Universal Basic Income - For and Against: foreword by Robert P. Murphy, PhD., afterword by Dominic Frisby

by Antony Sammeroff, Dr. Robert P. Murphy (Foreword), Dominic Frisby (Foreword)

With the accelerating onset of automation, the loss of manufacturing jobs in the west, a spiralling rise in income inequality, and the obvious failure of our welfare systems to provide those at the bottom of the economic ladder with a clear path out of poverty, many are looking for an alternative approach that will meet everyone's needs and guarantee them a dignified standard of living.Most prominent among these approaches is the Universal Basic Income (UBI) or Basic Income Guarantee (BIG). The idea is simple. Each and every citizen will be entitled to a sum of money from the government – regardless of their income or occupation. Not a huge sum of money, but enough to ensure that their basic needs were met and that they wouldn’t gohungry. Advocates on the left claim it would close the poverty trap where people are deterred from joining the workforce by the potential loss of their benefits, while freeing people from the capitalist mindset where our only role is to produce something that others can consume so that we can consume things that others produce. Advocates on the right claim it will save the market economy from socialism and central planning, while removing the disincentive to work provided by the current welfare state and reduce bureaucracy and government waste by simplifying the complex array of benefits to one single payment.In this original take on the Universal Basic Income scheme, economist Antony Sammeroff explores the pros and cons of The Basic Income Guarantee, launching into an investigation of radical reforms to the economy which would help everyone gain more freedom and reach their grander aspirations.A truly inspiring, life affirming and rationally optimistic read.

Genres: Economics, Politics

162 pages, Paperback

Published September 17, 2018

Reviews

[Otto Lehto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sammeroff is a libertarian opponent of UBI who nonetheless understands some of the arguments in favour of it and worries about its consequences. His claim to neutrality - "for and against" - is betrayed by the fact that there are only a few pages "for" versus a hundred pages "against." However, at least there is some understanding of what UBI means. Unfortunately, a good part of the book is spent deviating into a general libertarian exhortation of the virtues of free markets. Instead of going deeper into UBI, we get ample discussion of the provision of public goods, price inflation, housing policy, technological development, the value of free trade, etc., with only a tangential connection to UBI. As a result, the structure of the book is rather weak.

However, I really enjoyed the Q&A session at the end, which could have been much longer. It highlights a couple important points that any supporter of UBI should consider: 1) The unintended consequences of UBI could look completely different from the intended consequences, & 2) The reliance on free markets and other supportive policies might be necessary in order to unleash the full potential of UBI.

Do I recommend the book? Certainly not as a primer of UBI, since it is biased against it and fails to appreciate some of the ways in which UBI supporters could respond to his criticisms. Its structure is also a bit messy and undeveloped. This is not a comprehensive guide to UBI and it barely scratches the surface of the arguments. However, it works OK as a libertarian polemic against UBI.

[Ronald J. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Antony was a convert to UBI when he first heard about it in 1990. And though he discusses the benefits of this program, the book is an argument against UBI. Good ideas are antifragile, which get more robust when challenged. One statistic that was a good reminder is to ask people what the most expensive thing they will ever buy in their life? Most say a house. But the real answer is government, with the average person in Great Britain spends between 20 and 25 years working for government. He discusses the folly of government housing policies, occupational licensing laws, free trade, education, and environmental policies. What about AI, automation, etc., replacing all the jobs? He takes down this argument fairly effectively. Interesting that the US Airforce needs a ground crew of 168 people to operate a small MQ1 drone, 300 for a larger one. One General said, “The number one manning problem in our air force is manning our unmanned platforms.” Automation has reduced the average work week from 61 hours in 1870 to 37 hours today. The book ends with Q&A, one of which points out that redistributive policies have never ended poverty, anywhere. Also, charities are limited by resources, they can’t keep people dependent on them forever, whereby governments can. Overall, not a bad work on UBI, but for a more in-depth exploration, see Charles Murray’s book, In Our Hands, and listen to our radio show episode on the UBI at: https://www.thesoulofenterprise.com/t...

[Henrik Akselsen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I agree with almost everything, but the structure and formatting is very bad. It feels like a first draft, and is in desperate need of an editor. Also, although it is very short, it deviates from the main topic, which seems unnecessary.

[Erik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concise presentation of pros and cons of UBI, along with general discussion of general economic principles.