31–40 of 498 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Presumably though you just increase income tax to recover some or all of that from people who are employed? So the actual cost should be significantly lower.
Some argue that if an UBI is introduced then a flat rate tax should be applied to all other income; in the US this would lead to reasonably large income tax increase.
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
Make no mistake, basic minimum income would be a massive redistribution of wealth. I'm in favor of it, but let's not pretend we can pay for it by shuffling around some social safety net spending.
It makes sense if-and-only-if that basic income isn't being doled out by the same organization which also runs the military-industrial or prison-industrial worlds. As an American, I think it's safe to say our federal government can't be trusted to not turn into a tyranny if it's everyone's primary employer. We would get even more massive corruption almost instantly. For example, some people would lobby to get those t…
Unfortunately, in the US the alternative to government power is corporate power.
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
Would children and retirees also claim basic income?
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
Just something to keep in mind.
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
1 http://www.infoplease.com/us/census/data/demographic.html 2 http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/year_spending_2016USbn_1...
It's not just smarter it's the only possible solution out of the two. Many people wrongly discuss the premise of basic income in the context of whether it's a better solution for for the job market. I.e. as a better way to solve unemployment fluctuations which in this view are still going up. But the whole point about Basic Income is what we do about there being fewer and fewer jobs that pay a proper salary.
Proponents of the UBI make the generous assumption that recipients will be as careful with money as they (the proponents) are . Choosing between food & housing credits vs. cash, the former has less room for abuse. Its like "I would never use my UBI on alcohol"...well you're not "most people"
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
Presumably though you just increase income tax to recover some or all of that from people who are employed? So the actual cost should be significantly lower.
But what about existing entitlement sending, which keeps growing? A UBI without preconditions will only compound that problem, because what is to stop people from wasting their basic income on frivolities while also drawing from existing welfare programs. Many people may agree to work for less than the current minimum wage, and on more flexible terms, if they're supplementing a guaranteed income, not scrambling to av…
1. Basic income + universal healthcare theoretically would be able to replace all other welfare programs, so there shouldn't be people "wasting" their basic income while drawing from existing programs. Also, I consider some level of frivolities as a basic need.
2. Many poor people stay on welfare instead of getting a job because there is a "gap" where if you get a job you actually are bringing in less income than on welfare. Basic income should remove this gap, which may potentially increase employment.
3. Most poor are not starving to death due to private help like churches and food banks in my experience. I know when I went through a small period of being below the poverty line we got a small amount of food stamps + wic and ended up needing help from those private entities too despite the fact that I had an above minimum wage job. However, cheap food is often bad for you food which is why a lot of them tend to be obese(food banks and the like often don't have the money to get very much good for you food). Combine this with a tendency to binge eat when you have food then have periods where you have no food to eat.
$10,000 * US_POPULATION ~= $3.2T ~= The total annual tax revenue of the US federal government. Just something to keep in mind when discussing this topic.
Figure it this way, if individuals had to pay the full tax load out of their paychecks that they actually do most would more than flinch.
Regardless, current subsidies to many people are higher than 10k so it would never be set there. People would get all sorts of up kicks for dependents and the like because politicians need to buy votes and punish dissenters.
So if we just consider the working population, how much does it cost? Can we then rid ourselves of some government agencies which are devoted to providing aid?