The Federal Reserve Just Published a Paper Comparing UBI and UI
The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis just released a November 2014 report comparing universal basic income and unemployment insurance [http://research.stlouisfed.org/wp/more/2014-047/], to determine which is better under varying conditions. Before I go into their findings and how they arrived at their conclusion, here'
"Fit for Work and Fit to Die": A Memorial for the Means-Tested
It may sound like common sense to some, or even many, to expect someone to do work in exchange for benefits. But this force, as is true with any applied force, has its consequences - both intended and unintended. A fellow human being who has witnessed these results first hand
We Know How to Abolish Poverty. Why Don't We?
It's videos like this we need to share more with each other... Everyone should be earning more. Everyone isn't earning more because of globalization and technology mostly. We used to have things called middle class jobs. Those don't exist anymore like we think they
Basic Income and the Problem of Freeloading Freeriders
(Click here to also read my introduction to the perspective of basic income as basic resources) [http://www.scottsantens.com/shouldn-t-all-this-talk-about-money-actually-be-talk-about-resources] A common concern of the idea of basic income is the idea of freeriders lazily freeloading off the hard labor of others, contributing nothing in return. I'm
Shouldn't All This Talk About Basic Income Actually Be Talk About Basic Resources?
A basic income is in a way a minimum claim to resources, with each person using this to claim the resources most important to them. The fact a basic income is given regardless of work, makes it that much more clear it exists as such a claim on resources based
I Voted for Nader. Twice.
Happy Election Day, everyone! On days like this, I repudiate our two-party system. The year 2000 was a nightmare year for those who support third parties. To this day, people have the fear that not only is voting for a third party equivalent to throwing away their vote, but that
A Comment on the Massive Inequality in New Orleans
I made the following comment in response to this article published on Nola.com [http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/10/new_orleans_tourism_industry_b.html] . We need to recognize the systemic nature of all of this, and stop pretending that either "side" is responsible,
My Interview with Green Party Candidate for Congress Ian Schlakman of Maryland
This interview with Green Party candidate for Congress Ian Schlakman of Maryland's Second Congressional District was originally published on Basic Income News [http://binews.org/2014/10/interview-congressional-candidate-ian-schlakman-on-his-call-for-a-basic-income-guarantee-or-%E2%80%9Csocial-security-for-all%E2%80%9D/] on October 31, 2014. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When and how were you first introduced to the
Alaska vs. the U.S. Before and After Existence of the Yearly Alaskan Dividend
Every year every qualifying resident of Alaska receives an annual dividend provided by the Alaska Permanent Fund [https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/karl-widerquist/alaska-model-citizens-income-in-practice] . The most recent payout was $1,884 in 2014, for every man, woman, and child in Alaska. The first payout of $1,000 occurred in 1982.
It’s Time We Take a Closer Look at America’s Three Favorite Words: Freedom, Liberty, and Democracy
Freedom, liberty, democracy… these words are used so often that we give them little real thought, rarely holding them up to the realities of what we see around us. What do these words really mean? Do they currently exist for us to celebrate as we appear to think they do?
