Neo-Abolitionism : Abolishing Human Rentals in Favor of Workplace Democracy

This book argues for the abolition of the employment system in favor of workplace democracy and thus escapes the usual capitalism-versus-socialism binary choice by reframing the basic issue as the employment contract, not private property or a market economy. The author repositions the political and economic debate in the lineage of abolitionism - against the owning of other people - which in its modern version of neo-abolitionism would also abolish the renting, or hiring, employing, or leasing of other people. The overall argument is based on three recovered theories, each one of which is sufficient to yield the neo-abolitionist conclusion. These three rights-based theories are developed throughout the book. The three theories are 1) inalienable rights theory, 2) the natural rights or labor theory of property, and 3) democratic theory as based on a democratic constitution that only delegates governance rights versus a non-democratic constitution that alienates governance rights. The book, therefore, is a must-read for everybody interested in a better understanding of the political economy, workplace democracy, rights-based theories, and the employment system. Acknowledgments About the Book Contents Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Neo-Abolitionism 1.2 What Is ``the System ́ ́ Being Argued Against? 1.3 What Is the System Being Argued for? References Chapter 2: Contract: The Case Against the Human Rental Contract Based on Inalienability 2.1 Contractual Defenses of Slavery 2.2 History of Inalienability Theory 2.3 Modern Theory of Inalienable Rights 2.4 How to (Mis)Understand Inalienability Theory References Chapter 3: Property: The Case Against the Human Rental System Based on Private Property Rights 3.1 The Misnomer of ``Capitalism ́ ́ and the Fundamental Myth 3.2 Marginal Productivity Theory 3.3 History of Property Theory References Chapter 4: Governance: The Case Against the Employment System Based on Democratic Theory 4.1 Intellectual History of Consent-Based Non-democratic Government 4.2 Intellectual History of the Case for Democratic Governance 4.3 The Debate About Corporations References Chapter 5: Summary and Conclusions 5.1 Conventional Classical Liberalism 5.2 Summary: Inalienable Rights Theory 5.3 Summary: The Natural Rights or Labor Theory of Property 5.4 Summary: Democratic Theory and the Democratic Alternative References