A better alternative to Universal Basic Income
My friends know I'm a technology enthusiast. When we discuss topics like robots and AI, we inevitably end up with bots taking all of our jobs.
Then the discussion about Universal Basic income starts...
Then I sigh... because the investor in me knows there is something not right with Universal Basic Income (UBI)
Who is gonna pay for UBI?
The government thru taxes?
The Contradiction
I find so much contradiction when politicians are talking about universal basic income it's mind-blowing to me.
The absurd thing is they tax passive income so high it is insane and then, on the other hand, they want to talk about giving income for free.
Dividends are highly taxed. In some countries even double taxed, once in the country of origin and a second time in your own country. Which is the case in Belgium where I live. In most countries around the world, dividends are quite heavily taxed as well.
Of course, I do understand there has to be wealth redistribution between the wealthy and the less fortunate to keep equilibrity in the world.
But keep with me where I'm going with this.
This is what governments should do instead
They should launch a tax-sheltered income account where dividends are tax-free until a certain monthly income so you can build up your own basic income very fast.
Similar to retirement plans, but then for income. Tax-free dividends would be a great start.
For example: Dividend income up to 2000 USD/month is not taxed
The next step could be a deduction on taxes of your active income if you contribute to this income fund. This would really give this idea a boost and incentivize people to invest.
This approach will have the following effect:
- It will be easier to reach financial freedom, but people will have earned it. People will appreciate the goal they have reached.
- The feeling of accomplishment it will have taken to reach the goal will be much better than just giving a UBI.
- And most of all; this is a sustainable solution. Who will pay for that UBI otherwise?
A step further... a Robot fund for Humanity
Let's take this idea of a tax-sheltered income account a step further.
Robots and AI will make a huge impact on our world.
Certain companies will position themselves as quasi-monopolies in AI and robotics. Human labor will have a hard time competing.
But what if... we as humanity as a whole, would be shareholders in the robotics and AI companies
And I'm not talking about some communist model of ownership.
Just a model where people would be incentivized to own the robot/AI companies
Taking action yourself
I hope this idea finds its way to politicians. Hope it can inspire them to take action.
But I'm not optimistic this is gone happen in due time. Technology is moving at a very fast pace.
Although I believe the above scenario would be best for the world. I am taking things into my own hands and building up my income portfolio and investing in Robots/AI as much as I possibly can.
This is why I started this Super Snowball platform. Where I teach people how to accumulate assets faster in order to thrive in this future environment.
A transition to a Utopian World
I strongly believe the future is very bright.
Technological advancements will have deflationary effects, making most things a lot cheaper.
However, the transition toward this new world will be bumpy for those who are not prepared.
How are you positioning yourself?