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.
Short Answers to BIG FAQs (Part 2 of 3)
[The following is an excerpt from a book in progress, The Poverty Abolitionist's Handbook.] Q: But who will clean the toilets? If everyone has an income sufficient to meet their basic needs, even if the vast majority of people want to do some productive work, what...
INTERNATIONAL: Letter from the Organizers of Basic Income Week
Dear Basic Income supporters around the globe, Whether you are staging your first event as a new supporter of Basic Income, your country is hosting 40 different events this week as a result of a long Basic Income tradition, whether you are talking about it with your...
Social Rights and Human Welfare, by Hartley Dean, a review
Hartley Dean, Social Rights and Human Welfare, Routledge, 2015, xiv + 194 pp, 1 138 01310 0, hbk, £95, 1 138 01312 4, pbk, £32.99 Hartley Dean will soon be starting the process of retiring as Professor of Social Policy at the London School of Economics, and this book...
Size of a Citizens’ Dividend from Carbon Fees, Implications for Growth
An emerging proposal for a carbon fee and dividend would yield a substantial dividend payment, eventually exceeding the amount of Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend, to American households. Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is proposing a revenue-neutral carbon fee. This...
The European Central Bank could kick-start the economy with a limited, monetary basic income
A partial basic income would be a much more efficient instrument for monetary policy in times of crisis.
Invisible Disabilities and the Basic Income
Certainly people with mental illness, don’t necessarily have physical traits to show for it, Karen Christine Patrick explains.
Analysing Social Policy Concepts and Language: Comparative and transnational perspectives, by Daniel Béland and Klaus Petersen (eds), a review
Daniel Béland and Klaus Petersen (eds), Analysing Social Policy Concepts and Language: Comparative and transnational perspectives, Policy Press, 2014, xiv + 327 pp, 1 4473 0644 3, hbk, £70 This book is a study of the language that OECD countries use to describe social...
Inequality: What Can Be Done? by Anthony B. Atkinson, a review
Anthony B. Atkinson, Inequality: What Can Be Done?, Harvard University Press, 2015, ix + 384 pp, hbk, 0 674 50476 9, £19.95 Politicians of all political parties tell us that inequality is a problem and that they are working to reduce it. Now they have the manual that...
Short Answers to BIG FAQs Part 1 of 3
[The following is an excerpt from a book in progress, The Poverty Abolitionist's Handbook.] Someone who offers a question that is really a challenge, like "Why would you believe something like that?", will likely maintain their attention for about a minute. But...
‘But what about the irresponsible?’
Addressing the issue of the universality of the basic income guarantee by Tyler Prochazka I recently asked American Enterprise Institute President Arthur Brooks about his thoughts on the Basic Income Guarantee (BIG). He told me that he was against the idea because...
Let’s talk ‘BIG’ about poverty!
[The Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states are characterized by high levels of poverty and some of the highest levels of inequality globally, albeit endowed with high levels of mineral resources. - ed.] By Busiso Moyo Despite being endowed with...
Book review: Peter Barnes, With Liberty and Dividends for All: How to save our middle class when jobs don’t pay enough
Peter Barnes, With Liberty and Dividends for All: How to save our middle class when jobs don’t pay enough, Berret-Koehler Publishers, 2014, 1 62656 214 1, pbk, xii + 174 pp, £13.99 There are not enough well-paid jobs to sustain a large middle class, and Peter Barnes...
