JK Asks: "Interesting idea. But what happens if someone you babysat grows up to be murder his wife? Do you serve some of their time for them? Do I get penalised when a student I wrote a reference for becomes embroiled in embezzlement? Barack would probably similarly argue that the murderer is as much a product of society as the builder, but the system doesn’t work both ways. Thanks for the thought provoking and welcome distraction!"
That’s the beauty of the limited liability corporation. You are just a shareholder, even if the company you hold shares in goes bust, you keep your wealth.
"More people would aid each other if we could quantify their contributions, more formally rewarding them, and thus incentivising them and internalising those positive externalities."
I would challenge this assumption, that the whole deck of cards is based on. As a mentor, for no incentive except the satisfaction I get out of helping others, I think I would be turned off if it turned into a financial transaction.
"But the countervailing notion, that no one but yourself or your family contributes to your outcome flies in the face of everything we have learned about humans who are generally not hermits, nor isolated within small nuclear families, and do instead participate in communities."
Why must it be a dichotomy? My generosity of time encouraged the beneficiary of that effort to perhaps become a mentor themselves some day.
There are an incredible web of ways that people help people and get rewarded for helping people. It doesn't need to be monetised. The person I mentor (perhaps) mentions that I have been mentoring, or suggests to someone else that they would benefit from getting in touch with me, and I turn that into a financial (or non-financial) opportunity for mutual gain.....the threads become crossed and overlapped and so complex.
JK Asks: "Interesting idea. But what happens if someone you babysat grows up to be murder his wife? Do you serve some of their time for them? Do I get penalised when a student I wrote a reference for becomes embroiled in embezzlement? Barack would probably similarly argue that the murderer is as much a product of society as the builder, but the system doesn’t work both ways. Thanks for the thought provoking and welcome distraction!"
That’s the beauty of the limited liability corporation. You are just a shareholder, even if the company you hold shares in goes bust, you keep your wealth.
"More people would aid each other if we could quantify their contributions, more formally rewarding them, and thus incentivising them and internalising those positive externalities."
I would challenge this assumption, that the whole deck of cards is based on. As a mentor, for no incentive except the satisfaction I get out of helping others, I think I would be turned off if it turned into a financial transaction.
"But the countervailing notion, that no one but yourself or your family contributes to your outcome flies in the face of everything we have learned about humans who are generally not hermits, nor isolated within small nuclear families, and do instead participate in communities."
Why must it be a dichotomy? My generosity of time encouraged the beneficiary of that effort to perhaps become a mentor themselves some day.
There are an incredible web of ways that people help people and get rewarded for helping people. It doesn't need to be monetised. The person I mentor (perhaps) mentions that I have been mentoring, or suggests to someone else that they would benefit from getting in touch with me, and I turn that into a financial (or non-financial) opportunity for mutual gain.....the threads become crossed and overlapped and so complex.
Okay, you did say it was a thought experiment.