Hi steemians, do you know what Universal Basic Income is? And, do you know many countries have started trials to make this a law for the benefits of their citizens.
I am sure you are interested in knowing the details on "How to enroll and get basic income", "What steem basic income" is and many other questions. I had a very good opportunity to get around the person behind this idea on steemit.
So, let us talk about "Universal Basic Income", its pros and cons, and why it is so much important for all of us.
According to Wikipedia -
"A basic income (also called basic income guarantee, citizen's income, unconditional basic income, universal basic income (UBI), or universal demogrant) is a form of social security in which all citizens or residents of a country receive a regular, unconditional sum of money, either from a government or some other public institution, independent of any other income."
Most Ambitious Social Policy of Our Times
In 2017, Universal Basic Income is gaining momentum around the world. First trials are ongoing or on their way and a growing number of countries are considering Universal Basic Income as an alternative to Welfare
How Would it Work and What are the Key Arguments For and Against?
Right now people can't really agree. What Universal Basic Income is or should be.
Some want to use it to eliminate welfare and cupp bureaucracy
Some want it as a free extra for existing programs
And, some want it to be so high that work itself becomes optional
But, in a nutshell, it means, enough amount of money paid or given by the government or a public institution which cannot be taxed and you can do whatever you want to do with it. In this scenario, UBI is a way of transferring the wealth of the society while still keeping the free market intact.
So, this was a brief introduction to the topic, share your ideas here in the comment and I will select two people to sponsor under this project. You will be getting a share of steem basic income, which will give you a part of daily income on your posts in form of votes by @steembasicincome.
To know more about how this works you can check out this post by @steembasicincome on Steem Basic Income
And, to get even more share you can read this post by @josephsavage on Steem Basic Income - Enrollment Giveaway.
If you want to know more about this topic (in-depth) then I would suggest you go through this wonderful video by KURZGESAGT, which means "in a nutshell" in German.
I think some basic income is a wonderful idea. Although the cost will be very high to start. And it shouldn't be a replacement for earning an income, but to provide some funds to provide some food to help prevent starvation. Maybe it can also be used as an incentive to remain off recreational drugs and alcohol. Here's some suggestions to ponder:
To be in this optional program, every year, a person goes to an office that can test for drugs in urine or breath or blood or hair or ... Then when they pass they will receive an atm card that will be automatically loaded weekly with some funds.
To continue receiving funds a person must be tested every year.
The amount of funds can be adjusted by certain criteria. Maybe $40.00 per week for basic food. Then for senior citizens, maybe double that. The atm card could allow 1 withdrawl per week of the total amount of the weekly reward to encourage people to spend their funds. Many people that don't really need the money probably won't bother to get the money every week, saving the program some money.
For the whole world this would cost about $40 x 52 weeks x 6 billion enrollees = over 12 trillion dollars a year to feed the world.
This is expensive, but it could actually be financially profitable to the economy. Most of the money will be spent locally and placed back into circulation providing additional cash flow for the local economy. This will stimulate job growth, which will stimulate more income and more money in the local economy.
The cost per 1 million enrollees is about $40 x 52 x 1 million people = over 2 billion dollars a year + administrative and testing costs.
Another benefit could be reduction in the number of drug addicts and an increase in the number of clear minded workers. This can save in law enforcement, prison, court costs, etc. And reduce violence and accidents resulting in a safer community and world to live in.
Not everyone will want to bother with the small amount of money, so not everyone will go for testing to receive the funds. People convicted of crimes can be suspended from the program or have the weekly amount reduced for a time. If this reduces crime, that would be a wonderful benefit.
Of course some countries can start with a smaller weekly amount and increase as they are able, depending upon their economic abilities.
There will be those that try to cheat the system, but blockchain technology can greatly help keep things secure.
With the wonderful benefits to a community, it sure seems that it's worth a try.
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@point, very well put.
I have chosen your name to sponsor for the steembasicincome shares.
After this post's payout is received you will be getting your shares.
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You got a 0.67% upvote from @postpromoter courtesy of @babysteps!
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When talking about the drug addicts and the people going through mental trauma, one thing that you might also agree on is that they feel lonely and that is why they might be on some type of substance.
To know more about this a very good video is shared by "KURZGESAGT" on YouTube. Here is the link to the video, Why The War on Drugs Is a Huge Failure.
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That is an interesting video about drug problems. Thanks.
Switzerland has a unique approach that seems to really help reduce drug problems.
It would be interesting if they would try adding some basic income for clean citizens and see what happens.
I just now watched the video you have in your main post above about basic income. Well presented and thought provoking.
Maybe $1000 a month is a bit high to start or maybe it's a good idea, IDK.
I think $1000/mo would be a hard sell politically.
I like that they mentioned the danger of politicians abusing the power of a program like that.
$40/wk is only $2080/yr. and is definitely not enough to quit work, just enough to buy some food.
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This YouTube channel has a very creative team, always making better content. I like people sharing ideas that helps make our society think and work more thoughtfully.
Today, in the morning I read a news which stated figures, which made my eyes pop out of amaze. Only 0.001% people in the world earn 40% of the total money earned in the world. I really really think this is in a way related to the poverty around the world.
Have you seen, "where to invade next" documentary? It shows what every country is doing better that other countries can do to make their country better. I don't have a link, but you should definitely see it.
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This post has received a 2.38% upvote from @lovejuice thanks to @jyotigujju. They love you, so does Aggroed. Please be sure to vote for Witnesses at https://steemit.com/~witnesses.
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You got a 5.26% upvote from @votebuster courtesy of @babysteps!
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Good job! Thanks to @babysteps you have planted 0.13 tree to save Abongphen Highland Forest in Cameroon. Help me to plant 1,000,000 trees and share my Steem Power to the others. Selfvoting is prohibited, but that should be the reason to spread the world to protect our precious environment. Check out profile of our conservation association @kedjom-keku and the founder/coordinator @martin.mikes to get more information about our conservation program. My current SP is 14423.87. Help me to plant more trees with your delegated SP.
Thanks a lot,
your @treeplanter
www.kedjom-keku.com
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You got a 0.58% upvote from @postpromoter courtesy of @cryptogecko!
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Stopping poverty isn't their goal nor will it ever be.
Universal basic income is another way of saying they want everyone under one system so they could have control over us.
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Good job! Thanks to @babysteps you have planted 0.01 tree to save Abongphen Highland Forest in Cameroon. Help me to plant 1,000,000 trees and share my Steem Power to the others. Selfvoting is prohibited, but that should be the reason to spread the world to protect our precious environment. Check out profile of our conservation association @kedjom-keku and the founder/coordinator @martin.mikes to get more information about our conservation program. My current SP is 14415.85. Help me to plant more trees with your delegated SP.
Thanks a lot,
your @treeplanter
www.kedjom-keku.com
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This post has received a 8.01% upvote from @lovejuice thanks to @cryptogecko. They love you, so does Aggroed. Please be sure to vote for Witnesses at https://steemit.com/~witnesses.
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You got a 0.81% upvote from @postpromoter courtesy of @cryptogecko!
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