Re:U.S. billionaires worry about the survival of the system ...
by _bxg1 on Sunday April 21, 2019 @12:43PM
(#19712971)
If that were all there was to it it would be totally unsustainable. There are two possible goals of UBI, depending on who you ask:
1) Automation is going to make the concept of jobs obsolete. Therefore most of the population will simply die of poverty if we don't artificially redistribute all of the wealth.
2) Many people today are stuck in poverty because they're too financially stretched to pay for healthcare, education, a car to get to work, childcare, etc., even while spending all extra time working multiple jobs. The hope is that by giving them a life raft, they'll have the leeway to spend time, money, and energy on self-betterment, and thereby enrich the economy.
My argument is that #1 sounds good but doesn't seem robust against a few powerful bad actors. #2, though, could be quite effective.
1) Automation is going to make the concept of jobs obsolete. Therefore most of the population will simply die of poverty if we don't artificially redistribute all of the wealth.
2) Many people today are stuck in poverty because they're too financially stretched to pay for healthcare, education, a car to get to work, childcare, etc., even while spending all extra time working multiple jobs. The hope is that by giving them a life raft, they'll have the leeway to spend time, money, and energy on self-betterment, and thereby enrich the economy.
My argument is that #1 sounds good but doesn't seem robust against a few powerful bad actors. #2, though, could be quite effective.