How to Fix the Gig Economy
It starts with thinking outside the tech bubble
The recent election unearthed an enduring debate about American capitalism: What exactly is a good job? For a long time, we need to remember, the very idea of a “good” “job” was a contradiction. Until the 20th century, it was self-evident that there was nothing good about a job. What was good was being independent, which usually meant being an artisan, a retailer, or, most commonly, a farmer.
The longing many Americans feel for owning their own business, the celebration of entrepreneurship in our culture, and our homesteading heritage are not just about money — or buying houses. Yet for several generations, we have made it easy to own a home but hard to own a business. The rise of the new economy, as the last election showed, has left many people, especially rural people, behind. This new reality of our decentralized digital economy, however, offers the possibility of returning to our core American values of security and independence.
If the only answer to rural downward mobility is to turn everyone into software engineers, then there is no hope. The idea that every truck driver or coal miner can, or should, become a member of the modern professional class is closely related to the belief that unless you have those particular skills, you have no value — which isn’t the…
