I think you are probably right that a welfare system that does not consider the cost of dependents is likely misguided. And we're in agreement that properly ra

I think you are probably right that a welfare system that does not consider the cost of dependents is likely misguided. And we're in agreement that properly raising three kids is a tremendous undertaking that demands either a whole bunch of money or almost all of your time. I take issue, though, with the idea that a family of 4 living on other people's money should spend so extravagantly. You do not need a car. You need a 2-bedroom home within 2 miles of a school. Housing will almost certainly be more than half of your expenses. Food for 4 people is a few thousand more. Clothing, entertainment, and diapers cost almost nothing (do not use disposable diapers except on special occasions). If you want to work part time then find another mom who will swap days with you or pay you to take her kids while she's working. I could see $10k turning out to be slightly less than what's really needed, but it shouldn't be considered "cruel joke" territory. In the spirit of not paying people more than they need, I could suggest paying the young adult who gets free housing from her parents only $3k per year, but that opens a huge can of worms that'll have kids pretending to rent their own apartment to get more UBI while really living at their parent's house, etc. Again, I think we're in agreement on the flaws of this UBI proposal. But I assert that, until such time as our society reaches a level of technological advancement where no one needs to work, the amount of extra work that working people are required to do to support nonworking people should be no more than the minimum amount to maintain their health and physical comfort. If you think people should get more than that, I'd like to know how you propose to decide how much.