Of course there are safety nets, look I can only speak from my perspective living in Sweden but it's my perception that we already have a sort of basic income through the various social services available.
I never understood BI until you said "cut a check", so that's the difference between BI and what we have today in a welfare state.
Because today you get a grant for your rent and you get a basic minimum income from social services. All of which is designed so that you should be able to survive but not in excess.
It's two sums of money that is essentially a BI but instead of cutting a check it's calculated based on your standard of living.
For example if you're keeping a 3 room apartment without a job then the public insurance company that issues the housing grant will require you to move to a smaller apartment to keep your grant.
There's also additional money you can request if you're sick or old. And of course some people have a disability so there's money for that too.
The problem with having many small creaks like that is most people don't know about all their rights, or are just too lazy to pursue them.
>The problem with having many small creaks like that is most people don't know about all their rights, or are just too lazy to pursue them.
That's why it's better to just cut EVERYONE a check. Everyone starts at the same BASIC level of subsistence, and there are no welfare cliffs, administration overheads, frauds, tricks, etc. etc. etc. Then we work to improve our situations - as we ought.
I never understood BI until you said "cut a check", so that's the difference between BI and what we have today in a welfare state.
Because today you get a grant for your rent and you get a basic minimum income from social services. All of which is designed so that you should be able to survive but not in excess.
It's two sums of money that is essentially a BI but instead of cutting a check it's calculated based on your standard of living.
For example if you're keeping a 3 room apartment without a job then the public insurance company that issues the housing grant will require you to move to a smaller apartment to keep your grant.
There's also additional money you can request if you're sick or old. And of course some people have a disability so there's money for that too.
The problem with having many small creaks like that is most people don't know about all their rights, or are just too lazy to pursue them.