RE: Libertarian Social Democracy: Delegative Democracy, Land Value Tax, & Universal Basic Income
JG isn't about welfare - it's a price stabiliser. Also, involuntary unemployment is an indicator that there isn't enough money circulating around the economy for transactions to happen smoothly, and it's a good way of injecting money into the economy (workers decide for themselves what the money should be spent on, which isn't distortionary).
Is it wage slavery if people want to work? It only targets involuntary unemployment - if people choose to not to participate, that's their decision. The costs of unemployment include psychological costs which are associated with feeling excluded, unwanted, disempowered. Handouts don't address this effectively.
People who are long-term unemployed lose not only their specialised skills, but their general skills also. A JG program keeps workers 'job ready' so that their transition into private sector employment isn't unnecessarily painful for all.
I disagree, basic income addresses the problem better. Basic income creates jobs. If you have mass unemployment, fewer people can afford to eat out, travel, vacation, go to amusement parks, attend concerts, etc. When you give basic income, people are gonna spend that money on something, and it naturally generates jobs wherever the people choose to spend the money, allowing the democracy of the market and demand to determine what jobs to create. Job guarantees, on the other hand, generate jobs in a more market-distorting fashion, not necessarily where people would choose to spend their money.
I think I'll write a few posts about it. I'll try to come at it from different angles and maybe we can make a series of posts and counter-posts, if you're interested.
I'm up for that, although I might be a little slow to respond.
That works for me.
By the way, thank you very, very much for all the upvotes!
Thank you for the good conversation and discussion.