Universal Corona Income

[Aresen]

Read something today that argued that while sending people money probably isn't the best option, if we're going to do it, it should be on a federally backed credit card that'll expire after a few months. That way, everyone who gets one has to spend it, or else lose the money.

If you are in the class that could afford to save that money rather than spend it, you could use the card to make the purchases you might otherwise have made out of your own funds and simply put your own funds into savings instead.

[D.A. Ridgely]

Read something today that argued that while sending people money probably isn't the best option, if we're going to do it, it should be on a federally backed credit card that'll expire after a few months. That way, everyone who gets one has to spend it, or else lose the money.

If you are in the class that could afford to save that money rather than spend it, you could use the card to make the purchases you might otherwise have made out of your own funds and simply put your own funds into savings instead.

Wait! What? Money is fungible?

[thoreau]

Read something today that argued that while sending people money probably isn't the best option, if we're going to do it, it should be on a federally backed credit card that'll expire after a few months. That way, everyone who gets one has to spend it, or else lose the money.

If you are in the class that could afford to save that money rather than spend it, you could use the card to make the purchases you might otherwise have made out of your own funds and simply put your own funds into savings instead.

Wait! What? Money is fungible?

Oh, so THAT'S what the doctor was talking about. He kept saying this is guaranteed to get rid of it, and I thought he was a bit too confident that he could get rid of all the fungi. But no, he just meant that the meds and blood tests would ensure that I don't have any more fungible money.

*Phew* Everything makes sense now.

[Warren]

Read something today that argued that while sending people money probably isn't the best option, if we're going to do it, it should be on a federally backed credit card that'll expire after a few months. That way, everyone who gets one has to spend it, or else lose the money.

One of those days small.jpg (198.1 KiB) Viewed 422 times

[JasonL]

It isn’t really stimulus. We don’t need stimulus. On the low end it’s anti poverty which is good and anything above like household 40k is pandering.

[Jennifer]

I figured they called it a 'stimulus" because calling it anything like "relief" or "assistance" would piss off the Bootstrap Brigade.

[JasonL]

I figured they called it a 'stimulus" because calling it anything like "relief" or "assistance" would piss off the Bootstrap Brigade.

Also would suggest a $75k cutoff is stupid high for "relief". Which it was. As is demonstrated by the desperate need to buy garbage stocks. Not financial advice.

[Jennifer]

I figured they called it a 'stimulus" because calling it anything like "relief" or "assistance" would piss off the Bootstrap Brigade.

Also would suggest a $75k cutoff is stupid high for "relief". Which it was. As is demonstrated by the desperate need to buy garbage stocks.

Um ... are you saying the reddit stock purchases were primarily from Americans spending their unneeded stimulus money? That's quite a claim without evidence.

[lunchstealer]

I figured they called it a 'stimulus" because calling it anything like "relief" or "assistance" would piss off the Bootstrap Brigade.

Also would suggest a $75k cutoff is stupid high for "relief". Which it was. As is demonstrated by the desperate need to buy garbage stocks.

Um ... are you saying the reddit stock purchases were primarily from Americans spending their unneeded stimulus money? That's quite a claim without evidence.

I know nothing of evidence, but it is a central part of the current GameStopGate mythology.

[Jadagul]

I figured they called it a 'stimulus" because calling it anything like "relief" or "assistance" would piss off the Bootstrap Brigade.

Also would suggest a $75k cutoff is stupid high for "relief". Which it was. As is demonstrated by the desperate need to buy garbage stocks.

Um ... are you saying the reddit stock purchases were primarily from Americans spending their unneeded stimulus money? That's quite a claim without evidence.

I know nothing of evidence, but it is a central part of the current GameStopGate mythology.

Wouldn't surprise me; I was kind of expecting the stimulus check to trigger some sort of stock bubble (based on the Matt Levine "Boredom in Markets" hypothesis).

But I don't have any real evidence that it did in fact happen.

[Jennifer]

I mean, if it's mostly or entirely $2,000 stock purchases made by people with no other assets, then I guess the stimulus check would be to blame. But I've not seen any evidence of that.

[Hugh Akston]

Who's got two thumbs and really needed the $600 trumpcheck that showed up this weekend? A guy driving Uber to feed his kids.

I, on the other hand, evenly divided my Trumpland Fun Bux between the regional homeless coalition, the regional food bank, and the local mutual aid society.

[Warren]

Who's got two thumbs and really needed the $600 trumpcheck that showed up this weekend? A guy driving Uber to feed his kids.

I, on the other hand, evenly divided my Trumpland Fun Bux between the regional homeless coalition, the regional food bank, and the local mutual aid society.

I find your infidelity to hookers and blow unsettling.

[lshap]

Hugh, well done.

Also Warren, that did make me laugh.

On a more serious note, there's an organizational issue I've observed locally with both the stimulus checks and other relief measures. There's an unfortunate disconnect between monies made available to states and locales and getting it into the right hands, like local organizations who do direct service in the community.

Years ago (possibly even in Reason) I remember reading about the difficulties inherent in NGOs trying to assist during emergencies, and trying to work with or around government entities and their own interests (often corrupt).

But I didn't realize some of the same issues exist here, depending on where you live. I'm in a county that's a mix of very poor and very well off. We have many struggling (homeless, even) families. We were given $1m in relief earmarked for mortgage and rent assistance, which is great except there's no mechanism to get the funds to people. The Salvation Army asked for access to 200k and got it and used it. The remainder just sat until the deadline ran out at end of year.

Figuring out how to solve things like this seems more valuable to me than many of the grand plans from DC.

[Shem]

Hugh, well done.

Also Warren, that did make me laugh.

On a more serious note, there's an organizational issue I've observed locally with both the stimulus checks and other relief measures. There's an unfortunate disconnect between monies made available to states and locales and getting it into the right hands, like local organizations who do direct service in the community.

Years ago (possibly even in Reason) I remember reading about the difficulties inherent in NGOs trying to assist during emergencies, and trying to work with or around government entities and their own interests (often corrupt).

But I didn't realize some of the same issues exist here, depending on where you live. I'm in a county that's a mix of very poor and very well off. We have many struggling (homeless, even) families. We were given $1m in relief earmarked for mortgage and rent assistance, which is great except there's no mechanism to get the funds to people. The Salvation Army asked for access to 200k and got it and used it. The remainder just sat until the deadline ran out at end of year.

Figuring out how to solve things like this seems more valuable to me than many of the grand plans from DC.

8 months ago I got handed $550K and told "use this to hire people to provide assistance with Covid-19." My program helps people train for jobs in the private sector. It was definitely very much a "the fuck I'm supposed to do with this?" moment.

[Jennifer]

Hugh, well done.

Also Warren, that did make me laugh.

On a more serious note, there's an organizational issue I've observed locally with both the stimulus checks and other relief measures. There's an unfortunate disconnect between monies made available to states and locales and getting it into the right hands, like local organizations who do direct service in the community.

Years ago (possibly even in Reason) I remember reading about the difficulties inherent in NGOs trying to assist during emergencies, and trying to work with or around government entities and their own interests (often corrupt).

But I didn't realize some of the same issues exist here, depending on where you live. I'm in a county that's a mix of very poor and very well off. We have many struggling (homeless, even) families. We were given $1m in relief earmarked for mortgage and rent assistance, which is great except there's no mechanism to get the funds to people. The Salvation Army asked for access to 200k and got it and used it. The remainder just sat until the deadline ran out at end of year.

Figuring out how to solve things like this seems more valuable to me than many of the grand plans from DC.

8 months ago I got handed $550K and told "use this to hire people to provide assistance with Covid-19." My program helps people train for jobs in the private sector. It was definitely very much a "the fuck I'm supposed to do with this?" moment.

So what did end up happening with the money?

[D.A. Ridgely]

Hugh, well done.

Also Warren, that did make me laugh.

On a more serious note, there's an organizational issue I've observed locally with both the stimulus checks and other relief measures. There's an unfortunate disconnect between monies made available to states and locales and getting it into the right hands, like local organizations who do direct service in the community.

Years ago (possibly even in Reason) I remember reading about the difficulties inherent in NGOs trying to assist during emergencies, and trying to work with or around government entities and their own interests (often corrupt).

But I didn't realize some of the same issues exist here, depending on where you live. I'm in a county that's a mix of very poor and very well off. We have many struggling (homeless, even) families. We were given $1m in relief earmarked for mortgage and rent assistance, which is great except there's no mechanism to get the funds to people. The Salvation Army asked for access to 200k and got it and used it. The remainder just sat until the deadline ran out at end of year.

Figuring out how to solve things like this seems more valuable to me than many of the grand plans from DC.

8 months ago I got handed $550K and told "use this to hire people to provide assistance with Covid-19." My program helps people train for jobs in the private sector. It was definitely very much a "the fuck I'm supposed to do with this?" moment.

So what did end up happening with the money?

Let's hope he bought $550 worth of GameStop stock.

[Shem]

Hugh, well done.

Also Warren, that did make me laugh.

On a more serious note, there's an organizational issue I've observed locally with both the stimulus checks and other relief measures. There's an unfortunate disconnect between monies made available to states and locales and getting it into the right hands, like local organizations who do direct service in the community.

Years ago (possibly even in Reason) I remember reading about the difficulties inherent in NGOs trying to assist during emergencies, and trying to work with or around government entities and their own interests (often corrupt).

But I didn't realize some of the same issues exist here, depending on where you live. I'm in a county that's a mix of very poor and very well off. We have many struggling (homeless, even) families. We were given $1m in relief earmarked for mortgage and rent assistance, which is great except there's no mechanism to get the funds to people. The Salvation Army asked for access to 200k and got it and used it. The remainder just sat until the deadline ran out at end of year.

Figuring out how to solve things like this seems more valuable to me than many of the grand plans from DC.

8 months ago I got handed $550K and told "use this to hire people to provide assistance with Covid-19." My program helps people train for jobs in the private sector. It was definitely very much a "the fuck I'm supposed to do with this?" moment.

So what did end up happening with the money?

Fortunately, Congressional malfeasance in letting local government run out of pandemic response funds meant that there were a couple county programs running quarantine or testing that were about to run out of money at the turn of the year. I'm using it to keep them going until Congress hopefully comes through with more money.

[lshap]

So what did end up happening with the money?

Good question! I believe the money allotted to us was "theoretical until used" so it reverted to the feds. But actually, I'm going to follow up on that. Because if it went into the general fund, I might have something to say about that as a member of the Affordable Housing Board.

Shem - that's another good example! I mean, good intentions and all, but...