Land Dispossession and Agrarian Justice

Listen to "Agrarian Justice" as read by Scott Santens in this podcast. (https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-scott-santens/agrarian-justice-by-thomas-bySgcFjE2sd/)

Read "Agrarian Justice." (https://fermatslibrary.com/s/agrarian-justice)

In "Agrarian Justice," Thomas Paine distinguishes between two types of land: cultivated and uncultivated. Here are some of his observations.

Society of Cultivated Land

1. Land is held as private property.
2. Dense human populations possible.
3. Some very rich and many very poor people in society.

Society of Uncultivated Land

1. Land is considered the common property of humanity. (Example given is the native peoples of North America.)
2. Low population density as hunting and gathering requires large areas of land.
3. Quality of material life is similar among people within the society, and Paine argues is much better than the poor of a cultivated society.

His basic point is that land was originally created by God and given to all humans as common property for the good of all and not to be held as private property. Since we now live in a society where some people do own property and others do not, Paine argues that compensation should be paid to account for this land dispossession. And here we have one of the first calls for a Universal Basic Income (UBI).

I will go on to observe that when the ancient Hebrews entered their promised land, each family was given a section of land. From this land and its natural resources, those families could then use their human labor to produce the necessities of life. In fact, the Year of Jubilee and other structures of the Hebrew society was designed to ensure that a family never lost their property. And furthermore, the entire tribe of Levi was not given any property, but the rest of the tribes were supposed to collectively support the Levities so that they could serve as priests.

Based on all this, I suggest that there are 3 ways to create a just society regarding land and resources.

1. Land is for the community and not owned by anyone.
2. Land is owned by each family in an allotment that is sufficient to support their family.
3. Land is bought and sold as private property, but cash payments are distributed to all in compensation for land dispossession.

As Paine says, "In advocating the case of the persons thus dispossessed, it is a right, and not a charity, that I am pleading for." In my view, this becomes the foundational and philosophical reason for a UBI. There are many other good reasons for UBI that tend to focus on the positive outcomes of such a plan. To me, it is helpful to distinguish between the "why we should have UBI" and the "what good will come of it" questions.