Basic Income: the Silence in the Noise

Written on June 20th, 2016 in politics Comments Off

Published on Counterpunch.org, by DANIEL RAVENTÓS and JULIE WARK, June 15, 2016.

… But there’s something missing in all the heat and light. The discussion ranges (and sometimes rages) around affordability, mechanisation of work, whether basic income would be a disincentive to work, streamlining antiquated welfare systems, ending poverty, the results of experiments in places as far afield as Manitoba, Alaska, India, Namibia, Kenya, Uganda and among the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation.

These are all important issues but the underlying politics tends to be glossed over. One reason for this is, perhaps, an over-emphasis on marketing or what Philippe van Parijs , referring to the Swiss referendum, describes as “impressive communication skills”, at the expense of basic normative ideas, although the Swiss have certainly done much to make the measure better known and more widely discussed in many countries. Then again, and herein lies the rub, the push for basic income in recent years has come from grassroots movements, presented as a question of justice, as a radical measure that challenges status quo entitlement. This is what viscerally upsets establishment people like Lawrence H. Summers … //

… The classical democratic republican tradition understands social life as a space seething with power relations at all levels. This indicates the need to construct an institutional framework with mechanisms designed to prevent asymmetries of power which lead to relations of domination among individuals. The first priority, then, is to guarantee the material independence of individuals as the basis of their freedom in social life because otherwise, dependent on others for sustenance, they have to obtain their permission to live, day after day. This undermining of civic dignity and certain related types of social pathology tend to compound problems of exclusion making it increasingly difficult for a person to claim his or her rights. In today’s neoliberal system a few individuals or groups manipulate supply and demand, mould the structure of markets and determine the nature of national economies, thus imposing in productive units, and parliaments as well, the conditions of work for all those who depend on them in order to live. Millions upon millions of people are subject to this alien regime today … //

… (full text).

don’t miss: Global Capitalism June 2016, 97.37 min, with Economic Professor Richard D. Wolff, uploaded by Richard D. Wolff Economic;
Mondragon-Corporation/english; /About; /History; /Contact; on en.wikipedia; on es.wikipedia; on fr.wikipedia; on de.wikipedia … and in many other languages (click down left column);

Links:

#FreeAssange: Global event calls for WikiLeaks founder freedom after 4 years of isolation, on RT, June 19, 2016;

Russia won’t be invading NATO countries, Germany shouldn’t help start a new arms race – Schroeder, on RT, June 19, 2016;

Syrian army repels major Al-Nusra offensive on Syrian-Turkish border as rebel forces besiege ISIS, on RT, June 19, 2016;

Mystery Space Object Outshines Galaxy – June 16, 2016, 10.01 min, uploaded by secureteam10;

La convergence impossible, dans Médiapart.fr, par HENRI STERDYNIAK, le 15 juin 2016;

À nouveau monde, nouveau financement, dans 24heures, par Ada Marra, le 15 juin 2016;

Belgique: Dix idées écologistes pour révolutionner le 21e siècle, dans Le Vif.be, le 14 juin 2016;

Australia: Digital adaption, you’re doing it wrong, STEM education needs rethink, on The Register.co.uk, by Richard Chirgwin, June 14, 2016;

Wetterkrieg gegen Europa – The unleashed Cat, 16.04 min, uploaded by Ison Willis, May 31, 2016 … Ende Mai 2016 werden vielerorts in Europa selten bis nie gesehene Wolkenformationen beobachtet. Spektakuläre Unwetterzellen bilden sich und entlassen ihre Kräfte nach unten. Heftige Regenfälle, Gewitterstürme, Windhosen sogar Tornados bilden sich. Was hier aussergewöhnlich ist, ist das von Süditalien bis weit in den Norden zu Norwegen, von der Westküste Spaniens bis nach Ungarn, das Wetter, wie eine befreite, hungrige Wildkatze, vollkommen “verrückt” spielt …;

Movie: Global dimming, uploaded by Ison Willis: - Part 1, 27.41 min;

Bewusstsein ist nicht auf unseren Kopf beschränkt – Dr. Roger Nelson im Gespräch, 16.29 min (translated in german), uploaded by Werner Huemer: kann menschliches Bewusstsein Maschinen beeinflussen? Dr. Roger Nelson ist Leiter des „globalen Bewusstseinsprojekts”, an dem weltweit etwa 100 Forscher und Ingenieure beteiligt sind. Seit nunmehr 15 Jahren untersucht er im Rahmen dieses großangelegten Experiments die Wirkung von Bewusstsein — mit verblüffenden Ergebnissen: Großereignisse, die weltweit viele Menschen gedanklich und emotional bewegen, verändern die Daten von Zufallsgeneratoren. Gedanken und Gefühle wirken demnach über unseren Kopf hinaus …;

Allmagne du Sud: la vitesse de l’eau qui monte;

… and this:

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