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A comment on U.S. billionaires worry about the survival of the system that made them rich. Parent comment

Re:U.S. billionaires worry about the survival of the system ... by erentz on Sunday April 21, 2019 @12:45PM (#19712982)
> My worry with UBI as a replacement for work is that it relies on the continued altruism of the elite

Well it relies on a fair and properly functioning democracy. We have a very corrupt system at the moment, people don't get what they want because politicians are bought and paid for by their donors. We need adequate defenses against this in our system, then it stops being anything to do with the altruism of the elite, because the majority regular folks are going to continue voting for the UBI or other benefits.

The other balance is the threat of revolution. Keep the population happy enough or they'll come for you.

Removing the gated community effect would also help. If the rich have to use the same services as the rest of us, then they have an incentive to ensure those services are well run. If large inheritances are effectively taxed away, then they have to ensure society provides a good platform for their children. Etc.

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Re:U.S. billionaires worry about the survival of the system ... by HNKingpin on Sunday April 21, 2019 @12:47PM (#19712998)
> Well it relies on a fair and properly functioning democracy.

For that, there need to be consequences for politicians that screw up. There aren't. Actually, nowhere do we even have a real democracy. A regular person has no say in anything at all.

[ Parent | on HN ]