Based on the title I thought this article was going to be a much more straightforward argument for "basic" income:
That toothpaste (or broadly preventative dental care) is a collective benefit (combining thr basic principles of "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" and Bastiat's broken window parable) and that because we should optimize opportunity costs around creation not repairing destruction we should all happily provide "universal basic toothpaste" to whoever wants it.
And if you extend this accordingly up the first 2 or 3 steps of Maslow's hierarchy of needs you can find some equilibrium of "universal" "basic" income to satisfy those needs.
The article I imagined would certainly make a lot more sense than this one, which is just dorm room economic philosophy.
Comments
Based on the title I thought this article was going to be a much more straightforward argument for "basic" income:
That toothpaste (or broadly preventative dental care) is a collective benefit (combining thr basic principles of "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" and Bastiat's broken window parable) and that because we should optimize opportunity costs around creation not repairing destruction we should all happily provide "universal basic toothpaste" to whoever wants it.
And if you extend this accordingly up the first 2 or 3 steps of Maslow's hierarchy of needs you can find some equilibrium of "universal" "basic" income to satisfy those needs.
The article I imagined would certainly make a lot more sense than this one, which is just dorm room economic philosophy.