Why Doing Things for the Common Good is Important

Thanks to the rise of neo-liberalism from 1972 onward, the idea of doing things for the common good (often with government resources) has fallen on hard times. The idea of self-reliance and “pulling yourself up” plays very well to hard working Americans (the world’s most productive people) and the idea that to function in society, someone should go out, find a job or start a business, ply a trade and provide for themselves. I’m sure that even reading that statement rings true. We’re taught it from when we’re very young that life is work and work is life and that we are individually responsible for our successes and failures and providing for ourselves and our families.

However, I would posit a different idea. And that is this, in the course of being responsible for our own actions we also have some responsibility to those around us and to the greater society in which we exist. That there are moments and times where we need to take common action that benefits everyone and that actually raises all boats in a quantifiable way that we can see and measure. People can be employed, equipment can be purchased, and benefits that everyone can enjoy can all be outs with common ownership. I think that one of the biggest problems that we have in our modern society is excess privatization. The concept of common ownership is not a new concept. In the 19th century education in many rural communities was a common venture by the local parents. Land-grant colleges were a national program to create chances for skilled education for American men and women who wanted to advance in society. Many of those schools have created amazing people and advancements that we continue to rely on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the real message of common ownership. When resources aren’t going to line the pockets of the wealthy then everyone benefits. I’m not saying that we need to outlaw wealth or wealthy people but things that everyone uses and things that everyone needs to live should be owned by the same people to keep prices down and to keep it working in a way that is beneficial for everyone. A dog-eat-dog society where everyone is out for himself leads to the kind of public violence that we now see and leads to the struggle we see in government. People have forgotten that civilization is, by its very nature, a grouping together of individuals who create a collective sovereignty. When the people want to take an action, great things are possible. This concept is the antithesis to the private corporation that is legally bound to make a return to its investors. Would it not be better to invest those resources in things that we all can use?

In an environment where certain things are owned in commons by everyone; we can seek out ways to help people live good lives and not just pay to exist as many a libertarians would like. We are a society of individuals as much as we are a common people. If we can create an environment through common ownership where are the individuals can do well then we have a functioning society. What we have now is people who are taking advantage of people for their own individual gain because their only thought is for themselves and not for how people will be affected or what this will do to greater society. It is time to think about the civic impact and to build an actual society, not merely a nation of individuals who happen to share some geography. I’m acutely aware that there are those who promote globalization who want exactly that but it does not make for a great society or even a great environment to live in. As long as people live in certain places, we need to make sure that we can all live well and that takes vision and grouping our resources together. Common ownership is a pathway to do just that.