:: pointing man ::Short of hard currency, which leaks away in exchange for all manner of goods and services, a volatile commodity, we have credits "good towards" various stations or jobs, sometimes designated by rank and/or title.
Resume credentials, or maybe on-the-job performance, count as the latter type of "currency" and come stamped with an identity, sometimes of a whole group or a team (think of some iconic brands that signify value).
A suburban family able to gain credits towards specific debts isn't earning hard currency exactly, yet might forestall foreclosure, with positive ripple effects, as many retirees count on some rate of return on their semi-antediluvian housing stock of diminishing appeal.
If Uncle Sam acquires the mortgage, then maybe it's by watching some of Uncle Sam's TV commercials that you get clued about that Internet-enabled computer, that training center downtown, other ways to punch one's ticket, as Uncle Sam gets us back on track with a jobs training program really worth all those taxes.
For example USA TV might start showing something more positively futuristic for North Americans to look forward to. Higher education is needed just to open those doors, really any ones worth opening. So let's get cracking. Infotainment is fun, with the media already a huge employer.
We humans won't allow ourselves to be herded or cowed, except against our wills, leading to standoffs and stagnation. Investors need to be eager about reaping tomorrow's harvest, seeding new businesses, not clutching at straws. Just "sitting pretty" may sometimes be the riskiest course, in the sense of least likely to succeed.
We're looking to advertise competing reality TV shows and to engage in recruiting, the same as the armed services have been doing. Uncle Sam wants you... to help with construction, rebuilding -- for college credit in many cases, even where there's some hard labor involved, heavy equipment. Building a railroad needn't be "menial" in the sense of "lower class" if done in the context of coursework.
Earn credits to stay home, or to study in coffee shops. Learn object oriented programming why not? Find a government program that'll subsidize your staying put, in exchange for climbing some virtual corporate ladder, advancing towards future dreams and goals, more opportunities to come.
Of course one imagines a thriving deregulated private sector providing these opportunities, independently of big government, but since when were private advertisers sponsoring positive futurism for civilians? OK, a few have been doing that.
When it comes to providing hope, Uncle Sam has a stronger mandate and charter, on balance, than many a privately operated "artificial person" (aka corporation).
This isn't to say Uncle Sam is entirely alone in offering a hopeful brand of realism, on the contrary, is another member of an elite minority, one of those with the courage to boldly go.
</propaganda>
