SUMMARY: This article has received more than 10,000 comments in the first three days since it was Posted. The author, David R. Wheeler, argues that the basic income guarantee is a simple solution to unemployment and underemployment, that it is cheaper than our current social safety net, and that it is gaining adherents on both sides of the political spectrum. The story also includes a pictorial history of inequality in America. Wheeler is an Assistant Professor of Journalism at Asbury University and a regular contributor to CNN.com, The Atlantic, and other publications.

David R. Wheeler, “What if the government guaranteed you an income?” CNN.com, updated April 14, 2014.

Wealthy passengers aboard a ship near San Francisco, circa 1910s. -CNN.com