BIEN | Opinion
Opinion Posts
Here you will find articles expressing opinions about current issues in the Basic Income debate. Opinions expressed are not necessarily the opinions of BIEN.
AI is speeding up the deadline for basic income
UBI was already justified. AI is now creating its own independent reason to act faster. Basic income was always justified because it is a foundation for human flourishing. Whether the economy is booming or falling does not change that principle. The rise of AI is...
How Do We Pay for Universal Basic Income?
A 1.5% annual stock dilution tax on corporations with revenue over $100M would raise over $1.4 trillion a year — enough to send every American about $365 a month, automatically. Corporations issue new stock all the time — to raise cash, to pay executives, to swallow...
The Primordial Credit Argument for UBI
Every time I drop a bag of garbage down the chute in my building, I think about debt. Not the kind you pay back in monthly installments. Not the kind that shows up on a credit report. I mean the kind you can never repay no matter how long you live or how hard you...
Why UBI is not the answer to the impact of AI on the labour market
Tech developers in Silicon Valley seem to be convinced thatAI will lead to mass unemployment and that only Universal Basic Income (UBI), funded by the government, would be the appropriate policy response. Several leading CEOs have made two related economic claims:...
The Universality Argument for Basic Income
Imagine a room with a thousand people. You know that 999 of them need something to survive, and one of them doesn’t. You have two options. Option one: give the same thing to all 1,000 people, and when they leave through a door where everyone’s income is already being...
Top 10 Universal Basic Income Articles of 2024
As the editor of Basic Income Today and a moderator for the Basic Income subreddit, I read a lot of stuff every year about UBI, somewhere around 100 articles a month. Below, I've compiled a list of the top ten articles I consider my favorites out of everything...
Is it time for basic income in Pakistan?
Photo by Hamid Roshaan on Unsplash Social assistance is everywhere conditional, and in Pakistan it is no different. Either it comes with behavioural strings attached — ‘do this and we’ll help you, don’t and we won’t’ — or it is targeted, with receipt conditional on...
Climate Justice Without Borders
How Cap and Share can end fossil fuel extraction, raise trillions for climate finance, and create a global universal basic income. To read more, click here.
Why social assistance shouldn’t come with strings attached
"When the authorities provide social assistance to those in need, it almost always comes with conditions attached. These include behavioural requirements or criteria determining who is and isn’t eligible for support. Common examples include proving that you’re looking...
Doing Bitcoin the Basic Income Way
Photo by Traxer on Unsplash "...there are on the horizon two radical ideas that have the potential to create synergy which can revolutionize the way we are currently addressing the income vulnerability and different forms of deprivation in the world today. The two...
Rentier Capitalism, the Precariat and Basic Income for China
Throughout history, capitalism has evolved, changing character and changing the class structure defining each era. The changes in the 20th century can be understood by reference to what Karl Polanyi called the Great Transformation. Briefly, in his formulation, in the 19th century, mainly in Britain, there was an initial period in the evolution of industrial capitalism that was dominated by financial capital, in which old systems of distribution, regulation and social protection were dismantled, in what we would call the pursuit of a ‘free market economy’.
How Basic Income Can Support Climate Tech Solutions
The evolution of climate action has reflected the need for affordable options. Universal basic income (UBI) has the unique opportunity to empower everyone to change the world. The warming environment necessitates rapid development and deployment of climate...
BIEN Congresses
The next annual BIEN Congress will occur August 19th-22th at the Toronto Metropolitan University. The BIEN Congress will not be occurring in USA this year.
Theme: Basic Income and the Polycrisis: The Key to Unlocking the Puzzle 🔑
See pictures from the 24th BIEN CONGRESS in Maricá & Niterói here.