Policies now for an abundant next 100 years
Plus smallness as a path to sweeping growth
Do Americans Think Abundance Is Possible?
We have released a new poll and research compendium on the topics of abundance and progress.
A future of abundance is not guaranteed, but it is within reach. Getting to a future of more means creating the right policies now (more on that below). If we care about promoting a future of abundance, we should be asking Americans what they think, too. I believe this will help us better craft solutions and messages going forward.
Our latest poll shows that Americans believe in our ability to achieve abundance:
39% believe technology and innovation will be the primary means to solve the problems we’ll face over the next 100 years.
About half of Americans say that Congress (59%) and the president (47%) are hurting our opportunities for a prosperous future.
Of our poll’s findings, I personally find the most optimism in the 42% of folks who aren’t sure whether now or the future is the best time to be alive. This means there is an opportunity to cast a better vision for what’s to come. What policies could take us there? We have ideas.
What Policies Create Abundance?
Action by Congress today sets up a future where we can trust that our grandchildren will live a better life than we are living. Our Abundance Agenda outlines specific policies in three areas—technology, the environment, and immigration—where relevant reforms would improve the quality of life for all Americans.
The five technology policy changes I suggest cover a wide range of issues from Big Tech to healthcare to transportation.
Encourage competitive tech markets
Software remains a key economic driver. Policies should maintain a competitive environment that allows startups to continue to disrupt and push for growth.Improve FDA approval processes
It’s taking longer and longer for the FDA to approve new drugs. I outline five immediate steps to counteract this trend (also known as Eroom’s Law, as my colleague Eli covered recently).Make broadband a reality for all Americans
Every American should have cheap, high-speed internet. I recommend commercial spectrum transfers and vouchers to make that happen.Remove barriers to transportation innovation
To grow we need to build. To that end, we ask the FAA for better drone integration and categorical exclusion from NEPA for supersonic flight.Expand employment flexibility
Insurance remains a large barrier for the gig economy. I have ideas for lowering that barrier to create more flexibility for workers and employers.
Anything I missed? Let me know.
In the News
Speaking of NEPA, Eli wrote an extensive piece detailing how the 5-page law has impacted our capacity to build for over 50 years.
Eli also wrote about using nanotechnology as our path out of the Great Stagnation for the latest Works in Progress. This whole special issue of Works in Progress is worth the read.
On October 23, Will and a CGO Research Fellow, Isaac Crosby, presented their research in a panel titled “Charting the Size of Attention Markets” at the Mercatus Center Markets and Society Conference in northern Virginia. More details here.
Will was quoted in a couple of POLITICO articles identifying politicians and movements that are emphasizing the need to build more.
ICYMI, at the end of last month, Will was interviewed for nearly an hour on TechFreedom’s podcast in a wide-ranging discussion “on whether the FDA should declare aging a disease, how to measure broadband access (and best allocate broadband funding), what we can learn from last year’s Facebook blackout, and why we need an abundance agenda.”