although some of the experts seem to be acting as if everything is going to be fine, this week’s news items suggest disaster is in the offing and it’s only a matter of time.  We, of course, think that adopting the Economic Democracy Act: will go a long way to correcting the problem and providing a foundation for genuine sustainable growth:

Where is Pope Leo XIV Coming From?

The election of a new pope has repercussions far beyond the Catholic Church, Christianity, and even all religion.  Especially since the Catholic Church became a truly international organization with the loss of the Papal States in the 19^th century, people of goodwill everywhere look to the head of the Catholic Church as a voice for good, even if they do not always agree with what he says.

JTW Podcast: A Martyr to Economic Justice

Today’s podcast is more than a little different from what we’ve been presenting.  It is an original twelve-and-a-half-minute video about Blessed Pauline Jaricot, a nineteenth century “martyr” to economic justice.  Anticipating the work of Pope Leo XIII which the new pope, Leo XIV, has taken as his guide, Pauline struggled to achieve justice for the working classes of her day.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 19

While the world situation seems to be getting more surreal by the hour, at least there may be a break coming with the election of a new pope . . . who might be open to hearing about the Economic Democracy Act:

Egocentrism, Tariffs, and the Single Tax, Part IV

Concluding our discussion of tariffs, as we noted previously there are three badly flawed economic principles which many people hold as absolute, unquestioned dogmas.  Two of these flawed principles are general, but applied specifically in the third, regarding tariffs, which we looked at last week.  The principles are:

JTW Podcast: The Case for 100% Dividend Payout

If there is one thing which upsets people enmeshed in the fallacy Louis O. Kelso called “the slavery of [past] savings, it’s the systemic necessity of full dividend payout if Say’s Law of Markets is to be restored.  In this article, Kelso recommended changes such as corporations paying out 100% of earnings as tax-deductible dividends.

Paying out all earnings would force corporations to compete in the market for new capital rather than retain earnings as reserves for expansion — concentrating ownership in fewer and fewer hands, distorting market equilibrium.

The audio-visual presentation was created in “Descript”, using an AI-generated voice for narration. Visit CESJ.org for more information.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 18

With the political chaos being spread by the current administration in Washington, it is difficult to discern what principles are driving policy decisions — if any.  This makes the case for the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act even more urgent:

Egocentrism, Tariffs, and the Single Tax, Part III

As we noted in the first posting on this subject, there are three badly flawed economic principles which many people hold as absolute, unquestioned dogmas handed down from . . . well, it’s not entirely clear where they come from.  In any event, that’s not important when one’s own ego and self-interest are the only fixed points in the universe.

JTW Podcast: Binary Economics in a Nutshell

This article by Norman Kurland presents the basic components of what Louis Kelso called "Binary Economics", that the factors of production can be identified as either Labor or Capital.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 17

As the economic and financial world descends deeper into utter chaos, it becomes increasingly difficult to select news items that even make sense.  Of course, we want to see the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act, but the question is when the powers-that-be will realize its wisdom:

Egocentrism, Tariffs, and the Single Tax, Part II

Last week we looked at how a distorted idea of one’s own importance can lead to treating anyone who opposes you as an enemy to be eliminated, and supporters as tools to be discarded once their utility is over.  This week we look at the implications of the Ricardian (as opposed to the Smithian) Labor Theory of Value.

JTW Podcast: Kelso Before the Citizens’ Crusade Against Poverty

Louis Kelso made this Statement before the Forum on Economic Policy and Poverty, Citizens' Crusade Against Poverty, 2nd Annual Meeting-April 13-14 1966.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 16

As time goes on, it becomes increasingly difficult to find news items that can be understood as anything rational, whether we’re talking economics, politics, or war, which is the failure of politics.  Naturally, we believe the solution to all of this is to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, but the problem is to get the powers-that-be to realize it:

Egocentrism, Tariffs, and the Single Tax, Part I

Understanding certain of today’s trade policies, while difficult, even baffling at times, is nevertheless possible once one identifies some basic assumptions and ascertains a possible approach to life.  Although he didn’t write it, The Art of the Deal (1987) under President Trump’s name exemplifies an orientation which appears widespread today, as do some of his otherwise incomprehensible actions, possibly accounting for his popularity.

JTW Podcast: Questions on Kelso’s Second Income Plan

The full title of today’s podcast is “Questions Most Often Asked About Louis Kelso’s Second Income Plan,” a question-and-answer paper Kelso developed about his “Second Income Plan” back in the 1960s.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 15

 As they say in the journalism biz, no news is good news . . . and none of the news items we have this week are good, and not even all that new.  It has become a depressing and endless round of trying to figure out what a certain U.S. president has done and what he is going to do next and then reverse himself completely before he throws his next ally under the bus so fast you can hear the bones crunch and then goes back to whatever he was doing in the first place.  Or second.  Would you believe third?  Why doesn’t Congress adopt the Economic Democracy Act so the rest of us can get back to real life and the rich and powerful can perform their antics for our entertainment instead of to our detriment:

Dignity, Sovereignty, Faith, and Reason

In today’s posting, we’re taking a look at some basic principles of the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism.  As we understand it, the Just Third Way begins and ends with the dignity and sovereignty of the human person. Any plan, program, activity, or thought contrary to or which undermines the dignity or sovereignty of the human person must be rejected or reformed to the point where it either enhances human dignity or at least does no material harm.

JTW Podcast: Uprooting World Poverty: A Job for Business

Today’s podcast is an essay by Louis Kelso and Patricia Hetter Kelso in which the Kelsos conclude that reimagining capital finance—not charity—can break poverty cycles while preserving democratic ideals. Their plan leverages market tools to broaden ownership, arguing that “industrial power to produce” must align with “economic power to consume” for sustainable development. The authors propose financing industrialization via future savings instead of past capital accumulation.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 14

On July 27, 1923, during the chaos at the height of the German hyperinflation, Germania, a large Berlin newspaper, editorialized, “It is a situation for a dictator.  The conditions call for a Mussolini in bullet-proof armor with a revolver in either hand.”  Unfortunately, that’s exactly what they got, only worse.  Not that we’re saying the rise of a new Hitler is inevitable . . . if people can organize and demand the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible.  Otherwise, we can expect more of this sort of thing:

Personalism and Justice

Recently we got an enquiry regarding a misunderstanding about our use of the term “Economic Personalism” and some potential confusion with the virtue of justice.  Someone (Person A) had expressed disagreement with our using the term Economic Personalism to describe a type of economic democracy and then asked if we were trying to change the name of the Center for Economic and Social Justice to the Center for Economic Personalism.  Quick answer: No.

JTW Podcast: Economic Justice in the Age of the Robot

Today’s podcast is an essay by Norman G. Kurland which explores the “Just Third Way’s” philosophical and practical foundations of economic justice in an era of technological advancement. It argues for systemic reforms to democratize ownership and empower individuals. The article frames widespread property ownership as essential for political democracy and lasting economic equity and urges institutional reforms to align with these principles.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 13

Evidently the new word to describe the current economic policy climate is “chaotic.”  We think that this is due most immediately to President Trump’s policies, although in the greater scheme of things it’s due to Keynesian economics.  In general, the solution is to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, but a little common sense wouldn’t hurt:

With Eggroll, You Get Six

According to CNN, President Trump’s White House — or, as we are coming to know it, “the Business Administration” — is seeking corporate sponsorships for the annual Easter Egg Roll.  This is a tradition initiated by Dolley Madison in 1814 and reinstated in 1878, under the otherwise unpopular Republican President Rutherford B. Hayes.

JTW Podcast: Karl Marx, the Almost-Capitalist

Today’s podcast is an article by Louis O. Kelso, “Karl Marx: the Almost Capitalist.”  In the article Kelso identifies three critical flaws in Karl Marx’s theoretical framework, arguing that addressing these errors would necessitate rejecting collective ownership of production means in favor of widespread individual ownership. Louis Kelso’s critique identifies three fundamental errors in Karl Marx’s analysis that led him to reject capitalism and advocate socialism:

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 12

One thing about the economic and monetary policies of the current transactional administration in Washington is it constitutes the best argument ever for adopting the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible.  Of course, that would mean we don’t have as much bad news to report and could finally get around to saying one or two good things, but that’s fine with us:

Persons, Things, and Personalism

A while back we put together a short video to explain the idea of economic democracy along personalist lines.  Titled “People and Things,” it took a sort of “Dr. Suessy” approach, putting some very complex ideas in hopefully simple rhyming language to try and present them in a coherent and comprehensible way.  It was (and is) pretty good, but because it is both brief and simplified, doesn’t get into deeper meanings and implications.

JTW Podcast: Louis Kelso’s Economic Vision

Today’s podcast is an article by Norman G. Kurland and Dawn K. Brohawn which outlines Louis Kelso’s vision for addressing 21st-century economic challenges through systemic reforms that democratize capital ownership. The original article was published in Owners at Work, the Ohio Employee Ownership Center newsletter, Winter 1999-2000. This audio-visual presentation was produced using Descript and features an AI-generated voice.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 11

If anyone can make sense of what is happening in the economy . . . let us know.  Otherwise, work for the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible to bring a halt to this sort of thing:

A Discourse on Tariffs

 Although tariffs are in the news today, it’s astonishing how many people don’t know what they are or how they work.  Briefly, a tariff is a tax a government levies on imports.  It is not paid by the people of the country exporting goods, but by the people of the country importing the goods.  A tariff is intended to raise — “inflate” — the prices of foreign goods for the presumed advantage of producers in the country which imposes the tariff; it “protects” domestic industry by artificially making foreign goods more expensive.

JTW Podcast: Democratizing the Money System

Today’s podcast explains how the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) would reform today's money systems, particularly the Federal Reserve and other central banks, to finance sustainable private-sector growth while creating equal capital ownership opportunities for every citizen, from birth to death. The diagrams explain the mechanics of the Economic Democracy Act — how every citizen could obtain each year new asset-backed money and interest-free, insured, self-repaying capital credit through the commercial and central banking system, to purchase newly issued, dividend-paying, full voting shares of growing companies.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 10

Yet again this we have a virtual tsunami of reasons to adopt the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible . . . need we say more?

• Rina Sanchinelli.  The big news this week was a meeting this past Tuesday with Rina Sanchinelli who currently resides in Italy, not too far from Rome. Doña Rina has concluded some pressing personal business and is anxious to start advancing Solidarism and the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism.  As a co-founder of Unión Solidarista Guatemalteca, she may be able to reach out to Solidarność in Poland for their help for building acceptance of Solidarism and the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism as applied in the Economic Democracy Act in Europe, especially as a way of assisting Ukraine in their struggle against Russia.

Inflation and Job Creation

Under the hegemony of Keynesian economics, the global economy must be inflationary.  Why?  Because . . . well, because, that’s why.  Which, of course, is not an answer — but it makes more sense than the actual Keynesian answer.  It all lies in how you define inflation.  You see, the different schools define inflation differently, and not entirely consistently.

JTW Podcast: Intro to Modern Philosophy, Emergence of Rationalism

Finally, we get to “modern philosophy,” which to many people equates with something else . . . but let’s see what “Professor Dave” says: “With medieval philosophy covered, it's time to dive into modern philosophy, which started with the Renaissance, and lasted until the turn of the 20th century. The beginning of this era is market by the onset of rationalism and empiricism, two contrasting schools of thought, each with many influential adherents. Let's start out by discussing rationalism, through figures like Descartes, Spinoza, Pascal, and Leibniz.”

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 09

This week we have even more reasons for adopting the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible, if only to keep the system itself running, to say nothing of protecting individual and social rights that seem to be in the process of being nullified or just completely ignored:

Going for the Gold

At first glance, it seems a trifle odd.  At second glance, it gets a bit surreal.  At third glance . . . well, judge for yourself.  The same people that came up with the idea of creating a strategic reserve of cryptocurrency (which makes you wonder if they know what a strategic reserve actually is) are now obsessed with the idea of auditing the gold in Fort Knox.

JTW Podcast: An Overview of Medieval Logic

We can get into this video quickly.  As “Professor Dave” says, “Having covered medieval philosophy, let’s also investigate the status of logic at this time. Some of the figures we discussed, like Abelard and Boethius, made contributions to logic that are worth discussing in some detail. Let’s get a closer look!”.

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 08

“May you live in interesting times” is allegedly an ancient Chinese curse.  It’s not really, but an expression in English used ironically, but that’s neither here nor there, given the events of the past week.  Clearly, we need the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible.

Which Version of Democracy?

For years we have been talking about the need for the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) as what we believe has the best chance not merely to offer everyone in the world (at least potentially) a decent material life (and thus the foundation for becoming more fully human and fulfilling one’s potential), but to resolve some extremely pressing problems in the political, social, and domestic realms.  This, of course, raises the question as to what we mean by “Economic Democracy” . . . which in turn leads to the question as to what we mean by “democracy.”

JTW Podcast: Late Medieval Philosophy; The Scholastic Period

This week Professor Dave looks at “Late Medieval Philosophy,” which (as we might expect) follows up on last week’s short piece on “Early Medieval Philosophy.”  As Professor Dave explains, “We've covered early medieval philosophy, so let's move forward to the later part of this era, which is called the Scholastic period. This is marked by a strong Aristotelian influence, as well as the rise of universities as we know them today. Several of the more prominent figures of this time, like Avicenna, came from the Middle East, so let's hear what they had to say!”

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 07

Over the past couple of weeks, it has become obvious that few if anybody in power has any idea what is going on or what to do about it.  Might we suggest the Economic Democracy Act?

Fulton Sheen, Social Justice, Solidarism, and Economic Personalism

There has been a spate of memes in the social media recently ostensibly quoting the late Fulton Sheen to the effect that Judas is the patron saint of social justice.  This does not ring true for a couple of reasons. Most obviously, Sheen, “the American Chesterton,” was a master of language and witty repartee, skilled at making an otherwise subtle nuance plain, albeit in a clever manner.  The statement is just too crude and blunt; it is not Sheen’s style.

JTW Podcast: Early Medieval Philosophy

This week Professor Dave looks at “Early Medieval Philosophy.”  What?  We’re finally done with those old ancient fogies and going with the old Medieval fogies?  Yes.  As Professor Dave explains, “With ancient philosophy covered, it's time to move into medieval philosophy. This era is dominated by a strong link with theology, and all the most significant contributors to philosophy in this era were largely commenting on religious doctrine. But figures like Aristotle still had a strong influence on these thinkers, so let's see what sort of progress was made during these centuries.”

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 06

We’re still trying to figure out which way things are going with the new administration . . . as are most people.  What’s the answer?  How about the Economic Democracy Act?

How to Get Rid of $37 Trillion of Debt

No, we’re not kidding.  Much.  This could actually work . . . at least until people catch on that the whole cryptocurrency craze is what Charles MacKay would have called an extraordinary popular delusion and a madness of crowds.  This sort of thing, of course, formed the subject of MacKay’s 1841 book titled . . . well, Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds.

JTW Podcast: The Economic Democracy Act

Getting back to a specifically Just Third Way topic for these podcasts, this week we have a new production from CESJ: “The Economic Democracy Act: Getting Capital Ownership, a Second Income, and Economic Power to Every Citizen.”  As Norman Kurland, Dawn Brohawn and the CESJ Team describe it,

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 05

Despite appearances, things are looking up.  Some of this is due to circumstances (non-political), but others are due solely to politics.  In any event, the situation is making it clearer than ever before that the only realistic solution is to adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

Trump’s Rising Tide

Time and the tide wait for no man.  Neither are they subject to the command of a man.

Before it became politically incorrect to suggest a ruler might not be all-powerful or the State might not be a “Mortall God” à la Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, every schoolchild knew the story of King Chanute and the ocean.  Or maybe it was King Canute.  Or it could have been Cnut.  Or Knut.  Or Knute.  No need to come to wreck on this Rockne.

JTW Podcast: Logic in Late Ancient Philosophy

This week Professor Dave looks at “Logic in Late Ancient Philosophy” which continues from last week’s “Hellenistic and Roman Philosophy.”  As Professor Dave explains, “Previously we outlined Aristotle's enormous contributions in establishing logic as a formal field of inquiry. So what happened after that? How did the minds that followed, many directly in his lineage, develop this field further? What is meant my modus ponens and modus tollens, or the master argument, or Agrippa's trilemma, or the five indemonstrables? Let's take a look now!”

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 04

A lot of events this week underscore the need for, and the importance of adopting the Economic Democracy Act as soon as possible:

Klingon Economics

If you thought the economics of John Maynard Keynes was crazy, wait until you hear about the study of the production, distribution, and consumption of marketable goods and services in the Klingon Empire.  What brought this up?  We are looking into turning our recently re-released book, Economic Personalism (now with 100% more imprimatur!) into an audiobook.  We’ve also been looking into using AI to translate the book into different languages to broaden the potential market.

JTW Podcast: Hellenistic and Roman Philosophy

This week Professor Dave looks at “Hellenistic and Roman Philosophy” . . . which means . . . what?  As Professor Dave himself says, “Having made our way through Classical Greece, it's time to enter the subsequent Hellenistic and Roman periods. These were dominated by schools of thought that were influenced by the great classical thinkers, though they took their teachings into new territory. Eclectics, Neoplatonists, Peripatetics, Stoics, Epicureans, Cynics, who were they and what were their beliefs? Let's find out!”

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 03

Some interesting news items this week, a number of which are amusing, in a twisted sort of way.  To get back on the straight and narrow, however, we should adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

Scrooge and the Virtue of Being Rich, Part IV

In the previous posting on this subject, we closed by noting that some new ideas had entered the general culture.  As a rule, prior to the middle of the nineteenth century people got rich to be able to live “the good life” (which didn’t mean quite what it meant to Aristotle, who referred to the “good life of virtue”), which required wealth and power to be able to obtain the goods and services that went along with a materially good life.  This meant as soon as they had “enough,” they could stop accumulating wealth, and then sit back and enjoy it.

JTW Podcast: Aristotelian Logic

Today Professor Dave takes a short look at Aristotelian logic, which many consider the “toolkit” for rational thought, based on the first principle of reason, which can be stated in a negative way and a positive way.  Negative (the principle or law of [non] contradiction): “Nothing can both be and not be at the same time under the same conditions.”  Positive (the principle or law of identity): “That which is true is as true and is true in the same way as everything else that is true.”  So, what does Professor Dave have to say about it . . . if anything?

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 02

With the upcoming Inauguration of U.S. President-elect Trump, most news items related to the Just Third Way are in the “what if” category.  Still, there are a few things of note that should turn our minds in the direction of the Economic Democracy Act:

Scrooge and the Virtue of Being Rich, Part III

Continuing our Scrooge Saga, in last week’s posting we asked the eternal question, “How did being wealthy become a virtue?”  The quick answer is that people’s understanding of money changed.  The longer and more involved answer is that people’s understanding of money, credit, banking, and finance changed . . . or, briefly, people’s understanding of money changed . . .

JTW Podcast: Aristotle, the First Scientist

In today’s podcast, we take a look at “the science of science,” of which — as far as we know — Aristotle was the inventor.  Like Professor Dave, Aristotle knew a lot about a lot of stuff.  He had some pretty bad ideas, but that doesn’t mean he was fundamentally wrong or wrong about everything, just that he made mistakes . . . like you’re perfect?

News from the Network, Vol. 18, No. 01

This is the first new news report for the year, and we unfortunately start the year with sad news.  There is a little about the Economic Democracy Act as well:

Scrooge and the Virtue of Being Rich, Part II

In the previous, Christmas Day posting on this subject, we noted there was a significant difference between Ebenezer Scrooge and the rich of today.  Scrooge, for all his faults — and his unsuspected, if very real virtues! — did not seek wealth as an end in itself.  True, as Dickens portrayed him, Scrooge was —

JTW Podcast: The Roots of Logic

In this week’s podcast we return to “Professor Dave’s” videos on “lots of stuff.”  Today, we look at something that seems in low supply these days: basic logic.  We recall a friend of ours who is a professor of philosophy at a small college who claimed he had to spend most of the semester in his introduction to philosophy course teaching basic principles of logic before he could get to the course matter.  Here, you can get it for free!

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 52

This is the second half of our annual news roundup for 2024.  Again, we’ve tried to pick out what seemed to be the most important news item of each week as it relates to the Just Third Way, sometimes combining two if they were related or about equally important.  As always, the overall objective is to get the powers-that-be (or powers-that-are-to-be) to adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

Scrooge and the Virtue of Being Rich, Part I

In A Christmas Carol — as if you couldn’t tell from the title of this posting — the Ghost of Christmas Past forces Ebenezer Scrooge to watch as his younger self accepts Belle’s (his fiancée) release from their engagement.  As she gives him her decision (and, presumably, returns the ring, although Dickens didn’t mention that particular bit of jewelry — pronounced “jewel-ry,” not “jew-lery,” by the way), we gain important clues as to Scrooge’s motive for pursuing wealth . . . which is, of course, why Dickens included the scene:

JTW Podcast: All-Robot Attack

No, this is not science fiction.  It’s real life, and it potentially can end the war Russia is waging against Ukraine as soon as the powers-that-be in Russia realize the implications.  Russia’s advantage to date has been using its numerical superiority to overwhelm Ukraine using “meat waves,” i.e., cannon fodder to take casualties (nearly 800,000 so far) and exhaust Ukraine’s defenders.

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 51

This is the first half of our annual news roundup.  We’re trying something different this year, however.  Instead of trying to choose all the important news stories, we’re just picking what we thing may be the most important one from each week as it relates to the Just Third Way.  The overall objective, of course, is to get the powers-that-be (or powers-that-are-to-be) to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, but in the meantime:

Is It Really “Too Complicated”?

The halls of justice (or should that be “the howls of justice”?) rang recently with protests to the effect mentioning economic and social justice — at a meeting of the Center for Economic and Social Justice(!) — is “too complicated” and turns people off (“they just roll their eyes”).  The complaints got louder when some of us tried to explain why you just can’t say “you’ll have more money” to explain economic justice and ignore social justice altogether as having been hijacked by the socialists.

JTW Podcast: Professor Dave on Socrates and Plato

Okay, although Prof. Dave uses the word “impactful,” this video is still useful as providing basic background material on two very important philosophers, who — even if we don’t accept their thought in preference to Aristotle — are still important:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 50

This is the last new news report for the year as next week we plan on posting the first half of our annual news roundup . . . which some people actually read!  If you don’t, we can sum up the message for the year as the powers-that-be should the Economic Democracy Act:

Why It’s Not Distributism

A little backstory.  A few years ago, we were asked to prepare an explanation of what we mean by “the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism.”  Even though we are an interfaith group, the request came from an official at the Vatican (not the pope or anyone you know).  We wrote the explanation based on universal principles of natural law applicable to all “natural” faiths and philosophies (mostly based on or compatible with Aristotelian philosophy).

JTW Podcast: Presocratic Philosophy, Part II

This week, “Professor Dave Explains” continues his talk on Greek philosophers before Socrates.  It’s a little abrupt, since Part I was the first half of the lecture and this is the second half, but that’s not really anything to worry about.  So, let’s get down and funky with the Presocratics:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 49

As the year draws to a close, we see increasing numbers of reasons for somebody somewhere to adopt the Economic Democracy Act and lead the way for the rest of the world:

What is the Federal Reserve For, Exactly?

George Will’s November 30, 2024, column asked the question as to what, exactly, is the purpose of the Federal Reserve System.  This is a reasonable concern, especially given the way governments throughout the world have been using their central banks to spend money like drunken sailors on leave.  Unfortunately, although Will pontificated for 750 words or so, it was evident that, while he clearly intended the title of his column to be rhetorical, he himself has no realistic idea of the role or function of a central bank, much less any bank other than a bank of deposit.

JTW Podcast: Presocratic Philosophy, Part I

This week, “Professor Dave Explains” about Greek philosophers before Socrates.  It’s pretty rapid fire, but still informative and (up to a point) entertaining.  As before, personally, we find the use of “BCE” instead of “BC” is annoying, but we’re big enough to let that pass . . . for now:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 48

A lot of news items this week and consequently a lot of arguments to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, so we’ll get right into it:

Union Solidarista Guatemalteca y Costa Rica

It’s not so much a buzzword nowadays, but “solidarity” is still an important concept, and one that often doesn’t mean what people think it does.  To define what we mean by solidarity, we begin with the thought of Pope Saint John Paul II (Karol Józef Wojtyła, 1920-2005, elected 1978).

JTW Podcast: East Asian and Indian Early Philosophical Thought

Here is an additional take on the history of philosophy and logic from “Professor Dave Explains.”  We’re most interested in Aristotelian philosophy, but knowing something about other systems is useful as well.  Personally, the use of “BCE” instead of “BC” is annoying, but so what:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 47

Trump and the economy are the Big News this week . . . and since he isn’t really saying anything different than anyone else, we still need to adopt the Economic Democracy Act:

Some Comments on Social Credit

In China, the social credit system (SCS) is a national reputation system that rates the trustworthiness of individuals, businesses, and government entities.  The idea is to regulate social behavior and ensure compliance with laws and regulations.  The SCS assigns a score to each entity, with higher scores leading to more benefits and lower scores leading to more penalties.  High scores can lead to tax breaks, jumping the public housing queue, and easier access to credit.  Low scores can lead to denial of licenses and permits, exclusion from booking flights or high-speed train tickets, and restricted access to public services . . . all based on some bureaucrat’s idea of how good a person you are.  It’s a fun and easy way to have your life ruined.

JTW Podcast: Introduction to Philosophy and Logic

Here is an interesting take on philosophy and logic from “Professor Dave Explains.”  Logic is a tool to help us think about knowledge, while philosophy is knowledge about knowledge . . . it’s not that bad (or bad at all), as you will see from this short video:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 46

 Economic and social insecurity is increasing at an increasing rate these days.  Ironically, a lot of this could probably be eliminated by the Economic Democracy Act:

Who REALLY Owns the Federal Reserve?

On paper, the Federal Reserve System, the central bank of the United States, is owned by its member banks.  Member banks are required to purchase a special form of preferred stock paying a minimal dividend but carrying a meaningless vote.  This is not, however, true ownership.  As Louis O. Kelso once pointed out, control means ownership in all codes of law, and as we will see below, the federal government, while it does have “legal title” to the Federal Reserve System, controls it by having the president of the United States appoint the Chairman of the Board of Governors, and by receiving all revenue in excess of what is expended in operations.

JTW Podcast: Four Possibilities to Prove Reality is Real

This week’s podcast deal with reality and the existence of God, a question relevant to every faith and philosophy.  Again, if there is no God, then there is no absolute standard and there are no rules to live by and no moral law to follow; anyone can do anything he wants — might makes right.  And why is that important?  Because if there are no absolutes and right is whatever the strongest says it is, then the Just Third Way is nonsense:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 45

Everyone is obsessing about the results of the U.S. election this week, but life goes on (and on, and on, and on).  Regardless how it would have turned out, in our opinion the only thing that will Make America Great Again is to make AMERICANS (or any other nationalities) great again, and that means adopting the Economic Democracy Act:

Why “Binary”?

Occasionally, someone thinks he (or she) has come up with a brilliant criticism of the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism by pointing out “binary economics” is not a good way of describing the ideas of Louis O. Kelso which form the primary economic theory of the Just Third Way.  The critic takes a brief look and sees Kelso divided the factors of production into labor and capital instead of labor, land, and capital, and assumes it is the whole of Kelso’s thought, which is ultra-simplistic.

JTW Podcast: The Case for God

This week’s podcast deals with the case for the existence of God.  Why is this important?  Because as Dostoyevsky had Ivan Karamazov in The Brothers Karamazov (1880) claim, if God does not exist, then everything is permitted.  If there is no God, then there is no absolute standard and there are no rules to live by and no moral law to follow; anyone can do anything he wants — might makes right.  And why is that important?  Because if there are no absolutes and right is whatever the strongest says it is, then the Just Third Way is nonsense:

News from the Network, Vol. 17, No. 44

As the United States gets closer to the upcoming election, it becomes increasingly obvious from this week’s news items none of the candidates are looking at the economy in any realistic way.  What is a realistic way?  The program in the Economic Democracy Act: