Union Perspectives

What does a universal basic income (UBI) and a board game have in common? Free money. When the game Monopoly was originally invented as The Landlord’s Game back in the early 1900s by Elizabeth Magie, it was created as a teaching tool to help people understand the consequences of David Ricardo’s Law of Economic Rent and Henry George’s concept of economic privilege and land value taxation. Hence, a player buys a piece of property and then puts a railroad on it, if another player lands on that property they have to pay a price to the land’s owner. Magie’s intent in creating the game was to teach and help people understand that renting property enriches the owner while impoverishing the tenant into bankruptcy, especially those not under rent control. The concept of this game has been used as a teaching tool internationally, as well. It’s the game’s “Pass Go Collect $200” that brings it around to the UBI concept. Trump has ensured the rich receive a UBI of sorts by cutting their taxes...

Economics 101 and the bullshit of the austerity: the only people who have benefitted from austerity are the 1 percent by having their jobs safe, their investments continued growing and their taxes were kept low. Do you really think this is the way to keep the economy growing? If yes, you’d be wrong. The longer the austerity last, the less money there is in the pockets of the 99 percent who are most likely to spend the money. There are other players in the game of economics, which is just like the game of Monopoly? The game does not get started until all the players have money, but as the game goes on someone will end up with all the money, the 1 percent. Then the game is over, just like an economy that becomes stagnant. To start a new game you must do what? Yes, put the money back in the hands of the players. One way we should have done this was to take advantage of a once in a generation opportunity to repair roads, bridges, air ports, water lines, electrical grids, gas piping and t...