Mutual Aid Societies

[santaclause102]

A benefit society, fraternal benefit society or fraternal benefit order is a society, an organization or a voluntary association formed to provide mutual aid, benefit, for instance insurance for relief from sundry difficulties.

A blockchain cannot provide insurance as it is traditionally known, but could easily create a community of individuals who help one another when they face difficulties.  These difficulties can be a wide range of things.

We live in a society where most good people standby and do nothing to help those who are the victim of state violence. This includes those who are punished for victimless crimes or laws that violate the constitution or other basic human rights.  Few people are willing to stand up to the government because the costs are very high on an individual.  If we could only stand together then we would all be protected and regain our freedom.

Typically the way this would work is this, each month members contribute funds to an individualized account that can only be used to reimburse authorized claims by other members. Each member would be allowed to make a claim for at most a multiple of funds contributed derived from the ratio of claims paid out.

The process of making a claim involves making a public request for help and getting the request for help certified by an oracle trusted to verify the facts of the claim. Once the facts are certified other individuals may review the claim and "donate" up to $100 from their locked up funds to cover the claim. 

Under this system individuals can only receive benefits if they are a victim, produce verifiable evidence, and have the support of a large number of independent users who individually transfer funds from user to user.

I would start this system for five classes of users:

1. Those who are accused of possessing illegal substances but have not actually harmed anyone
2. Those who are accused of traffic violations for behavior that did not harm anyone
3. Those who are accused of copyright violation
4. Those who are accused of participating in prostitution that did not harm anyone and where no children are involved.   
5. Those who have their assets seized   

In all cases we presume innocence and believe that the accused deserve a fair defense.

This is a unique product that could easily be codified in smart contracts and provide real world utility that does not exist elsewhere.   

This is also a controversial product that would generate a lot of media attention and attract people who might not otherwise care about crypto currency.

So the question is, how much would you contribute each month to join a community of people united in defense against government attacks on peaceful individuals?

If all funds / accounting were done using BTS then the amount you can get paid out will dramatically increase as adoption grows. The locked up funds would take BTS out of circulation until a claim was made.  It could get very interesting very quickly.

Thoughts?

I like the idea!

derived from the ratio of claims paid out.

I don't understand this bit. Can you explain that?

Once the facts are certified other individuals may review the claim and "donate" up to $100 from their locked up funds to cover the claim. 

Would that system have the overall cost that indidivuals have to pay attention to the claims of other individuals? It's a bit like all shareholders in DPOS have to pay attention in order to vote. Maybe a similar proxy system would make sense?

5. Those who have their assets seized   

Should it say "Those who have their assets seized" or "Those who have their assets seized without having harmed aynone" ?

Could it be that the system ends up with only one class of people? A class where the "legal risk" is the highest while doing no harm to others. So for example: Only "drug" dealers.

What if you are not harming anyone yourself but you are helping someone that for example is a contract killer by washing his money?

[tonyk]

Coming soon to a theater near you...

"The Civil Disobedience of the Brownnosers"

PS
Sorry, could not help myself...was such a meatball.... right in the middle of the plate.

[lovejoy]

All that was an element of progress in the past or an instrument of moral and intellectual improvement of the human race is due to the practice of mutual aid, to the customs that recognized the equality of men and brought them to ally, to unite, to associate for the purpose of producing and consuming, to unite for purpose of defence to federate and to recognize no other judges in fighting out their differences than the arbitrators they took from their own midst.

Each time these institutions, issued from popular genius, when it had reconquered its liberty for a moment, — each time these institutions developed in a new direction, the moral level of society, its material well-being, its liberty, its intellectual progress, and the affirmation of individual originality made a step in advance. And, on the contrary, each time that in the course of history, whether following upon a foreign conquest, or whether by developing authoritarian prejudices men become more and more divided into governors and governed, exploiters and exploited, the moral level fell, the well-being of the masses decreased in order to insure riches to a few, and the spirit of the age declined.

Peter Kropotkin - Anarchism: Its Philosophy and Ideal (1896)

[giant middle finger]

ahhh. the freedom to flip the bird at you.

I'm only here because I've been banned everywhere else.

but you should make the payout in proportion to your donation because I plan on being waterboarded in secret

[puppies]

Their pictures came up when I googled "civil disobedience"

Ah.  Now I get it.  Thanks.

How about putting a toggle button in the wallet and if someone turns it to "on", you capture some of their fees or have them pay a one-time donation?

I don't know enough about Gandhi and his economic beliefs to be sure. 

King was ... economically ...about as far away from freedom as you can get. 

It's possible to have tremendous respect for what these leaders stood up for nonviolently without necessarily agreeing with their economic beliefs. The contexts in which they lived, and the things their people needed badly, are not necessarily the same as the problems that you and I face. Also, I have never been comfortable taking someone who is an expert in one field and automatically assuming that that expertise should extend to other fields. If someone is a great neurosurgeon or casino mogul, how do we know that person's greatness would translate into being a great president or a great cookbook author? And there are rare people who are true Renaissance folks and have diverse skills and interests; I'm not precluding that. Evaluate King and Gandhi based on what they achieved. The fact that their economic beliefs were partially formed (they probably had their hands full with other things) or different from yours, etc., really shouldn't matter because they were not economists to begin with.

I had typed up a great discourse on my opinion.  It was great.  Sadly I lost it and I am not going to type it up again.  Instead you will get the cliff notes.

If truth is your goal then it must be relentlessly pursued.  If truth is not your goal, then I do not see a point in further discussion with you.

The initiation of force is evil.  Those who would use the state to initiate force against others to keep their hands "clean" are evil, and should be treated as such.  If someone is 90% not evil, and 10% evil, we cannot ignore that 10%.  To do so is to accept evil. 

I am not saying we shouldn't praise the good.  In my original quote I praised what I believe to be very good things about king.  It does not mean that I should accept the evil though.

[donkeypong]

How about putting a toggle button in the wallet and if someone turns it to "on", you capture some of their fees or have them pay a one-time donation?

I don't know enough about Gandhi and his economic beliefs to be sure. 

King was ... economically ...about as far away from freedom as you can get. 

It's possible to have tremendous respect for what these leaders stood up for nonviolently without necessarily agreeing with their economic beliefs. The contexts in which they lived, and the things their people needed badly, are not necessarily the same as the problems that you and I face. Also, I have never been comfortable taking someone who is an expert in one field and automatically assuming that that expertise should extend to other fields. If someone is a great neurosurgeon or casino mogul, how do we know that person's greatness would translate into being a great president or a great cookbook author? And there are rare people who are true Renaissance folks and have diverse skills and interests; I'm not precluding that. Evaluate King and Gandhi based on what they achieved. The fact that their economic beliefs were partially formed (they probably had their hands full with other things) or different from yours, etc., really shouldn't matter because they were not economists to begin with.

[tonyk]

And do not ask which one.... you know damn well.

[tonyk]

Don't you guys love the contradiction?

[Stan]

Their pictures came up when I googled "civil disobedience"

[Xeldal]

Don't forget about this guy. One of my favorites.


"I heartily accept the motto, "That government is best which governs least"; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe- "That government is best which governs not at all"; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of government which they will have."

Civil Disobedience
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper2/thoreau/civil.html

[onceuponatime]

If this will help cover any residual risk that I might bear of having my assets seized for being involved in a STEALTH asset, then I would be willing to go in for $100/month.

[puppies]

I don't know enough about Gandhi and his economic beliefs to be sure. 

King was a republican just like Strom Thurmond was a Democrat.  They don't mean the same things they do now.  While King had some very wonderful things to say that I agree with completely, such as each man being judged individually, and an opposition to war and empire, economically he was about as far away from freedom as you can get. 

I could of course be incorrect as I have not spent a great amount of time attempting to get to the truth of the matter, but have instead taken the word of others in this regards.

[merivercap]

Lol.  I was just looking at the picture of Mandela Ghandi and king, and trying to figure out what they have in common.  I came up with socialism.  I could also say opposition to empires. 

Ultimately I was jokingly attempting to say, I have no idea what that cause would be.

Oddly enough, Gandhi eventually became an anarchist from what I understand.. King was a Republican. 

[puppies]

Lol.  I was just looking at the picture of Mandela Ghandi and king, and trying to figure out what they have in common.  I came up with socialism.  I could also say opposition to empires. 

Ultimately I was jokingly attempting to say, I have no idea what that cause would be.

[ebit]