Scott Santens
Writer and full-time advocate of unconditional basic income (UBI); Citizen of Earth and New Orleans; Bachelor of Science in Psychology; Editor of Basic Income Today
The Science Behind A Christmas Carol
How Charles Dickens knew what we're only learning now
First published in 1843, A Christmas Carol is a timeless story that we have cherished ever since, especially during the holidays. The tale by Charles Dickens has been adapted and re-adapted, modified and satired, with such frequency that we may not even recognize it in all its forms.
So why is it so timeless? Why has it had such a . . .
Will Replacing Current Benefits With Cash Tomorrow Leave Today's Recipients Better or Worse Off?
The effects of basic income on a single parent of two
Here's an article I wrote that looks at our current welfare system.
In that article is the following image from this presentation:
This image depicts a single parent with two children living in Pennsylvania. Basic income should replace her cash, food, housing, and energy benefits, and not her childcare, . . .
Negative Income Tax (NIT) and Unconditional Basic Income (UBI)
What makes them the same and what makes them different?
A negative income tax (NIT) and an unconditional basic income (UBI) are two ways of achieving a basic income guarantee (BIG). One gives a varying amount of money according to income, and the other gives the same amount to all and taxes different amounts back. However, among basic income supporters, some of us prefer UBI and some of us prefer . . .
My Responses to the Responses to the Basic Income Article in Newsweek
This weekend Newsweek joined the mainstream media club to write favorably of basic income. Please read the article if you haven't already done so.
I think it's important in an article like this to get a feeling for how people are reacting to the idea and try to best answer them appropriately. And so the following are some of . . .
New Medium Article: Fit for Work and Fit to Die
A memorial for the means-tested
Read the article I published on Medium on December 12, 2014.
Summary: This article actually appeared here on this blog first, and I've now republished it to Medium for greater visibility and sharing.
Women Have Lower Incomes Than Men
Another reason why basic income is important
Claim 1: Income is access to resources. When it comes to humans, one gender is given less access to resources than the other.
Claim 2: Women are paid less than men for the same work.
Though it may appear these two claims are the same, they are not. The first claim is entirely true, but the second more widely shared claim . . .
Posted in: feminismgender equityinequality
5 Steps to Becoming a BIG Contributor
(BIG = Basic Income Guarantee)
So you want to help make a basic income guarantee happen?
Our primary need is for more materials that are more accessible, more shareable, more impactful, etc. This need is huge and is exactly why there is also such a great opportunity to be a major part of this instead of just another voice pushing for something like a higher . . .
