With Liberty and Dividends for All How to Save Our Middle Class When Jobs Don't Pay Enough

Peter Barnes argues that because of globalization, automation, and winner-take-all capitalism, there won’t be enough high-paying jobs to sustain America’s middle class in the future. Therefore, to survive economically, our middle class needs—and deserves—a supplementary source of nonlabor income.

To meet this need, Barnes proposes to give every American a share of the wealth we own together— starting with our air and financial infrastructure. These shares would pay dividends of several thousand dollars per year—money that wouldn’t be welfare or wealth redistribution but legitimate property income.

Peter Barnes is a writer and entrepreneur who has started and run several successful businesses. He cofounded Working Assets Long Distance (now Credo Mobile) and is the author of five previous books, including Capitalism 3.0.

Preface
1. A Simple Idea
2. The Tragedy of Our Middle Class
3. Fix the System, Not the Symptoms
4. Extracted Rent
5. Recycled Rent
6. The Alaska Model
7. Dividends For All
8. Carbon Capping: A Cautionary Tale
9. From Here To The Adjacent Possible
Join The Discussion
Appendix: The Dividend Potential of Co-Owned Wealth
Notes
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Index