Page 19 - Michael August 2021

a real common capital, and therefore all the coheirs are ceived and laid out by another great mind — not an
entitled to a share of the fruits of this productive capital. economist nor a sociologist — but one of the most
The income that one derives from investing one’s distinguished philosophers of the twentieth century,
capital is called a dividend. The income derived from Jacques Maritain (1882-1973), who wrote in a book
a social capital that is inherited by all is called a so- published in 1936 titled Integral Humanism:
cial dividend. And this is what we mean by a periodic “We think that, in a system where a (more so-
dividend issued to each and everyone. This is an es- cial) conception of property would be in force, this
sential part of the social organism advocated by So- axiom (‘nothing for nothing’) would not be able to
cial Credit. survive. Quite to the contrary, the law of usus com-
When Pius XII stressed the fundamental right of munis would lead us to establish that, at least and
every man to make use of the material goods of the foremost, what regards the basic material and spirit-
earth, he added: ual needs of the human person, it is proper for people
to get, for nothing, as many things as possible... The
“It is reserved to human will and the juridical human person being served in his basic necessities
forms of the peoples to regulate, with more detail, is only, after all, the first
the practical realization of that right.” condition of an economy
A periodic dividend to each individual would which does not deserve
guarantee this right in a concrete and efficient way. to be called barbarous.
More so than the complex social security measures “The principles of
that lead to barbaric taxation, repeated inquiries and such an economy would
an army of civil servants. lead to a better under-
Turning each citizen, from the cradle to the grave, standing of the profound
into a capitalist entitled to a periodic dividend would meaning and the essen-
be the best way to fight socialist and communist tially human roots of the
propaganda. idea of inheritance, in
Such an income, distributed in the form of a such a way that... all men,
dividend, would respect the people’s dignity. Unlike upon entering into the Jacques Maritain
world, could effectively
wages and salaries, it would not be bonded. It would enjoy, in some way, the condition of being a heir of
not have the humiliating characteristics of an allow- the preceding generations.”
ance that requires that one proves he is destitute. It
would be the recognition of a birthright, inherent to Jacques Maritain revisits this idea on several oc-
the individual, the right to a share of the goods that casions in a book that was published in 1944, Prin-
are made using the natural resources created by God ciples of a Humanistic Economy:
and by the inheritance handed down to us by past “Finally, it is this equal condition of being co-
generations. heirs of everyone’s efforts which makes it feasible
This notion of inheritance from past generations for all people to get, as much as possible and at
that Douglas calls “cultural inheritance” was also per- no cost, a share of the basic material and spiritual
goods that are required for human existence.” v

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