A somewhat Dystopian overview of Universal Basic Income ( UBI )
Yesterday I wrote one possible scenario concerning UBI that was quite positive in nature.
Let's now look at another view. Personally, I am very wary of the situation where an authority has so much control over the flow of resources. One can argue that it is not so different from now but, it is. The UBI is a measure to try and combat unemployment or, allow the unemployed to survive and perhaps get part-time work.
No Jobs, I want that
If the expected reality takes place, there will only likely be employment for around 30 percent of the population in the next few decades. And that 30 percent will be for the brightest and most creative only. It will be in areas where computers are unable to provide content.
This means that everyone else will be reliant on 'free money' from their government. Firstly, this will lead to some level of inflation that risks swallowing any benefit the helicopter drop has provided, especially if people do what I would expect them to. Upgrade.
We all want to keep up with the Jones' and if they have more than us, we want to close the gap. The UBI gives the means to close the gap to an expected life of happiness being, what the Jones' have. But, the Jones' also get the UBI and they will close the gap to the next family.
We have built ourselves into as consumer society that bases personal success on what one has, regardless of how they go it. So, if I drive a Honda to feel successful, I need to upgrade it to an Audi. And if I have an Audi, I want to upgrade it to a Porsche. This means that everyone will upgrade, consumption will skyrocket but, it will be in the same areas that we already consider marks of success.
Essentially, within a short time, the 0.1 percent who own these businesses and have trained us to consume and desire consumption advancement will have their customer bases at every level grow. This will of course in time put us all back in the same position we are in currently except, still no jobs.
My passion is Farmville
The UBI could be used to create space for training and attempting to create a micro business from a hobby but again, human nature indicates this is unlikely for most. Currently, no one has the time to go to the gym, eat healthily, learn a skill. Even if they do have the time. Most people use their free time to bury themselves in entertainment instead. Social media, news, games, TV. The free space the UBI brings is likely to be eaten up and silently absorbed by the attention economy.
It could also be used of course as seeds to invest, but again, with so many people financially illiterate the chances of people investing wisely is very small plus, the sheer volume of capital suddenly available will create turmoil.
Turmoil of course is fantastic. Fantastic for those that are comfortable trading in turmoil that is. And who are they? That's right, the people that are already in that top 0.1 percent. They have the experience and emotional stability to take massive advantage of the trading noobs entering the market. But, next month the government will provide UBI again. They will quickly take that payment too.
I could do that, or...
As said earlier, this could be used to build local hobby businesses and both create jobs, help the UBI get spent locally and give some kind of life satisfaction as people earn from their interests. But, people don't want to work Most have spent most of their life trying to find ways to earn enough money to not have to do anything. They want to retire early, not so they can really get deep into something, but so they can travel and sit on a beach. Work is to be avoided at all cost so why start a business if it isn't for the money?
Now, the government control factors step in. Once they are controlling how the majority of people get the income to live, they can then dictate how they are meant to act and those that have no other income (the 70 percent) will be forced to conform. Health care services and infrastructure support could all become user pays and the 30 percent get preferential treatment as they can pay more.
Soon, there is no option for the poor but to try to make more money to live well but, what can they do for it since the only extra jobs are those that are for the best and brightest? Think about that.
A class gap and more
Rather than becoming a Utopia where people are supported to explore their talents and offer them to the community, it becomes a dystopian society where the class gap is absolutely enormous and there is no potential boat for anyone to cross the river. The ladders are gone to climb higher.
I see this because even if the economic system changes and a UBI is introduced, unfortunately, we as humans have not caught up. We still will believe that life satisfaction comes from collecting material goods and the material goods desired are not going to change. Our long history of authority based programming will force us into eating until we cannot afford to eat anymore and then taking a loan.
The loan of course is the same as now. It comes from the 0.1 percent that are also selling the products that we will spend the loan on. The system is not rigged however, we are just idiots that act like predictable trained monkeys.
Once we are in debt deep though, we still want what those above us 'enjoy' but we haven't got access to the real thing. No matter, VR has the answer and soon there will be the technology to immerse oneself into the virtual pool and experience all that one desires. But, once in, why come out?
This feels so good
Eventually, the jobless 70 percent will be all plugged into banks of VR and the 30 percent will be enjoying life free and wealthy as there bank accounts are filled with the UBI funds spent on immersion. But it does not end there.
The 30 percent are still caught in the consumptive competition cycle so rather than be content living in their small population Utopia, they will continue wanting to upgrade. With the 70 percent no longer able to increase consumption, the bottom of the 30 percent must be convinced to step into immersion in order to increase the pool.
In time, there will only be one person left that is 'awake' and controls absolutely everything on earth. But, at this point, life is utterly boring and they will take the step into immersion also. Now, with everyone willingly plugged into a virtual word that provides all the entertainment we require, there is no need to ever step out.
Where are we? The Matrix.
Please, stop it.
It is not just financial literacy that is needed to stop this future, it is an understanding of our desires, how we built them, how they are manipulated and whether they are required for our own happiness at all.
Desire is an attachment to an idea and as Buddha said, the root of suffering is attachment. What this means is that we have to step back and take a look at what we have chosen to be attached to and break all that are unhealthy, all. This includes what we think brings happiness, what we think is success, what we think Utopia is and what we think we are. A tall order no doubt for a population brainwashed into thinking one is successful when they can buy a new car. Can we do it?
My hope is that rather than Steemit buying into a consumptive cycle, it will become a community that supports the discovery of the self through all of the channels possible. at the very least, be a community that is geared to being in the 30 percent rather than the immersed 70. This requires a huge amount of personal responsibility and by the looks of things, there are going to be many, many, many challenges to face as that likely 70 percent are in here too.
What do you think? Too dramatic? Over the top? We'll see in time how society pans out but by the looks of people's attraction to entertainment rather then self-development, I am rather pessimistic. Again, this is just a brief overview of some areas and there is much more detail possible in each section that I will get to as time goes on. My view is that rather than accept the majority view and say, it'll all work out in the end, I will do what I can to act now.
At least, I try. You?
Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]
Nice post, here are some of my thoughts in response:
Egalitarianism promotes mediocrity. Materialism correlates with a desire to want ever-more stuff. This desire cannot be satisfied by the mediocrity provided by a universal basic income. Setting a threshold for society’s minimum is a good idea (see Finland and other Northern European States), but I don’t think it will satisfy the urge to consume.
Switching consumers to creators provides relief from the tyranny of consumerism. Steemit is one aspect of this greater idea: decentralization reverses the relationship between consumer and creator. With everyone as creator, the drive towards ownership of material goods is diverted towards generating new goods. Here egalitarianism plays a part because of the unrealized nature of each individual’s creative capacity. Some individuals might be born creative but others need to be socialized in a creative environment in order to become creative.
Escaping the clutch social media and other forms of consumerism have upon the soul of individuals living paycheck to paycheck is the first step towards making creators out of consumers. Monetising hobbies is a great start but most people lack the drive and initiative to want to get up and create someone new. They would rather maintain the comfortable pattern of consuming they have grown accustomed to from a society that teaches them this is the correct way to live life.
Utopia is a fantasy that cannot be provided by a universal basic income. I think it’s a wonderful step in the right direction to free people from fearing if they will be able to provide for their base needs; but universal basic income is not a panacea.
I agree with what you say here ad this is my larger point. The revolution cannot be technological or financial to be lasting. It must be within us as individuals that make up society. I do not believe in a perfect Utopia but at a personal level, it is the creators that have long-term life satisfaction even though it is a very hard path. Making that path easier reduces suffering a great deal.
Automation should take place so people can have the space to become creators, not to increase profits. The current pathway is unsustainable so this stop-gap measure is likely unavoidable but it is not the destination, just the space to manoeuvre the change over in the innovation of the self.
Thank you for taking the time, I would answer more but have to feed my baby.
The other link to the 'Utopia' version might interest you too.
https://steemit.com/society/@tarazkp/a-somewhat-utopian-overview-of-universal-basic-income-ubi
Yes space for the arts needs to be a required life-long skill that is currently lost for most once they become teenagers. If people don't want to do it there is little that can be done aside from the incentives mentioned already to motivate them. A very sad fact of life!
Creators or maintainers might be sufficient in liberate people from the drudgery of monotonous employment. As an historical example: the coal shovelers of yesteryear would've argued until they're blue in the face that taking their jobs away is not liberation: these people need to be flexible enough to be retrained and reskilled to be put back into the workforce. However, if a suitable baseline of skills was instilled during early years than this would not be necessary as the essential skills for life would be already present.
Thanks I'll check it out! You might be interested in my new debate series. Currently we're just starting the debate around the philosophy of the image and related visual arts philosophy discussion. Check it out: https://steemit.com/philosophy/@deterrencepolicy/a-great-debate-the-philosophy-of-the-image
Thst early training is vital. At the moment it is opposed to future success (unless in a narrow band) as they do not teach how to learn, rather what.
I will check it out :)
Oh dear, this is a pesimistic view isn't it.
You don't give people much credit here do you? Whilst I agree there are plenty of potato's out there I like to think that for the majority of people you are being too sceptical - If you have as little faith in people as this article suggests then you must think we're pretty much doomed already with or without a UBI.
Truth is I think the majority of your problems (expressed here) with the UBI are not with the UBI at all but rather the powers that be that would be responsible for distributing it. The solution to the problem of entrenched power will certainly not be the UBI but we shouldn't write it off because it doesn't solve all soceities problems,
Personally I think that finding innovative solutions to the funding for the UBI could help reduce the inequality and power grabbing that you appear most concerned with. I have ideas how this could be done but I'll be doing a video on it at some point so I won't share those ideas here.
Nice, thought provoking article anyway even if the thoughts you express are down on people. Have faith my friend, in the words of John Lennon - we can work it out.
Doomed is very contextual. My version of doomed might be different than yours and some might even consider both versions paradise. I'm sceptical not pessimistic: if people desire more than they should have it but most are quite happy to scrape by with the bare minimum.
UBI might solve some problems and create still more problems. The goal of public policy is to anticipate these future problems and mitigate them by figuring out smart policies. Showering people with money for absolutely no reason is not smart policy. It has few incentives built into the system and it creates far too many expectations. High levels of taxation are a constant complaint of many but if UBI was implemented tax would rise in order to generate the funds required.
Definitely, but those solutions are few and far in between. Awesome I look forward to your video! Followed :)
Also, the definition of what constitutes a "potato" would vary depending on the specific requirements of a society.
I'm not an economist and some points in your article I fail to grasp fully (maybe cos I haven't read the earlier installment?), but here's how I view UBI, and tell he how you disagree. UBI is to literally stop people from dying, first of all. So, provide a roof over their heads, food, etc. Basically, very similar to a prison. Second, this UBI community will be geared toward teaching the unemployed new skills, so that they can reenter the job market. This could be done as a loan: for example, the government will take 10% of all future profit you make, to repay itself for the project. This is similar to what is done in the UK with students getting student loans that they can repay whenever they find a job that pays. If even one person that comes out of the 'projects' finds tremendous success, the project will be able to survive on his 10% alone. But there's gonna be more people earning good money, in my estimation.
What the UBI certainly won't be doing, is giving people anything non-essential: i.e. anything not related to learning and to staying alive and healthy. So, it won't be buying you a TV if you don't need one to learn something. It won't be buying you bus tickets to visit other counties. Most people will not find that kind of life enjoyable, and will work hard to escape those conditions.
This is how UBI would work in the system as it already is, in a country that can afford it, i.e. most western countries.
The other post is more along these lines as you mentioned here. This one is decidedly...down.
There will be good sides to it of course but there will also be the risks that come from reliance on external support etc. I like to spend the time thinking through many sides of situations, even if they are unlikely or impossible.
The thing is with UBI though is it must be unversal, so those that are in the position they do not use the support will be able to buy the TV or such. Of course, who kows what kinds of shape it would actually take once implemented.
What do you mean universal, the entire planet? Why should it be so? Why can't every country (that can) start (and end?) by doing it on its own soil?
Oh. Universal means all within the country. Not the world. So if implemented in Finland, all Finns and qualifying foreigners will get it. Not means tested.
Whether any final form will look like that, who knows.
Very interesting read guy! I'm wiped so this is just going to have to be a spammy "nice post", sorry 😅
I can accept it as I know next time you will present me a page of text, with references in an appendix.
Hope you are doing well. Get some rest.
Not quite, but thought our surely 😜
I think this is a community which revolves around personal development. No time for cartoons when working on writing an article. Yes, plenty of people will use it as entertainment. The cool part is the ability to turn the personal development into entertainment, while, perhaps, supplementing our incomes.
Thanks for writing. It's certainly a complex issue, and not one that I would want to have to write about.
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