Very little thought or planning has gone into the "great AI changeover" being forced upon us. Short term gain and greed win again. It feels like we are being led to the cliff. The benefits of a UBI are well established, even when inadequate like a $1K. We are not lacking in ideas or pilot projects. We need a breakthrough to remind people of our shared humanity.
As far as the AI dividend, it should be paid for by the tehcbroligarchy who made their money off others' labors and are now causing a mass disruption. There is a lot of precedent for these "retraining" programs and cash benefits. They are usually government run.
There should be a Pigouvian Tax (the actual social cost) on these mega corporations, and to prevent that, they bought Trump. The impact of AI will ripple out in all directions, but especially the supply chain, the food chain, the consumer chain, and of course the environment. Without intervention, things are going to spiral even further. The cliff is just ahead.
Do you have a reference for "The benefits of UBI are well established" becuase I am not sure it is the case. I am.wondering if you have a good source with respect to it (genuinely asking to know more).
For the knowledge of tax and economics I have, I am aware that it is non trivial to make sure the corps pay for all this. The one solution I can think of is breaking monopolies and oligopolies but .. good luck having that happening when the administration is asking policy advice to big tech (reported by the FT like yesterday).
Hi Brian. I am a professional AI Trainer with four years experience in the industry. I strongly feel the need to speak publicly about certain things, but unsure how to go about it… Would you be willing to schedule a conversation with me?
GBI cannot work. Once it is universal, the price of everything will rise by exactly the amount of disbursement. As such, whether this experiment "works" or doesn't is immaterial, because it won't press on the issue of scale.
As long as there is scarcity in the key elements of life (land, health, and food), then GBI will just be inflationary, like giving everyone a raise.
If we want to solve the problem, we have to take back the land.
This. Because a transition is under way, and the old paradigm we've gotten used to, where we assume everyone must have money to live and must have a job to get money, is sinking fast. This is actually a relatively new idea. A couple centuries ago, employment was one possibility but most people did most things for themselves.
Who can live on $1000/month? I can. My husband and I get just under $20,000/year together from Social Security, and we keep adding to our savings. But this is because
1--we live in West Virginia where the cost of living--and the cost of land, and property taxes--is low. So are wages, and while the climate is great for farming, the land is 90% steep wooded hillsides, so while homesteading is practical, serious farming is not.
2--we used savings from a few years of working to build an energy-efficient house. We pay no rent and hare no mortgage, no other debt.
My mother died the year we built the house (2008) and left me a $23,000 annuity, which we lived on partly and used $9070 for all parts of an off-grid solar system. Actual cost was about half that since back then there was a 30% tax rebate for solar at both the federal and state levels, which cancelled the taxes I'd have otherwise had to pay on that annuity. We have no electric bill, and water comes from our well.
3--I grow a little over half our food. So it's definitely organic and local. We heat with wood, which is plentiful and high-quality here.
I think people need to get creative in finding ways to meet their needs other than money, and ways to get money other than being an employee. Ideally, have multiple income streams in your household, and a network of people with whom you trade products and services. And given the way things are going, being set up with a water system you control (a well, a spring, rainwater collection off your roof), at least for the 99% that doesn't have to be potable; having a garden where you can grow at least some of your food; having at least some solar panels (or a water or wind turbine if you happen to be in a place with adequate wind or water volume & drop), and having a stash of basic necessities, is prudent. Things are getting increasingly chaotic, and dependence on a complex intercontinental supply chain and economy is dangerous.
Basic Income plans assume that money can compensate for the loss of work, which in turn assumes that the only thing work provides one is a means for one to acquire and consume. Neither assumption is obviously true. Someone once said — was it Ruskin? — that the reward for work is not what you get for doing it but what you become by doing it.
Who can get by on $1000 per month? My rent's more than twice that.
Then don't apply and leave it for someone who appreciates the help.
You’re an “AI Specialist”?
Your reasoning is making a bit more sense now, Patrick—as do your writing skills.
Very little thought or planning has gone into the "great AI changeover" being forced upon us. Short term gain and greed win again. It feels like we are being led to the cliff. The benefits of a UBI are well established, even when inadequate like a $1K. We are not lacking in ideas or pilot projects. We need a breakthrough to remind people of our shared humanity.
As far as the AI dividend, it should be paid for by the tehcbroligarchy who made their money off others' labors and are now causing a mass disruption. There is a lot of precedent for these "retraining" programs and cash benefits. They are usually government run.
There should be a Pigouvian Tax (the actual social cost) on these mega corporations, and to prevent that, they bought Trump. The impact of AI will ripple out in all directions, but especially the supply chain, the food chain, the consumer chain, and of course the environment. Without intervention, things are going to spiral even further. The cliff is just ahead.
I'd say "no thought" and "no planning" went into it!
Do you have a reference for "The benefits of UBI are well established" becuase I am not sure it is the case. I am.wondering if you have a good source with respect to it (genuinely asking to know more).
For the knowledge of tax and economics I have, I am aware that it is non trivial to make sure the corps pay for all this. The one solution I can think of is breaking monopolies and oligopolies but .. good luck having that happening when the administration is asking policy advice to big tech (reported by the FT like yesterday).
Agreed.
Hi Brian. I am a professional AI Trainer with four years experience in the industry. I strongly feel the need to speak publicly about certain things, but unsure how to go about it… Would you be willing to schedule a conversation with me?
Hi! DMed you
1,000$ a month ain't shit
GBI cannot work. Once it is universal, the price of everything will rise by exactly the amount of disbursement. As such, whether this experiment "works" or doesn't is immaterial, because it won't press on the issue of scale.
As long as there is scarcity in the key elements of life (land, health, and food), then GBI will just be inflationary, like giving everyone a raise.
If we want to solve the problem, we have to take back the land.
This. Because a transition is under way, and the old paradigm we've gotten used to, where we assume everyone must have money to live and must have a job to get money, is sinking fast. This is actually a relatively new idea. A couple centuries ago, employment was one possibility but most people did most things for themselves.
Who can live on $1000/month? I can. My husband and I get just under $20,000/year together from Social Security, and we keep adding to our savings. But this is because
1--we live in West Virginia where the cost of living--and the cost of land, and property taxes--is low. So are wages, and while the climate is great for farming, the land is 90% steep wooded hillsides, so while homesteading is practical, serious farming is not.
2--we used savings from a few years of working to build an energy-efficient house. We pay no rent and hare no mortgage, no other debt.
My mother died the year we built the house (2008) and left me a $23,000 annuity, which we lived on partly and used $9070 for all parts of an off-grid solar system. Actual cost was about half that since back then there was a 30% tax rebate for solar at both the federal and state levels, which cancelled the taxes I'd have otherwise had to pay on that annuity. We have no electric bill, and water comes from our well.
3--I grow a little over half our food. So it's definitely organic and local. We heat with wood, which is plentiful and high-quality here.
I think people need to get creative in finding ways to meet their needs other than money, and ways to get money other than being an employee. Ideally, have multiple income streams in your household, and a network of people with whom you trade products and services. And given the way things are going, being set up with a water system you control (a well, a spring, rainwater collection off your roof), at least for the 99% that doesn't have to be potable; having a garden where you can grow at least some of your food; having at least some solar panels (or a water or wind turbine if you happen to be in a place with adequate wind or water volume & drop), and having a stash of basic necessities, is prudent. Things are getting increasingly chaotic, and dependence on a complex intercontinental supply chain and economy is dangerous.
GBI will never be enough, the need will just keep growing. The Fed will have to step in..and that is another disaster.
Basic Income plans assume that money can compensate for the loss of work, which in turn assumes that the only thing work provides one is a means for one to acquire and consume. Neither assumption is obviously true. Someone once said — was it Ruskin? — that the reward for work is not what you get for doing it but what you become by doing it.
Now we just need to figure out how to do this sustainably at the nation state level...
First, we need to dramatically increase that amount.