4 ms·

I wonder if this could be applied to rich countries: give $500/month to each adult citizen. No questions asked. Unlike many existing programs for the very poor

by pesenti 13y ago

I wonder if this could be applied to rich countries: give $500/month to each adult citizen. No questions asked. Unlike many existing programs for the very poor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenu_minimum_d'insertion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenu_minimum_d'insertion) it would not dissuade them from working (if you work you just earn more) and would be really easy to administrate (there are no criteria).

Figs 13y ago
Wouldn't that just cause inflation?
- pesenti 13y ago
  Not if you finance it through taxes and elimination of other programs for the very poor like food stamps.
  - Figs 13y ago
    It seems to me that if everyone has an extra $500, the likely result is rent, etc. rises to compensate, and you wind up with essentially the same social situation just with all the prices offset slightly. If you give everyone $500 and then take $500 back from most people in taxes that just seems like you're shifting around the conditional evaluation of the necessity of aid to the IRS instead. It's still conditional aid, it's just more obscure how it works.
vbuterin 13y ago
You would need to make living on $6000 a year practical as well. It's not as hard as people think, as if you're not working you don't need to locate yourself in a city or bother with transportation, but there are structural changes that need to be made. The big two are probably housing deregulation (consisting of (i) seriously scaling back zoning laws and (ii) removing laws limiting occupation density) and fixing the health care system (no easy answers there). It's a complicated issue.
cjbprime 13y ago
See http://www.nbcnews.com/business/2-800-month-every-adult-it-could-happen-switzerland-8C11354757 http://www.nbcnews.com/business/2-800-month-every-adult-it-c... -- Switzerland is voting on doing exactly this (with much more money involved!). The key word here is "basic income", and it's surprisingly liked by economists, as I understand it.

by pesenti 13y ago

Figs 13y ago

Wouldn't that just cause inflation?

pesenti 13y ago
Not if you finance it through taxes and elimination of other programs for the very poor like food stamps.
- Figs 13y ago
  It seems to me that if everyone has an extra $500, the likely result is rent, etc. rises to compensate, and you wind up with essentially the same social situation just with all the prices offset slightly. If you give everyone $500 and then take $500 back from most people in taxes that just seems like you're shifting around the conditional evaluation of the necessity of aid to the IRS instead. It's still conditional aid, it's just more obscure how it works.

vbuterin 13y ago

You would need to make living on $6000 a year practical as well. It's not as hard as people think, as if you're not working you don't need to locate yourself in a city or bother with transportation, but there are structural changes that need to be made. The big two are probably housing deregulation (consisting of (i) seriously scaling back zoning laws and (ii) removing laws limiting occupation density) and fixing the health care system (no easy answers there). It's a complicated issue.

cjbprime 13y ago

See http://www.nbcnews.com/business/2-800-month-every-adult-it-could-happen-switzerland-8C11354757 http://www.nbcnews.com/business/2-800-month-every-adult-it-c... -- Switzerland is voting on doing exactly this (with much more money involved!). The key word here is "basic income", and it's surprisingly liked by economists, as I understand it.