Commentary

Why Commons Capitalism Took So Long to Emerge

Capitalism,Commentary,Enterprise Theory,Foundations and Philosophy,Governance and Structure 71

Reference code: C26-01 Most people assume that, if an idea is sound, someone would have built it already. Commons Capitalism invites that assumption because the core concept is simple: keep markets and competition, but forbid private capture of surplus. If that is all it is, why did it not show up...

The editing, revising, curation and use of ChatGPT in these commentaries to reflect the proper import of Commons Capitalism is discussed here.

Durable Worker Security in Economic Downturns

Capitalism,Commentary,Economics and Surplus Allocation,Labor and Workplace 162

Reference code: C25-14 This commentary is one of a two-part set of commentaries that examines worker precarity in down economies. Why Downturns Turn Jobs into Precarity Economic downturns translate quickly into worker precarity because the employment relationship in the United States is often the...

The Problem of Captured Surplus

Capitalism,Commentary,Economics and Surplus Allocation,Foundations and Philosophy 285

Why A Commons-Based Enterprise Model Is Needed Now Reference code: C25-13 Historical Drift of the Postwar Social Contract In the decades after the Second World War, households in the United States could reasonably expect that diligent work would translate into stability, modest upward mobility and...

Projected Reach of Commons Enterprises in the United States

Capitalism,Commentary,Economics and Surplus Allocation,Enterprise Theory,Foundations and Philosophy 124

Reference code: C25-12 Recent data from the Federal Reserve and related analyses show just how concentrated wealth has become in the United States. The Federal Reserve’s Distributional Financial Accounts, summarized in a June 2025 article from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, report that the...

Executive Role and Board Stewardship

Commentary,Governance and Structure 130

Reference code: C25-11 This commentary is one of a two-part set of commentaries that examines the principles and practical design choices involved in Small Scale Commons Governance. Part Two─Executive Role and Board Stewardship Within this compact design, the role of an executive director or...

Smaller Structures with the Same Core

Commentary,Governance and Structure 100

Reference code: C25-10 This commentary is one of a two-part set of commentaries that examines the principles and practical design choices involved in Small Scale Commons Governance. Part One─Designing Small Scale Commons Governance This commentary is the first part of a two-part guide on how small...

Professional Fields with a Stake in Commons Capitalism

Commentary,Enterprise Theory,Governance and Structure 126

Reference code: C25-09 Commons capitalism represents a departure from familiar corporate and nonprofit structures. By separating stewardship authority from market-facing operations, and by requiring subsidiaries to pursue the highest achievable net profits while the parent corporation preserves...