A couple months ago I interviewed Derek Thompson about his book with co-author Ezra Klein, Abundance. It was, in many ways, a positive, wonky book about reducing red tape and enabling ‘a liberalism that builds,’ literally and figuratively, to solve today’s problems. I’ve been supportive of many of these ideas as I agree that making government work better is a laudable goal. And their argument has filled a need, as “Abundance” has been on the bestseller list now for 10 straight weeks.
Exactly! I remember when AIDS was called GRID. I remember the controversy surrounding solutions and the red tape that halted progress while people were dying. I’m old now but recall stories told by my grandfather about being in the CCC, Civilian Conservation Corps. Infrastructure, soil conservation and tree planting were among their quests. Gpa talked proudly about their accomplishments. Maybe it’s time to bring this concept back…get things done and give young men a purpose. Bring back pride and accomplishments for the greater good! KB
This line is gorgeous and hits home: "And a desire for abundance stretches far and wide well beyond party lines. It might even help erase them."
I LOVED the book Abundance because of the vision it presented - something hopeful and open and possible - while much of the national narrative is in quite a doom-spiral. We need perspectives like this (and yours) more than ever.
I write about human-centered workplaces and how company leaders are ultimately responsible for creating the conditions that enhance employee potential (or stifle it.) The same is true at a national/economic and political scale. If we want health and abundance, leaders need to have a clear vision, and a commitment to getting there, even when the pressure is on.
Andrew — I appreciate the clarity you bring to this conversation. I haven’t yet read Abundance, but from your summary, it’s clear that Ezra and Derek are surfacing a real and frustrating truth: that despite good intentions and ambitious visions, the machinery of government has become too entangled, slow, and brittle to deliver results people can trust. The backlash they’re receiving underscores how entrenched our ideological silos have become — even among those ostensibly on the same side.
What’s striking is how this growing “abundance vs. bureaucracy” tension mirrors a deeper shift happening across the political spectrum. People aren’t just fed up with outcomes — they’re questioning the foundations beneath them. They’re asking: Why are we still clinging to a scarcity mindset in a world of accelerating capacity and possibility? Why do so many of our systems — economic, governmental, even cultural — operate as if trust, resources, dignity, and care must be rationed?
You mentioned the polarization of the two-party system as a structural blockade. I agree — and I’d add that it's not just a partisan problem, but a paradigm problem. We need more than new factions. We need a new framework.
In parallel to the abundance conversation, a few of us have been working quietly on something called The Unity Project — an initiative that seeks to unify people, movements, and institutions around shared values and practical solutions that transcend ideology. One of its central pillars is The Unity Economy — a model that builds upon the foundation of universal basic income (which you’ve long championed) but goes further: recognizing that we live in an infinite, expanding universe — not metaphorically, but literally — and designing an economy that reflects that scientific reality. Rather than tinkering at the edges of dysfunction, it starts with a different set of assumptions about value, contribution, and human flourishing.
In contrast with Abundance (as you’ve described it), which seems to focus on removing bottlenecks within the current system, The Unity Economy challenges the design of the system itself. It’s not either/or — it’s yes/and. Yes to reducing red tape. Yes to better governance. And yes to reimagining the foundations beneath it all.
You’ve often said that we need a new political force — and it’s encouraging to see Forward and now even Elon Musk’s “America Party” begin to experiment with that possibility. But parties alone can’t unify people. What unifies us is shared truth, shared values, and a shared vision for what comes next.
If anyone feels called to explore this further, The Unity Project is one quiet effort to help map the way forward: http://UnityProject.One
Exactly! I remember when AIDS was called GRID. I remember the controversy surrounding solutions and the red tape that halted progress while people were dying. I’m old now but recall stories told by my grandfather about being in the CCC, Civilian Conservation Corps. Infrastructure, soil conservation and tree planting were among their quests. Gpa talked proudly about their accomplishments. Maybe it’s time to bring this concept back…get things done and give young men a purpose. Bring back pride and accomplishments for the greater good! KB
This line is gorgeous and hits home: "And a desire for abundance stretches far and wide well beyond party lines. It might even help erase them."
I LOVED the book Abundance because of the vision it presented - something hopeful and open and possible - while much of the national narrative is in quite a doom-spiral. We need perspectives like this (and yours) more than ever.
I write about human-centered workplaces and how company leaders are ultimately responsible for creating the conditions that enhance employee potential (or stifle it.) The same is true at a national/economic and political scale. If we want health and abundance, leaders need to have a clear vision, and a commitment to getting there, even when the pressure is on.
Andrew — I appreciate the clarity you bring to this conversation. I haven’t yet read Abundance, but from your summary, it’s clear that Ezra and Derek are surfacing a real and frustrating truth: that despite good intentions and ambitious visions, the machinery of government has become too entangled, slow, and brittle to deliver results people can trust. The backlash they’re receiving underscores how entrenched our ideological silos have become — even among those ostensibly on the same side.
What’s striking is how this growing “abundance vs. bureaucracy” tension mirrors a deeper shift happening across the political spectrum. People aren’t just fed up with outcomes — they’re questioning the foundations beneath them. They’re asking: Why are we still clinging to a scarcity mindset in a world of accelerating capacity and possibility? Why do so many of our systems — economic, governmental, even cultural — operate as if trust, resources, dignity, and care must be rationed?
You mentioned the polarization of the two-party system as a structural blockade. I agree — and I’d add that it's not just a partisan problem, but a paradigm problem. We need more than new factions. We need a new framework.
In parallel to the abundance conversation, a few of us have been working quietly on something called The Unity Project — an initiative that seeks to unify people, movements, and institutions around shared values and practical solutions that transcend ideology. One of its central pillars is The Unity Economy — a model that builds upon the foundation of universal basic income (which you’ve long championed) but goes further: recognizing that we live in an infinite, expanding universe — not metaphorically, but literally — and designing an economy that reflects that scientific reality. Rather than tinkering at the edges of dysfunction, it starts with a different set of assumptions about value, contribution, and human flourishing.
In contrast with Abundance (as you’ve described it), which seems to focus on removing bottlenecks within the current system, The Unity Economy challenges the design of the system itself. It’s not either/or — it’s yes/and. Yes to reducing red tape. Yes to better governance. And yes to reimagining the foundations beneath it all.
You’ve often said that we need a new political force — and it’s encouraging to see Forward and now even Elon Musk’s “America Party” begin to experiment with that possibility. But parties alone can’t unify people. What unifies us is shared truth, shared values, and a shared vision for what comes next.
If anyone feels called to explore this further, The Unity Project is one quiet effort to help map the way forward: http://UnityProject.One
Onward.
—
Brent Hunter
Chairman, The Unity Project
http://UnityProject.One