BEYOND OR BESIDES NEOLIBERALISM? THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME

Lucian T.  BUTARU

Authors

Lucian T. BUTARU Lecturer PhD, Department of European Studies, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Email: lbutaru@yahoo.com.

Keywords:

universal basic income, negative income tax, Austrian and market socialist economics

Abstract

This article intends to present comparatively the theoretical and political debates, past and present, on the universal basic income. The purpose of this comparison is to highlight the potential of acceptability of such a program, and the respective reticence and barriers it stirs. The potential of acceptability and implementation stems from the fact that the program was conceived before the split of the old left and continues to manifest itself in an area where the ideological consensus of liberalism and socialism is still possible. The reluctance seems to be due to the leftist radicalism, which remains quite strong, despite the ease with which such programs can be translated into the language of right. Reticence and concealment continue even today, despite the logical consistency of the solutions proposed and despite the evidence brought in using the tools of social sciences.

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