An Economic (and Political) model defines people’s relationship with the government including the level of interference of the government in the economy and people’s lives.
Economic (and Political) model is the realm of macroeconomics. It defines at high level what the relationship is. This relationship is formally and legally defined in a country’s Constitution.
It is a fallacy that the Economic Model of the Sikhs cannot be mapped onto conventional economic models like Capitalism or Socialism. It is said that it has elements of Capitalism and Socialism. This is incorrect.
Sikh economists drift into a spiritual dimension without addressing the practical aspects. They have a simplistic naïve view that people should ‘just do honest work’ (kirat karo). They don’t even talk about ‘Incentives’ (the invisible hand) or its importance. Why would any sane person do honest work with threat of confiscation and constant repression.
The Economic (and Political) Model of the Sikhs is Libertarian Capitalism.
What is Libertarian Capitalism?
At a practical level, who will build roads, bridges, and infrastructure? Who will run schools and hospitals? Free Market does a better job of capital allocation and efficiently providing products and services than the best government bureaucrats.
Government infrastructure projects exist because politicians and bureaucrats need to reward those who keep them in power. There is no economic justification for it. This is why infrastructure is constantly ‘under construction’ in the third world.
Sikhs do not believe in Welfare State. Sikhs have their own private, non-government, community funded Social Security model based around the Gurdwara. It is not Welfare State. It is not charity. Key is no government involvement. It is not a State model or a government program. It is private social security, funded and managed by the community using their own money.
Sikh’s model of Social Security is a working model in tens of thousands of Sikh Gurdwaras all over the World. It is more efficient and inclusive than anything government does.
Libertarianism does not mean no government, or anarchy. There is need for both the free market, as well as good governance and less/small governance provided by well-trained people. Plato called them epistocrats. Chinese had Mandarins. Sikh Gurus created the Khalsa. It is governance without political interference by experts trained in benevolence, philosophy, history, management, politics, economics etc.
Sikh values are being falsely equated with Socialism and Marxism. The origin of this false association of Sikhi and Socialism has its origins in 1970s to 1990s in Punjab and India when Sikhs studied in Indian Universities funded by Soviet Union. Academics, intellectuals, bureaucrats, journalists were indoctrinated in Marxist ideas.
Sikhs and Punjab have not changed much since 1984. Marxist indoctrination benefited Indian State which wanted people to ask for more government interference in people’s lives, and big government. They could justify more interference, more control, and more taxes. It gave Indian State, government, bureaucrats, and politicians more power. People ask for their own enslavement.
Socialism (and Communism) is a government run ‘Wealth Pump’ from the productive middle class to the oligarchs and bankers. (Peter Turchin: End Times, 2024) More the Socialism, more the Wealth Pump. This is the intended and un-stated purpose of Socialism. Socialism as a Wealth Pump eliminates the middle-class and increases inequality. Shrinking Middle Class is no coincidence.
Government Programs lead to Government Pogroms. Nobel Prize Winner Friedrich Hayek in his book 'Road to Serfdom' showed Fascism is an outcome of Socialism. Pogroms in Russia against the Russian minority Jews, Yellow-Star houses to mark the Jews in Hungary, and Sustained Sikh Ghallughara (Genocide) from 1984-1998 are examples of Government Pogroms.
Minorities are prime targets for exploitation when a government needs to extract money from the public. A small government that needs less and has severe restrictions on its role is less likely to resort to violence to extract from the minorities.
Economic models are implemented as a whole. You cannot have Socialist government programs, with property rights and no financial repression. Socialism and Communism require repression and confiscation of people’s property to fund the inefficient government programs
Centuries of persecution and repression of Sikhs by governments of the time has indoctrinated their intellectuals, twisted their psyche, and ‘damaged their DNA’ (common anecdote amongst the Sikhs). Sikhs today subconsciously want freedom from repression, and security of their property, land, and water. But they ask for it from the government. (ਸਰਕਾਰ ਕੁਝ ਕਰੇ)
Asking the government for prosperity and freedom is like asking the Mafia for law and order.
Libertarian Capitalism is a well-defined macro-economic model for how to run the economy, education, healthcare, infrastructure etc.
Only Libertarian Capitalism with its respect for property rights, less government interference, and no repression is compatible with Sikh vision of Halimi Raj (benevolent rule).