The solution to mass unemployment is in providing basic income to all people on condition that it is received for a certain contribution that each person makes to society.
In other words, basic income, i.e., receiving a regular allowance, cannot work on its own. On the contrary, if basic income was implemented in society without the need for incentivizing people to contribute to society, then society would stagnate. This is because the factors of competition and social responsibility that drives us to succeed, progress and perform in all kinds of ways would be removed from our lives, and we would find ourselves vegetating more and more.
Therefore, in a system providing basic income, we need to be concerned that elements of competition and social responsibility find a new and positive form.
This is doable through education of prosocial values.
As we head into the future, we will increasingly see that we need to positively realize our increasing interdependence and interconnectedness. If we fail to upgrade our attitudes to each other the more we become connected in an external manner, then the more we can expect all kinds of stresses, pressures and tensions to negatively affect us. Therefore, society will need to be infused with a new kind of education that teaches and promotes how to positively connect in our new interdependent and interconnected age.
Mass unemployment provides an opportunity for us to connect these pieces together. The more we will see automation and AI taking jobs that we traditionally needed people to fill, then the more we will need to provide solutions for such people. Basic income coupled with connection-enriching education, which encourages positive contribution to society, is a solution that aims to ensure an increase of people’s happiness, confidence and motivation as it will aim to direct society to increasingly positively connect.
Thus, instead of being motivated to succeed on account of others, as we currently do in our times, our success would become redefined as the extent to which we can contribute to society and positively connect above differences and division.
Based on “Universal Basic Income: Pros and Cons” by Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman. Photo by Fabio Bracht on Unsplash.
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