Sebastian Johnson, Senior Associate at Freedman Consulting, presented a case for basic income at the 2016 Mid-Atlantic TEDx conference.
Held October 21-22 in Washington DC, TEDx Mid-Atlantic 2016 featured over 45 speakers and performers who presented content loosely organized around the theme “New Rules”:
How can we be more empathetic when we design for the future? How can we reconnect policy with facts, truth, and logic? What ethics should we pursue as we shape our rapidly changing world? The answers are elusive — but we become stronger when we ask these questions together. What are the New Rules that will help guide us for the next century?
According to Johnson, presumably, the “New Rules” should include the allocation of an unconditional basic income to all Americans. In his 10 minute talk, Johnson argues that a basic income is the best way to alleviate poverty. He stresses that poverty is the cause, rather than the effect, of poor choices: providing economic security allows the poor to make better choices. He explains that empirical studies have suggested that a basic income encourages entrepreneurship and allow individuals to complete more schooling, while at the same time not causing substantial decreases in workforce participation or significant increases in the consumption of alcohol or tobacco. Johnson additionally argues that work no longer provides a guaranteed route to get out of poverty. Many jobs are insufficiently compensated; meanwhile, many existing jobs are threatened by automation.
Before joining Freedman Consulting, Johnson was a policy fellow at the Institution on Taxation and Economic Policy and a policy analyst for Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley (as well as a number of local officials).
Reviewed by Danny Pearlberg
Photo CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 cool revolution
