basic income and stakeholder grants as alternative cornerstones for a more egalitarian capitalism /
Bruce Ackerman, Anne Alstott, Philippe Van Parijs ; with contributions by Barbara Bergmann [and others] ; edited and introduced by Erik Olin Wright.
New York :
Verso,
2006.
xii, 228 pages :
illustrations ;
24 cm.
The Real Utopias Project ;
v. 5
Papers from a conference of the Real Utopias Project called Rethinking Redistribution.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
"Are there ways that contemporary capitalism can be rendered a dramatically more egalitarian economic system without destroying its productivity and capacity for growth? This book explores two proposals, unconditional basic income and stakeholder grants, which attempt just that. In a system of basic income, as elaborated by Philippe van Parijs, all citizens are given a monthly stipend sufficient to provide them with a no-frills but adequate standard of living. This monthly income is universal rather than means-tested, and it is unconditional - receiving the basic income does not depend upon performing any labor services or satisfying other conditions. It affirms the idea that as a matter of basic rights, no one should live in poverty in an affluent society."
"In a system of stakeholder grants, as discussed by Bruce Ackerman and Anne Alstott, all citizens upon reaching the age of early adulthood receive a substantial one-time lump-sum grant sufficiently large so that all young adults would be significant wealth holders. Ackerman and Alstott propose that this grant be in the vicinity of $80,000 and be financed by an annual wealth tax of roughly 2 percent. A system of stakeholder grants, they argue, "expresses a fundamental responsibility: every American has an obligation to contribute to a fair starting point for all.""--Jacket.