Posted on 06/05/2016 6:22:02 AM PDT by BenLurkin
Swiss voters rejected by a wide margin on Sunday a proposal to introduce a guaranteed basic income for everyone living in the wealthy country after an uneasy debate about the future of work at a time of increasing automation.
Supporters had said introducing a monthly income of 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,563) per adult and 625 francs per child under 18 no matter how much they work would promote human dignity and public service.
Opponents, including the government, said it would cost too much and weaken the economy.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Pay people to not work and they will riot to be paid not to work later.
Such a proposition would pass in the U.S.
Sort of...it already has. Flunky government “workers” already have this.
Anyone who proposes that is an idiot. The amount given rapidly decreases in value, prompting its proponents to demand an increase in the amount, which quickly loses value, leading to demands for an increase. Repeat indefinitely.
Same thing happens for the minimum mandated hourly rate.
Such a plan would cause immediate inflationary pressure on the money supply.
The value of money comes from the value of the goods and services produced in exchange for that money. If you give each person a guaranteed “income” of $2,500 per month for doing nothing, then $2,500 per person is worthless right from the get-go. And how do you introduce another $2,500/person of worthless currency into the money supply each month before making the trillion-dollar notes of Zimbabwe look reasonable?
If the plan is to steal $2,500 from everyone who has worked and thus imbued the money with value, then people are going to get very upset with the theft. In many cases, 100% of a person’s income would have to be confiscated in order to give non-producers $2,500/month. So the effect of such a measure would be to equalize income between those who work and those who don’t—I can’t imagine anyone who works, especially in a high skill job, would be happy with that arrangement.
Good thing the Swiss are intelligent to vote this thing down. In the US, it would have to be implemented somewhere—and even then, its supporters would never admit when it fails, they would just try to impose their socialist unworkable ideas on others who didn’t buy into them in the first place, in a toxic Ponzi scheme. The problem with Ponzi schemes is that they don’t collapse until everyone possible has been drawn into them, then the collapse is spectacular.
How about a “chicks for free” program. Sorry, I could not help myself, lol.
They add “chicks for free” and I’m there.
Such a plan would turn the productive citizen in to the slave of the unproductive citizen.
How does making slaves of producers promote their dignity? How does making the unproductive citizen comfortable in their squalor promote their dignity?
Not that I think this is a good idea anyway, but it does make me wonder if the vote would have been closer before the whole “refugee crisis” thing.
FRiends, we need to ask ourselves why Friedman and Hayek were such proponents of this type of scheme. I can come up with nothing other than it strips away the bureaucratic costs. Thoughts why, anyone? Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, etc. are large proponents of this, not going away. Particularly, as scary robot technology becomes more, and more, embedded.
That ain’t workin’, that’s the way you do it.
Nah they need jobs like delivering microwave ovens and color TV’s. As for their chicks well that’s a dynamic all of its own.
>>TSuch a plan would turn the productive citizen in to the slave of the unproductive citizen.<<
What about immigrants? Particularly family members of current citizens.
This is like California X 1000 — the easier you make things for the unproductive, the more unproductive people you will get (in addition to making those you have unproductive).
Basic income can’t work until there’s total automation or slavery becomes legal. The food has to be grown somehow, housing must be built and maintained, someone has to deliver the products. Otherwise your money will buy nothing. Changing the numbers in the banks’ computers doesn’t actually build anything.
They will also riot to be paid more and more and more and more, ad infinitum.
There is a private company doing a social experiment based on this idea...
They are taking I think up to 500 people and give them X amount of money monthly to do with what they want...
Basically, people who lost their job would be paid from the reduced cost of automation....instead of the government largesse...
Interesting concept...
The end results should be interesting, but I would not be surprised at all if they did not get the results they hope to achieve..
I'd see if I can't find the link to the article..
They'd rather wear earrings and makeup.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.