Mayor Michael Tubbs of Stockton, California, has announced a new initiative to combat wage stagnation, the rise in housing costs, and other problems in his recently bankrupted town.
The solution? A new ‘universal basic income’ of five hundred bucks will be doled out to low-income folks every month, no questions asked.
What could possibly go wrong?
Clearly, Tubbs has never heard of LBJ’s so-called ‘War on Poverty’ which has done precisely nothing to curb poverty in America despite the trillions of tax dollars spent (yes, with a ‘t’) on numerous welfare programs.
May we humbly suggest an alternative? How ’bout food for work?
Here’s more from WND…
The mayor of Stockton, California, is leading an experiment with “universal basic income,” which is set to start by giving low-income residents $500 a month, no questions asked.
Mayor Michael Tubbs calls his city “ground zero” for issues like wage stagnation, rising housing prices and loss of middle-class jobs that affect the nation.
The Central Valley city went bankrupt in 2012, and for decades it has been trying to diversify its agriculture-based economy.
“I feel that as mayor it’s my responsibility to do all I could to begin figuring out what’s the best way to make sure that folks in our community have a real economic floor,” Tubbs said.
Dorian Warren serves as co-chairman the Economic Security Project, which is contributing $1 million to the initiative. He said the goal is to gather data on the economic and social impacts of giving people a basic income.
In addition to tracking what residents do with the money, Warren said they will be monitoring how a basic income affects things like self-esteem and identity.
“What does it mean to say, ‘Here is unconditional guaranteed income just based on you being a human being?’” Warren asked.