[stcredzero]

But Paul Ryan, leader of the house, wants to cut social security, medicare and medicaid.

I don't think that he's against helping people. Rather, he thinks that those programs have long term externalities which outweigh their benefits. We're talking about actual people here, not villains from a 60's cartoon.

[influx]

Good point, in fact there's plenty of folks on the other side who would like to replace all these programs with a more efficient system (aka basic income).

[pokk]

I think that is extremely unlikely. If you were to have a scale of the volatility of security where a zero is potentially being entirely on your own and a ten is a very modest utopia where everyone can perpetually live like a student then functioning universal basic income is probably an eight. Much of Europe today would be around a five, with the Nordic countries maybe a six. The US, being unique in many regards when it comes to developed countries, would today overall be a something like a three. Without even the most basic assistance it is probably a two. You don't just go from a two to an eight overnight. It is just so far from what exists today that it is a pretty safe bet that a functioning universal basic income system is never going to happen in the US.

[stcredzero]

a zero is potentially being entirely on your own

I met some people in Alaska who were trying to approximate this.

a ten is a very modest utopia where everyone can perpetually live like a student

I guess some people historically would see it as a utopia. One's perspective changes with age and life experience. Some would find it depressing.

[pokk]

> I guess some people historically would see it as a utopia. One's perspective changes with age and life experience. Some would find it depressing.

Most people in the world, if not the US, spend at least five days a week working to have even far less then that. I would put a true utopia, with e.g. the good parts from unlimited free energy, at a hundred or more on that imaginary scale.

[stcredzero]

I would put a true utopia, with e.g. the good parts from unlimited free energy, at a hundred or more on that imaginary scale.

Sure. I'll have that instead of the 8-ish student life.