I’m a fan of UBJ over UBI. I think it teaches the right motivations. Chicago does some of this with Summer traffic management/event jobs given to “at risk” teens. It keeps them busy and they get decent money. The jobs aren’t all 100% necessary, but I’m assuming someone has done the math that having people come to you for cheap jobs is more worthwhile than sending police to them. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2020-06-24/forget-ubi-says-an-economist-its-time-for-universal-basic-jobs
Chief
I remember a conversation with someone like 15 years ago where we were talking about how in lower income countries they have people paid to open doors to plazas, press buttons on elevators and whatnot and how it would never work here because the ‘free market’ would root out inefficient or low productivity occupations.
But I’m very much on board with the idea of UBJ/UBE. I think it begins with de-emphasizing 4-year college degrees and creating a market for skills that are otherwise unrecognized and/or undervalued. Like, people spend years being a barista or flipping burgers or waiting tables but why can’t that be accredited in some tangible, standardized way that gives them currency in the labor market? I once scoffed at the idea of the McDonalds Degree, but I think that’s part of the answer.
We don’t need more bloat in the government. UBJ might be instantly better but does nothing in the long term - i believe UBI would empower the freedom to find true value you could bring to the economy
Agreed. I'm a liberal, just to help place me on tbe ol' horseshoe, but I think the freedom of how to spend it is critical. For instance, my wife went back to school a few years back to change jobs and frankly was only able to do it due to my job. Without it, she would have graduated with quite a bit of debt.
I can't stress how helpful this would be for caretakers. My sister works part time as a school lunch lady, which is a pretty low paying and low skill job. However, she also is the primary caretaker for my aging parents (along with her two kids). A UBI would help support her for that work. Right now, basically I pay my sister for this in a contractual agreement.
I disagree - I prefer the UBI because it allows people to do things unrelated to work. Caretaking, volunteering, spending more time with their family - these are all positive things for our society that have value.
Enthusiast
Guys - I went to U Chicago and I will tell you to not get married to these theories too much. These are simplistic theories including free market and there are many critics of these theories inside UChicago network too. Many of you take these theories to be exact science including Ayn Rand BS which is nothing more than a fiction. I will ask you yo take a pause. If Marxism and Socialism are bad then so is blind faith in free markets. Economics is often more nuanced to fit in any theory.