Saturday, December 13, 2014

Primary Equilibrium and its Many Alternatives

Recently I read an article which suggested that America could be more like Disneyland. I was a bit curious before getting to the central argument, in that some praise for Disneyland cites it as an example of charter city potential. However, this praise came from a left leaning source, because of well maintained infrastructure! Who doesn't admire any nation or city which is able to keep its infrastructure top notch? Then why can't the U.S. do a better job of maintenance? Oh, to count the possible reasons...

Among the laundry list: confusion over priorities, in spite of vast resource potential which remains at Washington's behest. Just pay for X now! Yes, but this is hardly the only letter of the alphabet demanding attention, in a diverse economy with aging infrastructure and growing entitlement to add to the different directions everyone prefers. Where does X even stand, as compared to other concerns?

All of this needs to be considered, before anyone can begin work on new infrastructure design which includes not just physical elements, but important social components as well. Big reform bites are not the way to go, because they would subject some populations to change that is not necessarily needed for them. Little bites are better because they are the best way to test production reform in populations which wish to do so.

Despite a seeming difference in charter cities (as compared to what already exists), they remain part of what is primary, mature and - in a sense - international equilibrium. Think recent subdivision formation around the world which looks the same, for instance. In other words, similar economic and financial formulas are followed, and citizens come along afterward without real input into the process. So long as infrastructure design doesn't adapt to differences in income and lifestyle patterns, the result is almost a carbon copy of what already exists. Even the alternative of charter city formation, suffers from the stigma of not enough citizen participation, and a mostly external vision of what the city can become.

How could citizens become a more active part of local investment processes? Direct involvement in this regard, can also positively affect the local tax structures which became so problematic in the twentieth century. New forms of equilibrium would particularly be conscious of local income and consumption ratios, which would be reflected in both asset and services formation. Entry into knowledge systems communities would also involve educational preparation, beforehand. Anyone attending domestic summits, would not only need to approach time use differently, but also plan to take part in ongoing local investment projects.

Each knowledge systems community would become a new business model, and each would create a unique equilibrium, none of which is the same as others or primary equilibrium. Even though clear patterns would be defined, they are not the same patterns which others would utilize in quite the same ways. The purpose of new patterns is to make certain individuals have productive options for both survival and the ability to thrive.

Where primary equilibrium often appears uncertain in the present, the main difficulty lies in anchoring income potential to certain givens in consumption and production. All too often at national levels, that has not been happening. Governments and central bankers - among other things - have become sidetracked with their direct involvement in asset formations. In turn, asset formations tie into global resources which do not always provide a clear picture as to domestic realities. The self contained nature of investment and services formation in new communities, would provide means for governments to once again look inward, to determine what domestic capacity is still possible.

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