Universal basic income?

I understand that argument: pension, dole, student allowance etc, work and you will be penalised. It's not a system that incentivises work really, is it?

 

A Universal Basic Income of $800 a fortnight would be ideal... especially if it were accompanied by a barrel of oil.

Then by default, everybody would also get an education in basic commodity trading (and storage).

And fish and chip shops and other deep frying entrepreneurs would pop up overnight, helping the unemployment rate, and stimulating the economy.

And once again, Australia would be great, without having to rely on GST rises and nasty negative gearing caps...

 

Gotta laugh at these people who call themselves 'lefties' without a socialist bone in their body and calling something about which they know very little 'stupid'.

The Robot Economy and the Crisis of Capitalism: Why We Need Universal Basic Income – Opinion – ABC Religion & Ethics (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
The Excellent Dutch Experiment Into The Universal Basic Income

 

@BigKahuna , the article you've linked above, 'The Robot Economy and the Crisis of Capitalism" is excellent.

I've talked about Keynes, the rise of the machines leading to the redundancy of labour and a deep rethink of capitalism needed here in the following posts. Here are excerpts.

Why do we view losing money as "bad" ????

Technological Change - will leave man a lot of leisure time on his hands, but not by his choice.
That leisure time will be forced upon man as automation, machine learning, robotics and artificial intelligence replace the need for human labour.

There is rising wealth - it's just not available to everyone. There is huge rising inequality and huge wealth divides. Even in poor countries, there is rising wealth but only for a few. Keynes believed that huge inequalities would be dealt with by the state/ government. He believed in 'regulated capitalism'. He did not forsee the 'unfettered capitalism' that would strongly only favour one side.

Why do we view losing money as "bad" ????

The financialization of everything and the need to have higher and higher profits with lower and lower costs will ultimately lead to the demise of capitalism and the unique conundrum capitalism faces is well illustrated by this ancedote

“Ford CEO Henry Ford II and United Automobile Workers president Walter Reuther are jointly touring a modern auto plant. Ford jokingly jabs at Reuther: “Walter, how are you going to get these robots to pay UAW dues?” Not missing a beat, Reuther responds: “Henry, how are you going to get them to buy your cars?”
― Erik Brynjolfsson, Race Against The Machine: How the Digital Revolution is Accelerating Innovation, Driving Productivity, and Irreversibly Transforming Employment and the Economy

Why do we view losing money as "bad" ????

The capitalist system depends on people having purchasing power to buy the goods and services companies product, but without jobs and the money it provides, how are people going to purchase the goods and services manufactured and thus keep the stock prices of these companies going up and up?

Governments the world over may have to explore the concept of 'Living Wage'

This is where Universal Basic Income comes in.

 

184 bucks a week?

That wouldn't cover the weekly drugs (illegal) for some people let alone their other necessities in life like Maccas and smokes.

784 per week is closer to the mark.....geez.

 

Hi @Beanie Girl ABC Religion and Ethics has some fabulous pieces by some amazing, forward-thinking people. These writers don't swallow the prevailing narrative pushed by mainstream media. In fact, some of them are no-platformed by mainstream media because they are critical thinkers who make up their own minds and think outside the box. They present ideas and concepts which challenge the status quo.

Have you read the comments, some of which are just as interesting as the article? eg:

"Money is not some fundamental law of nature that has to exist but rather it's a man-made invention. The idea of money is just a transient feature of our evolution from primitive to advanced.."

"Humans projecting value on non-value - on sterile externals in order to validate themselves."

The UBI has benefits for both Left and Right: there is the abolition of bureaucracy in the current welfare system; it's efficient; and it helps those most in need; it ensures the continuity of consumerism (which in turn supports capitalism). I like the idea of participatory economics, although it's too egalitarian for the powers that be to promote or discuss.

http://strikemag.org/********-jobs/ The article, by Professor of Anthropology David Graeber at the London School of Economic wrote The Democracy Project: A History, a Crisis a Movement. The article says:

"... Republicans have had remarkable success mobilizing resentment against school teachers, or auto workers (and not, significantly, against the school administrators or auto industry managers who actually cause the problems) for their supposedly bloated wages and benefits. It’s as if they are being told “but you get to teach children! Or make cars! You get to have real jobs! And on top of that you have the nerve to also expect middle-class pensions and health care?”

Real, productive workers are relentlessly squeezed and exploited. The remainder are divided between ...– universally reviled – unemployed and a larger stratum who are basically paid to do nothing, in positions designed to make them identify with the perspectives and sensibilities of the ruling class (managers, administrators, etc) – and particularly its financial avatars ...