Are you in favour of UBI (Universal Basic Income) due to automation? (6 days old reddit repost)
What's your stance on this?
Let's have a respectful and informed discussion about this topic and the different perspectives. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
I think it would take a major restructuring to society to work, one that... Can't pass anytime soon. Think Star Trek's "post scarcity" environment. Everything we'd ever need is so easily and cheaply available from the result of automated manufacturing, mining, farming. In my mind, we'd have to hit this critical mass where such a small portion of the population is necessary to run the maintenance and development of these automated systems that it's impossible for most people to have a job that "contributes" to society. There's no way, in that situation, we could just... Let the population starve because they have no money, even though the infrastructure exists to support all their needs and more for free.
UBI, in that case, would just be "spending money" to supplant the free food, power, housing, and clothing everybody already receives. Society would be more focused on socializing, exploring hobbies, art, etc. Only the people who really want more money or something else to fill their time with would get jobs, be STEM or government or something. I don't see capitalism happily coexisting with UBI. Capitalism inherently depends on people needing to pay their bills to stay alive.
I can see capitalism finally getting abolished in the next 2 decades because of automation, either that or we will end up in a dystopian future where corporations are allowed to own all profits from autonomous production/services.
I wish I could share your optimism, I just see it getting worse before it gets better. Like, bloody revolution worse.
As of now, the majority of people still see billionaires as hard working geniuses who deserve the immeasurable wealth they have. There's strong movements online that challenge these ways of thinking, but from all the people I know IRL, my wife is the only one who doesn't call me crazy for thinking that level of wealth is only accessible through exploitation of "normal" people's productivity.
I support it. Literally the entire purpose of living in a society vs. as hermits, is so that we can help one another out. Lets do more of that.
I have always been against UBI because it is funded by the taxpayers - so people that work are forced to support people that wont ("my job was automated" is not a valid excuse to laziness). our mommy state policy is bad enough as it is, we dont need to add more of a load on the taxpayers.
just federally mandate how/when automation is allowed to be used. it'll have a negative impact on some aspects of creativity but at the cost of providing income to a great many people.