1. re. post-scarcity: I think the question of whether post-scarcity is realizable hinges on the theoretical question of whether the potential for economic want is limitless. Most of the economics community says yes to the latter, so the prospects for post-scarcity look bleak. I, of course, have a dissident view, in that I’m not ready to treat the pursuit of post-scarcity is an inherent waste of time like, say, the pursuit of perpetual motion. On the other hand, I’m also investing effort in “plan B” scenarios re. post-scarcity.

2. re. the apolitical and the aneconomic: Assuming post-scarcity is at best an asymptotic goal, perhaps one of our “plans B” of attack should be “polyeconomics.” By polyeconomics (more specifically, “polymacroeconomics”) I mean: That which is to economies (macroeconomies or “national economies”) as “polyarchy” is to governments. Let the individual choose the economy in which s/he wishes to participate. Of course the only real economy is the global economy, but it is still the case that participation in the economy of one nation can differ greatly from participation in another. What is a winning strategy in one nation’s economy might be a losing strategy in another’s, etc. “Globalism” is an attempt to regard national economies as silos to be broken down. Polymacroeconomics asserts that economies can be created at macroeconomic scale (i.e. between global scale and microeconomic “economic actor” scale) but like governance structures under polyarchy, can be chosen voluntarily rather than being part of the package deal of “nationality.” My stab at a strategy for creating a macroeconomy is here.

3. Black gift economies? Interesting. Not sure what it means. The first thing that came to my mind is people who have been prosecuted for anonymously feeding other people’s parking meters, and of course the activities of Food Not Bombs.

4. Mondragon? Not sure. Must confess I’ve never traveled abroad. I suspect Mondragon-type institutions are a much better approach to fixing what’s wrong with employment than pushing people into self-employment, or some other manifestation of entreprenoorship. A society in which self-employment is the norm, or more precisely, is considered part of the minimal skill set, sounds like my idea of a nightmare.