As Ireland’s $1,500-a-month basic income pilot program for creatives nears its end in February, officials have to answer a simple question: Is it worth it?
With four months to go, they say the answer is yes.
Earlier this month, Ireland’s government announced its 2026 budget, which includes “a successor to the pilot Basic Income Scheme for the Arts to begin next year” among its expenditures.
Ireland is just one of many places experimenting with guaranteed basic income programs, which provide recurring, unrestricted payments to people in a certain demographic. These programs differ from a universal basic income, which would provide payments for an entire population.
Inb4 random people drawing a dickbutt a month on some random piece of paper to qualify as “artist” and get free money from the government.
All these good sounding programs sound great in theory, until you find out that the lobbist controlling their actual enactment will make it a lot easier for CEOs to request the funds than actual homeless artists
And that’s why the Basic Income should be Universal.
I see this as a clever step in that direction. Make it relatively easy to apply. Wait ten years, point to the lack of widespread abuse and then make it available to everyone.
No, means testing is so ignorant people switch from:
To
If people drawing one dick but a month gets this, it’s only so people like you will be turned against UBI.
Shits too important to allow that ignorance to go unaddressed.
Because after it’s explained, you either get back on the side of the people, or make it obvious that you’re just against UBI for reasons other than you said