[ganafagol]

Does nobody in here realize that this is just the first step towards the well-known as well as rightfully-abolished concept of slavery?

Fraction of future income and participation in "certain life decisions" is just the beginning. In principle this can ramp up to all future income and all life decisions.

And don't tell me this is voluntary, which makes it all different from slavery. Alex himself writes "I had no choice". Just take this further and apply it to some drone worker in an Amazon fulfillment center or other precarious employment. People who don't have a choice and would end up uneployed and hungry on the streets if they don't agree to terms put in front of them. The only thing between the worker and such a deal is labour laws, and we all know how popular those are in "entrepreneur" circles.

[zshrdlu]

I've encountered something like this in a work of fiction, Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow. In the book, investors find young, brilliant but impoverished children, usually in crisis-struck places (war, civil strife, etc). They sponsor the young people's top-tier education and earn their salary when they become professionals, the sponsored only receiving a stipend necessary for living until their debt is paid off.

[CFA178B]

Interestingly, if I am gifted child in a neglected place selling myself would be a way to get out. Limited options make a bad looking options look good.

[ahel]

Which is very fun, counting that wealthy investor could potentially keep certain areas of the world in an impoverished state so to reap young gifted childs.

[ganafagol]

Arguably, we do see that happening already today. All developed countries with merit-based immigration systems are essentially contribution to half of this. Not necessarily on purpose, but in effect. Now, realizing that most of western "development aid" achieves the opposite of independent development provides the other half. Again, not necessarily on purpose, but in effect.

[insert_coin]

There is a lot of room between drone worker, saying you "had no choice" and actually having no choice, to both sides, but people that begin with the picture of a top down unmovable hierarchical structure of employment, and life in general, will never see that. Employment is no slavery. It is not easy, but it is not slavery.

[ganafagol]

I'm not saying that all employment is slavery. Far from it. A good employment arrangement is mutually beneficial. The employer gets a loyal worker that is productive, creative and motivated. The employee gets relative safety, a reasonable compensation and a sense of purpose.

What I'm saying is that the described scheme of Income Sharing Agreement is a step towards a dark age. Saying that it's always a choice is ignoring realities and just buys into the myth of "If you're poor then it's just because of your poor choices. Your fault." In the average western society, especially the U.S., there is a lack of social mobility that goes directly counter to that myth and can't just be explained by people making poor choices, compared to societies where mobility is higher.