When you go into a store, each dollar in your pocket will buy you a dollar's worth of whatever you want. Your dollar is an economic ballot. The more of these ballots you have the more you can choose.
The products you take away will be replaced by others of the same quality which the retailer gets from the wholesaler. The latter, in turn, renews his supplies from the producer. By your economic ballot, according to the quantity you have, you guide the production of your country, regardless of who may own the means of production.
A citizen without money can get no part of the production of his country. He does not have an economic vote; he is economically defranchised.
How many are there who are thus economically defranchised! How many others have so few of these ballots that they actually have no choice and must content themselves with products they don't especially like, in place of goods of high quality! These people suffer financial dictatorship. Dictatorship is contrary to democracy.
Socialists propose a planned economy, an economy directed not by the consumers themselves but by men who arrogate to themselves the right to decide what should be offered to the consumer. In place of correcting financial dictatorship they add to it the dictatorship of bureaucracy.
Social Credit by the periodic dividend, which increases with progress and is distributed to all unconditionally, guarantees to all these ballots for voting on produce. Each citizen shares in the direction of production. Production, automatically financed, fills the needs of all — at least to the amount of the dividend.
The realisation of Social Credit would be the realisation of real economic democracy. In fact, Social Credit was first known by that name by its founder, Major Douglas. His first book on the subject bore the title, Economic Democracy
In a democracy, contrary to a dictatorship, the people should be able, by some means, to influence the politics of their country.
The sense of democracy is considerably narrowed when it is reduced to choosing between candidates on election day. The idea of an electoral campaign is to influence the people rather than have the people exert the influence.
Politics go on between elections. The Union of Electors teaches people how to express their will at all times to their representatives whatever that will may be, by all the means at their disposal; to vote at all times, for the word vote means free choice; to vote not only for men or for methods but for objectives also; to demand, not only privileges but results which will be good for everyone.
By a letter, or a petition complete with signatures, sent to the governement or an M. P., the citizen can ask for an increase in family allowances or the lowering of the age for old-age pensions. He can cast this "vote" as often as he wishes. When Crediters ask and cause to be asked by their municipal councils, that the Bank of Canada finance production without interest, it is voting for an objective.
By protesting against obligatory state health insurance, the fluoridation of drinking water, they vote against these measures.
The circulation of The Union of Electors is a vote for the policy expressed in this paper. Being present at a congress is a vote for the demands made by this congress, a vote all the more impressive since the members come from all over.
Without yet having economic democracy, Crediters more and more practice political democracy. And if they do not immediately obtain that for which they ask it is because there are not as yet enough voices. There is thus only one solution: to increase the number of voices by getting more subscribers to The Union of Electors.