by Josh Martin | Aug 17, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
In this post Rader discusses the effects a basic income would have on society’s relationship with the market. While people are oppressed by the market more today than at any other point during history, Rader believes a basic income would allow people to choose when to participate in the market, instead of being forced into the market like they are now.
Gaura Rader, “Basic Income and The Role of the Market in Society”, The Socratic Diablogs, 28 July 2014.
Gaura Rader (Source: The Socratic Diablogs)
by Josh Martin | Aug 16, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
In this blog post, Brown goes over Paul Ryan’s plan for poverty and, after pointing out a few flaws in his plan, brainstorms possible solutions for poverty today. This leads Brown to a discussion on a basic income in which he cites two recent articles on the subject written by Gobry and Yglesias.
N. Christian Brown, “Morning Feature – Paul Ryan’s Poverty Bait-and-Switch, Part III: Asking the Right Questions (Non-Cynical Saturday)”, Blogistan Polytechnic Institute, 2 August 2014.
by Josh Martin | Aug 16, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
Gobry, a self-identified right-winger, used to support a basic income like many other conservatives have in the past; now, he doesn’t. Gobry understands the allure of the basic income, but in this critique of the basic income, Gobry uses an analysis from Jim Manzi of a set of randomized field trials from the 60’s to the 90’s in the USA and Canada to “prove” that the basic income fails. Science is on his side, he claims. To him, the only welfare policies that successfully place people into work are the policies with work requirements.
Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry, “Progressives’ hot new poverty-fighting idea has just one basic problem: Science”, The Week, 21 July 2014.
People need to work, not just for income, but emotional health. (Source: The Week)
by Josh Martin | Aug 15, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
In this article Aziz discusses Germany’s recent legislation to introduce a minimum wage far higher than the USA’s current minimum wage. Aziz notes that many on the left have used Germany’s success as an example of what Washington should be trying to pass in America. However, Aziz believes that an increased minimum wage is a 20th century solution to a 21st century problem. With ever-increasing automation of jobs through advances in robotics, a time will come when robots replace many low-wage jobs, thus leaving many workers unemployed. This is why Aziz believes a basic income is the correct route out of this issue. A higher minimum wage will not help those in low-pay jobs when robots continue to replace them. Instead, a basic income should be introduced to ensure the well-being of the newly displaced workers.
John Aziz “The progressive case for ending the minimum wage”, The Week, 14 July 2014.
Meet the new boss. (Source: The Week)
by Josh Martin | Aug 14, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
Konczal vehemently disagrees with Zwolinski’s post from Cato Unbound that made a pragmatic libertarian case for a basic income. In the original post, Zwolinski points out the number of different welfare programs and the size of its bureaucracy as a reason to switch to the simpler basic income, but Konczal counters this by showing that seven programs account for most of welfare and that the average administrative cost is around five percent for each program. Thus, Konczal claims that a push for a basic income needs to be built on a sturdier argument than the libertarian one.
Mike Konczal, “The Pragmatic Libertarian Case for a Basic Income Doesn’t Add Up”, Next New Deal, 8 August 2014.
Konczal discusses the size of the bureaucracy in welfare (Source: Next New Deal)
by Josh Martin | Aug 13, 2014 | Research
[Josh Martin]
Klinger attended the BIEN Congress in Montreal this summer, and the presentations dedicated to the effects a basic income would have on jobs especially caught the eye. Because most people working low-pay jobs are often only working them because they need the money, a basic income would allow people to only work jobs that are meaningful to their life. Klinger claims a basic income will promote a healthier work/life balance for everyone in society, resulting in a transition to an economy of care.
Jamie Klinger, “The other side of Basic Income: Basic Jobs”, Joatu, 28 July 2014.
(Source: JoatU.com)
