Derek Fox: Housing people is cheaper than treating the effects of people being unhoused Free school lunches are cheaper than the consequences of children being hungry Free medical care is cheaper than the costs of people being sick Universal Basic Income increases productivity and makes people happy

Housing people is cheaper than treating the effects of people being unhoused Free school lunches are cheaper than the consequences of children being hungry Free medical care is cheaper than the costs of people being sick Universal Basic Income increases productivity and makes people happy

So weird how as soon as the pandemic started it became very immediately clear that things like socialized medicine and giving people money so children don’t starve actually work really well but now that it’s been a couple years we have to all pretend we didn’t notice that

People seem to struggle with UBI in particular - “There must be a catch!” but really there isn’t. We should do it, it will greatly increase happiness. Resources: denverite.com/2023/10/03/d... www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/... www.bbc.com/worklife/art...

The catch is a tiny handful of rich people won't have life and death power over literally everything and that really upsets them. That's why they work so hard to convince people that UBI is bad.

I think some people have a moral objection to poverty, like bad things happen to bad people so we shouldn’t help them, if they were good people they wouldn’t be in this position. I blame religion. Which is so ironic given Jesus loved helping the poor and sick 🤷🏼‍♀️

It's specifically the Christofascists- because if you were a better Christian then god would help you, but you are suffering because you are bad and/or because suffering gets you into heaven, depends which sect you ask.

And that attitude (along with all the rest of the hypocrisy) is why I burned the cloth and left the ministry, deconstructed my faith, and deconverted.

What I find interesting is that you don’t even have to be a good or caring person, you can just object to poverty on an aesthetic level and still it should be clear that less of it is better. It’s so weird that it’s such a battle.

It works IF there's no means testing requirement Give EVERYONE a basic income regardless of need

The U means Universal and also Unconditional. Everyone gets UBI.

Exactly. "What if a rich person gets it?" who gives a shit? They get off on millions of tax exemptions anyway, at least this is something that will be spent.

I'm busy right now so I can't read through your links but my main concern is that it might not be financially feasible on top of other things the gov spends money and funds, especially in a huge country like the US. I'd love for it to be possible but I'm concerned that it won't be.

Please read the linked articles or other resources when you have the time, I think you will be impressed

Studies show it leads to dramatic reductions in healthcare costs in addition to reductions in crime, especially crimes stemming from diseases of despair, leading to net savings. Poverty is incredibly costly to society.

Oh no I 100% agree and I want it to happen so badly. I'm just worried it might not be actually feasible and it won't be a realistic step.

It’s completely feasible. It’s only the ideological screaming of the political right that is stopping it.

yup

It's entirely feasible. Currently there's elaborate layers of means-testing and administration. You wouldn't need that. There's _always_ room for war in the budget.

There’s a bunch of evidence from recent, real-world programs that it’s leads to significant savings. The programs are a net positive for the system.

anywhere they are giving tiny homes to the homeless is having miraculous effects.

not cuz it's not financially feasible. the unlimited gobs of money the pentagon gets is obscene. made more obscene that none of it "trickles down" to the troops.

Universal healthcare is a thing in a lot of countries, that should tell you that (at least some of it) is feasable

Free universal school lunch is cheaper than administering a means-test and charging some kids for lunch while giving it to others free.

Yes! Even better, good point

"Means testing" is a pox. The country is bizarrely obsessed with making sure no one gets any help lest someone who doesn't need it gets something for free.

💯

Meanwhile we give out endless tax breaks and subsidies to people richer than god

I've got epilepsy, peripheral neuropathy, need mobility aids, am immunocompromised, and live with extreme PTSD (among many other things). Guess who's still trying to get disability? Because there's a CHANCE that someone somewhere is faking it (.7% in my state) I live through this hell.

There is a blog called HowToGetOn.wordpress.com that you may find helpful. a lot of advice from people who have been approved and those who were making mistakes without knowing it

How to Get Onhowtogeton.wordpress.com How to have a great, disabled life.

I'll give it a shufti, for sure. Thanks kindly.

It's going great in California! Our students get breakfast & lunch and it's improved so many things - including interruptions in parent workdays to handle forgotten packed lunches, because parents know their kids can just get a hot lunch. Kids can concentrate because they're not hungry! Outstanding.

My three plank program for education reform is: (1) universal free breakfast and lunch (2) school day starts no earlier than 8am (3) massive ventilation/filtration upgrades

and stop using property tax to pay for specific neighborhoods. state wide tax for state wide school districts

Yes please!

We are on the first 2, we start at 9. Also doing universal Pre-K and free after-school. 💚

Those are also very important but they are more complicated — requires finding more teachers, for example. My 3 item agenda is specifically chosen to be something that can be done almost overnight with a check.

Ventilation is tougher than you think, we have a severe shortage of folks who can do that kind of thing. Seems like everyone is waiting on repairs in our district, for everything but especially HVAC. But yes, I agree!

Yes, but then you’re depriving politicians of the ability to give no-bid administrative contracts to their golf buddies, bet you never thought of THAT did you??

Art.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, except when the cure is extremely lucrative

It's great to see that in the Netherlands they actually started with a basic incomes trial and the results already show the benefits outweigh the costs.

If only people understood the full cost of not doing it. Our financial reporting in NZ needs some serious overhauling. We also need to see beyond short term impacts and look to long term benefit (eg best ways to deal with crime, housing etc)

Ah so that’s why the billionaires have moved from claiming that it’s unaffordable to claiming that it’s an attack on dignity.

we kind of literally had little experiments into 2, 3, and 4 during the pandemic, saw positive results, then immediately shut it off.

yup. exactly Katie’s point in the quoted post that set me off…

I'm doing this all wrong

No no, no worries! Just pointing out the precedents

Happy to be the one to make this hit 1k. 👍 www.scottsantens.com/universal-ba...

Universal Basic Income as the Social Vaccine of the 21st Centurywww.scottsantens.com Can the savings of basic income exceed the costs? > “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” — Benjamin Franklin [https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/247269-an-ounce-of-prevention-is-...

Paddling a kayak so I can deliver this message directly to Senator Joe Manchin on his houseboat

But the threat of homelessness or starving is what keeps people trapped in soul-crushing retail jobs. It’s not a bug it’s a feature.

I mean, even if this is true in the real world (among the wealthy and powerful, let’s say), it isn’t advertised as such and would probably be untenable if so? So I think it’s worth talking about!

If only one of our most influential Founding Fathers had said something vis a vis the value of an ounce of prevention vs. pound of cure, certainly everyone who refers back to them at all times would have listened to him. 🙃

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