by Karl Widerquist | May 6, 2014 | Research
[Jason Burke Murphy]
Mark Reynolds -Citizens Climate Lobby
SUMMARY: The executive director of the Citizen’s Climate Lobby, Mark Reynolds, has written an article for the Salt Lake Tribune calling for a carbon cap, fees, and a Basic Income Guarantee. “Cap and Dividend” would require permits be auctioned in order to limit carbon pollution. The dividend would not be large but it would make sure the cap not have a regressive effect. Once a small dividend is implemented, it may provide a rallying point for those who want a larger guaranteed income.
Mark Reynolds, “Op-ed: Time to tax carbon and give taxpayers the money.” The Salt Lake Tribune Apr 18 2014.
by Karl Widerquist | May 6, 2014 | Research
SUMMARY: This blog reacts to the large and growing wealth inequality in Britain, now at the point at which the wealthiest five families control the same amount of wealth as 12.6 million people put together. The author expresses dismay that the country could let this happen after coming together to create the post-war welfare state, and suggests a basic income financed by land and Tobin taxes as a solution.
Jax Blunt, “The one on inequality, basic income and anger.” Making It Up. April 21, 2014.
Wealth inequality in the UK -from https://liveotherwise.co.uk
by Karl Widerquist | May 6, 2014 | Research
-Los Angeles Review of Books
According to this article, “The only reason standards of living are not improving is that productivity gains go almost exclusively to the top one percent. The only reason the economy is stagnant is because the average American doesn’t have enough money in his or her pocket. A Basic Income Guarantee solves both problems.”
Tom Streithorst, “The Road to Recovery: On the state of the economy and how to fix it.” Los Angeles Review of Books. March 20th, 2014
by Harry Pitts | May 5, 2014 | Research
Ailsa MacKay, “Viewpoint: A Citizens Basic Income? Questions For A New Scotland”, Discover Society, 1st April 2014.
Alisa MacKay
by Karl Widerquist | May 5, 2014 | Research
SUMMARY: This article argues that basic income is bad for the poor and for the economy in general. The author writes, “I have already pointed out how the guaranteed income plan, if adopted in the form that its advocates propose, would lead to wholesale idleness and pauperization among nearly all those earning less than the minimum guarantee, and among many earning just a little more. But in addition to the erosion of the incentive to work, there would be just as serious an erosion of the incentive to save. … It is not merely the effect of guaranteed-income proposals in undermining the incentives of those earning less than the guarantee that we need to be concerned about, but the effect of such proposals in undermining the incentives of those much further up in the income scale.”
Henry Hazlitt, “Incentives, Income, and Welfare.” Mises Economics Blog. February 7th, 2014.
by Craig Axford | May 5, 2014 | Research
Bob Adelmann offers a critical review of proposal to expand EITC
[Craig Axford]
SUMMARY: In this blog post, author Bob Adelmann offers a critique of President Obama’s proposal to double the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program. The EITC was modeled after economist Milton Friedman’s “negative income tax” idea. Currently the EITC offers workers with children a tax credit of just over $500 on incomes of up to $6,570 according to the author, but the tax credit begins to decline once incomes reach $8,220.
Bob Adelmann, “President Proposes Doubling Tax Subsidy for the Poor”, The New American, March 13, 2014
