2 ms·

Would €1,200/month "for life" inspire you to behave any differently? I suspect relatively few Germans aspire, long-term, to the lifestyle which that income wou

Would €1,200/month "for life" inspire you to behave any differently? I suspect relatively few Germans aspire, long-term, to the lifestyle which that income would support. And then there are long-term considerations - like inflation. And gov't spending programs going away after either an election, or a financial crisis.

m-schuetz 2y ago
It sure would. I was living off of a way smaller stipend for 2 or 3 years (the Austrian "Selbsterhalterstipendium"), and it was the most unproductive time of my life because I got enough to get by with minimal effort, since the conditions for the stipend were ridiculously low. I learned that if I can get money with basically no strings attached, I become lazy. Nowadays I'm not, simply because I have to work for stuff. I enjoy my work, but I wouldnt do it if it wasnt necessary. It was a great time, but it tought me that people get lazy if they don't have to work. So now I am obviously projecting my own lazyness to the general population, which is why I am against UBI.
Fargren 2y ago
If it's inflation adjusted and I trust it's forever, I would 100% quit my job and work on something less stressful that I enjoy more. 1200 Euro is slightly below my average monthly expenses; my job pays multiple times this, but I keep at it to save and make sure I won't ever want for money. (I live in Spain, not Germany)
usrusr 2y ago
It would greatly reduce the barrier between receiving transfer money and earning for yourself that the existing need-based transfer system creates. This is a huge hindrance for jumping off the receiving end. Lump sum transfer also creates an incentive situation where non-standard frugality approaches can thrive (e.g. various shared living concepts), whereas need-based transfer really only just shoves every receiver into a pretend-middle class standard cookie cutter pattern.

m-schuetz 2y ago

It sure would. I was living off of a way smaller stipend for 2 or 3 years (the Austrian "Selbsterhalterstipendium"), and it was the most unproductive time of my life because I got enough to get by with minimal effort, since the conditions for the stipend were ridiculously low. I learned that if I can get money with basically no strings attached, I become lazy. Nowadays I'm not, simply because I have to work for stuff. I enjoy my work, but I wouldnt do it if it wasnt necessary. It was a great time, but it tought me that people get lazy if they don't have to work. So now I am obviously projecting my own lazyness to the general population, which is why I am against UBI.

Fargren 2y ago

If it's inflation adjusted and I trust it's forever, I would 100% quit my job and work on something less stressful that I enjoy more. 1200 Euro is slightly below my average monthly expenses; my job pays multiple times this, but I keep at it to save and make sure I won't ever want for money. (I live in Spain, not Germany)

usrusr 2y ago

It would greatly reduce the barrier between receiving transfer money and earning for yourself that the existing need-based transfer system creates. This is a huge hindrance for jumping off the receiving end. Lump sum transfer also creates an incentive situation where non-standard frugality approaches can thrive (e.g. various shared living concepts), whereas need-based transfer really only just shoves every receiver into a pretend-middle class standard cookie cutter pattern.