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by pitaj 3217 days ago
I'm a libertarian. I think that the UBI could allow for economic growth based solely on the power it as to eliminate the welfare trap. However, this would only work as a replacement for all welfare, though. It would have to replace welfare, food stamps, social security, etc, with the exception of medicaid and medicare.

I support UBI only as a replacement for existing (bad) welfare systems. I think UBI in conjunction with simplified tax code could inject life into the inner cities. Add onto that decriminalization of all controlled substances, and you've got a huge boon.
2 comments
paulddraper 3217 days ago
Hello fellow libertarian.

The problem is that very many welfare recipients get more than $1,000/month per adult. Disabled? Single mother with children? You'll easily get 2x that (including check, food stamps, subsidized housing).

And no one is going to want to take away from the poor.

$1,000/adult/month replacing welfare is an impossibility. We'd have to use much larger numbers.

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pitaj 3217 days ago
If two checks are necessary, that's just more incentive for parents to stay together, or if that isn't possible, the child support can be taken out of the check. Also, with a guaranteed income, a family could much more easily move to a cheaper area with more opportunities.

People also don't tend to consider the harms that means-tested programs do to the poor. Subsidized housing is one huge per peeve of mine because it's essentially creating ghettos.

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paulddraper 3217 days ago
> People also don't tend to consider the harms that means-tested programs do to the poor.

True. Still, there will be many who are worse off with $1 UBI.

I agree with your views. But if UBI is ever created it has 0% chance of replacing welfare.

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uoaei 3217 days ago
It would certainly replace unemployment benefits but certainly not health- and family-based welfare.

Though the children could receive something like $800/month for the first, $600/month for the second, and so on up to the fourth which is compensated for $200/month. Anything above that will not be compensated. The diminishing returns will discourage people from having more kids just to have more money, and also will appease those who are afraid of "welfare queens" who only have kids to get money from the state. We know that the contingency of people actually doing that is practically nonexistent but it will assuage those who are still concerned about it.

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dilemma 3217 days ago
UBI is the welfare trap par excellence.
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