Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION — ENCOUNTERS WITH PUDDING
THREE CONCERNS
SIX QUESTIONS
FOUR APPLICATIONS
A MORE PERSONAL CONCERN
GANDHI’S SOCIAL SINS
UTOPIAS AND IDEALS
ORIGINS OF UTOPIA
GOLDEN AGE — LOOKING BACK
GOLDEN AGE — LOOKING FORWARD
THREE UTOPIAS
PRIVATOPIA
CORNUCOPIA
ECOTOPIA
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
SOME INSPIRATION
IN SUMMARY
THE MEANING OF CAPITAL
OWNING THE MEANS OF PRODUCTION
WHY DO WE WANT TO OWN?
OWNERSHIP OF LAND
MONEY AND USURY
WHAT DO THE UTOPIAS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT OWNERSHIP?
A COMMONS EXISTS FOR US NOW
THE TRAGEDY OF THE COMMONS
NATURAL COMMONS AS RESOURCE AND WILD NATURE
THE COMMONS, WEALTH AND CAPITAL
WIDENING THE COMMONS
THE CREATIVE COMMONS
COMMONS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE
THE PROSPECTS FOR COMMON GOOD LAWS
PROPOSALS FOR THE COMMONS
RECOGNISING THE COMMONS INVITES A NEW POLITICS
STATE VERSUS STATELESS
INDIVIDUALISM
COLLECTIVISM
COMMUNISM
THE PURPOSE OF GOVERNMENT
TYPES OF GOVERNMENT
FEDERATIONS AND ASSEMBLIES
WHAT DO THE UTOPIAS MAKE OF THE GOVERNANCE OPTIONS?
CONCLUSION
THE ISSUE OF SCALE
STARTING WITH OURSELVES
PERSONAL CHANGE LEADING TO VISION
NEW MISSIONS ARE FORMED BY WORKING TOGETHER
POWER AND HIERARCHY
EQUALITY IN GROUPS
COMMUNITY AND BUREAUCRACY
SOCIOCRACY
LOCAL DEMOCRACY
COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS
FROM SMALL TO LARGE
PARAPOLITY
PARAPOLITY — SCALING UP FROM NEIGHBOURHOOD TO NATION
PEOPLE’S PARLIAMENTS AND CITIZENS’ ASSEMBLIES
PARECON
LEFT AND RIGHT
THE ADOPTION OF PARAPOLITY AND PARECON
7 THE ECONOMICS OF THE COMMONS
THE ECONOMIC BASE OF SOCIETY?
THE TRUE BASE OF SOCIETY
WHAT WE NEGLECT — WILD NATURE AND THE EMOTIONAL ECONOMY
VALUE
VALUE AND MONEY — THE FINANCIAL ECONOMY
WHAT SHOULD WE OWN?
WHAT SHOULD WE SHARE? EQUALITY AND THE WELFARE NET
WHAT SHOULD WE MAKE? HOW SHOULD WE TRADE?
MONEY MAKING MONEY
NEO-LIBERALISM
THE GIFT ECONOMY
DOES CAPITALISM HAVE A FUTURE?
THE IMPORTANCE OF CORPORATIONS
PROPOSALS
HOW DO THE UTOPIAS VIEW THE SOCIAL COMMONS?
SUMMARY
NATURAL COMMONS AND WILD NATURE
CONNECTION AND INSPIRATION FROM NATURE
OUR OWN WILD NATURE
NATURE AND VALUE
NATURE AS PART OF THE ‘MORAL COMMUNITY’
RE-WILDING
LIVING ON WILD LAND
SEEKING OUT THE WILD
THE MYSTERY AND JOY OF PLACE
COMPETING INTERESTS IN PLACE
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEAUTY
TAKING BACK CONTROL OF OUR PLACES
PLACES ‘PLANNED’ BY PEOPLE
COMMUNITIES SHAPE PLACE
TAKING BACK THE COMMONS
BUSINESS AND PLACE
THE NIGHTMARE OF CARS
SLOW CITIES
SYMPATHY, EMPATHY, COMPASSION
WHY COMPASSION?
COMPASSION FOR SELF
COMPASSION FOR OTHERS
GOVERNMENT AND COMPASSION
BUSINESS AND COMPASSION
WIDER CIRCLES OF COMPASSION
JOY, PLEASURE AND HAPPINESS
GRADES OF PLEASURE?
ABUNDANCE — WHAT DO THE UTOPIAS MAKE OF PLEASURE?
DIFFERENT PLEASURES
PLEASURE AND NATURE
PLEASURE AND PLACE
PLEASURE AND COMPASSION
PLEASURE AND WORK
PLEASURE AND BUSINESS
CARNIVAL
PLEASURE AND SOUL
BEAUTY, SLOWNESS, SILENCE AND PEACE
EDUCATION
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
WHY PRIVATOPIA WILL NOT WORK
CAN THE FUTURE BE A CORNUCOPIA?
IS ECOTOPIA ENOUGH?
13 WHAT WE MIGHT DECIDE, IF WE COULD DECIDE
WHO DECIDES?
WHAT DO WE OWN? WHAT SHOULD WE SHARE?
WHAT SHOULD WE MAKE? HOW SHOULD WE TRADE?
HOW SHOULD WE LIVE?
GETTING THE FACTS
FROM FACTS TO STORY
THE VOICE OF DISSENT
DAYDREAMING
EDUCATION WITHOUT CHARACTER
NAME YOUR PLEASURES
NAME YOUR FEARS
THE CURRENT STORY
A STORY OF ISOLATION OR A STORY OF TRUST?
THE NEW STORY
THE DEMISE OF THE CURRENT STORY?
PROSPECTS FOR THE NEW STORY
CONCLUSION — A CHOICE OF PUDDINGS
WHERE IS THE VISION?
THE GOOD LIFE
POLARISED POLITICS
THREE UTOPIAS
SIX QUESTIONS