by 
This-ism, that-ism, ism, ism, ism
All we are saying is give peace a chance
John Lennon
When we ask our trusty ChatGPT what follows capitalism, the answer is communism, socialism, and anarchism as the leading alternatives. All Ism’s. Let’s define an ism: a distinctive practice, system, or philosophy, typically a political ideology or an artistic movement. I suspect that what follows capitalism is not going to be another ism. Or perhaps “I hope” is more accurate than “I suspect.”
The three guiding images I synthesized from the After Capitalism research are intentionally not isms.
- Circular Commons. Expands the concept of sustainability to embrace circular principles as part of a social, political, and economic commons.
- Non-Workers Paradise. A play on the attributed-to-Marxist idea of a worker’s paradise, but in the After Capitalism world we are not working in paid jobs as a means of sustenance.
- Tech-Led Abundance. Technological progress drives and leads to an abundance of wealth that fixes the core distribution problem of capitalism.
In speaking and writing on the topic, I expressly forbid the use of socialism and communism, noting, as I will once again here, that I have nothing against them other than the baggage they bring.
Of course, much work needs to be done on what these three guiding images might look like as well as the paths they may take. Some of that work is in the manuscript, and much remains to be done. But I suspect and hope that what is coming is going to be much more natural and organic such that it defies an ism – although we may simply come up with one because we seem to like isms. – Andy Hines
[…] Let’s update that phrase to “aligned, in motion, and ready for action. Perfect for what our guiding images of After Capitalism are intended to […]