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Finland Is Killing Its Basic Income Experiment (businessinsider.com)
tomhath shares a report: Since the beginning of last year, 2000 Finns are getting money from the government each month -- and they are not expected to do anything in return. The participants, aged 25-58, are all unemployed, and were selected at random by Kela, Finland's social-security institution. Instead of unemployment benefits, the participants now receive $690 per month, tax free. Should they find a job during the two-year trial, they still get to keep the money. While the project is praised internationally for being at the cutting edge of social welfare, back in Finland, decision makers are quietly pulling the brakes, making a U-turn that is taking the project in a whole new direction. "Right now, the government is making changes that are taking the system further away from a basic income," Kela researcher Miska Simanainen told the Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet.
They were all unemployed, but were selected at random.
This is great. Let all other countries do these sick experiments. They forget basic psychology that people need a purpose. Men need to work. Women need children. And men and women need each other.
This has been how it is since the beginning. And there isnâ(TM)t anything different from 2000 years ago and now. Except putting children on drugs that halt their brain from developing.
If these experiments can not work on those tiny, homogeneous coutries that are all one ethnicity, it is impossible to apply it to a gigantic country like the United States.
But we have children under 30 yo and adults with child like minds that think they are smarter than all who came before, saying they implemented its wrong and they somehow know the better way. Childish thinking to be polite.
So thank you Trump. For having the courage to NOT ruin our country with these sick experiments. Men need to work to have purpose and feel useful. Period. Take that away, and itâ(TM)s alcoholism and depression. Every. Single. Time.
The concerns are really
1) What about the effect it has on productive people. I can tell you I would be MORE interested in working harder if not for graduated tax brackets and taxes in general. I am not against giving to charity; I bet I give a lot more than most too) etc but I absolutely RESENT having things taken from me. To the point where I really don't care to earn more because even though I would get to keep more; I see it at least partly as enabling the thieves.
2) By creating a system that does not have to provide jobs to less 'able' folks its a safe bet it probably won't do so. Solving technical problems are usually easier than solving people problems. How build a robot + AI to do X where X is complex enough that at least a portion of the population would struggle with it is in an increasing number of cases easier and cheaper than solving the problem of identifying the people who are capable motivated and dependable to do it. If you remove the incentive, of not having starving people clogging the streets to keep the less productive employed at something society won't do it. - However human nature is what it is.
If Bob can't get a job, because there is nothing useful for him to do but Ted has a job and the fancier car, bigger house, more meals out etc that come with it Bob will be jealous! Bob will either demand productive people like Ted provide him these things as well leading to an inflationary cycle where UBI must be forever increased -or- Bob will bite the hand the feeds and take all the Teds down with him thru crime and vandalism.
Its really better for all of us if we occupy Bob doing something....
Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
Well, if you don't like it..change the laws.
I frankly, can't fault anyone for doing whatever is legally possible to keep as much of their money as possible.
I do it.....pretty much everyone takes as many deductions, or whatever it takes to pay less taxes within the law.
I don't know anyone that is altruistic enough to voluntarily, knowingly pay more than they absolutely have to.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........