(I once wrote an open letter to Russell Brand about why he shouldn't advocate against voting in political elections. I can't say for certain that he read it, but he's changed his opinion since then, so maybe there's some other cosmic force that makes my open letters work. Let's find out.)
Penston to Musk, Penston to Musk, come iiiiinnn Musk,
I know you're busy turning us into an interplanetary species at the moment, but I'd like to go back to talking about becoming an interdependent species, the way you did when you were advocating for a universal basic income.
There's an idea of yours that I want to steal. It's the idea that is at the core of Tesla. It hasn't been patented, so if any IP lawyers are reading this, you can stop slobbering over the potential for litigation!
You came to Australia in 2017 and had Tesla build the largest battery array in the World. I've heard that it's already proven to be very useful, so hopefully we'll be able to get some more. Doesn't it make soooo much sense to store electricity so that it's ready to use when needed rather than allowing it to go to waste?
Carjacking A Tesla Idea
I think so, and that's the idea that I want to steal from you. But instead of using it to solve problems around electricity, I want to use it to solve the problem of unemployment.
It makes even less sense to waste labour than it does to waste electricity because the costs of not using it go beyond mere economic concerns. Unemployment can affect the well-being of individuals, their families and their communities.
A Tesla For Employment
What we need is storage for labour. Something that keeps it ready for use whenever businesses have the money to pay for it. We need a Tesla for employment.
Australia can afford to give everyone a universal basic income of around $3-3.5K without having to increase taxes. However, I think it would be a lot better for our society as a whole if we were to create jobs that pay ten times as much.
The Best of Times
Why only ten times? Because that's the amount we can afford today without having to increase taxes and without competing against the private sector (i.e. don't have minimum wage workers quit their jobs to take these ones). It seems like a pretty good deal, and I'm positive (or negatively charged? - am I forcing the electricity theme too much?) that you'll agree, especially as the whole thing was really your idea in the first place.
The work that Tesla is doing to help break our dependence on oil should mean there'll be no more oil crises, so I expect that we can make this last for more than 30 years. This 'job battery' idea is more aligned with Tesla's work than UBI is, so I hope you'll become an advocate.
It Can Be Done
This would work in Australia, the US, the UK, Canada... even in New Zealand! We can end involuntary unemployment by storing labour in public sector jobs until the private sector is ready and able to use it. If you want to know the mechanics of how it can be done without the need for additional taxes, I've already made a video to explain that (you can ignore the part where I say that it was actually someone else's idea).
I don't have your e-mail address and you don't have mine, but I'd love to hear your thoughts, so please feel free to leave a comment below.
P.S.
I don't use Twitter a great deal (I don't really identify myself as much of a twit), but but I did catch this tweet that Chris Cook sent to you which said:
Stop selling your cars for profit & supply them as a service on a shared surplus basis ie use energy economics not dollar economics
We can have a chat about that too, or you can just click 'Follow' and more important messages will appear in your feed as I write them.
