Basic Income: The Material Conditions of Freedom: Daniel Raventos
Review
“This book is both a thorough summation of the state of basic income research today and an important philosophical discussion of the meaning of freedom. It is a valuable book for students, scholars, and anyone interested in the issues of freedom and poverty.”-Karl Widerquist (Chair of the US section of the Basic Income Earth Network)”Basic income is a simple yet powerful idea that is now playing a central role in the discussion of the future of the welfare state in many countries throughout the world. In Spain and in several Latin-American countries, no one has contributed more to the public emergence of this idea than Daniel Raventos, whether as one of the driving forces behind the very active network Red Renta Basica or as the author of an original philosophical defence of basic income which is now made accessible beyond the Hispanic world thanks to this welcome Pluto edition.” - Philippe Van Parijs”Professor of economic and social ethics at the Universite catholique de Louvain and Visiting Professor of Philosophy at Harvard University”"This highly readable defence of Basic Income brilliantly brings back to today’s world the concerns of the eighteenth-century revolutionary democratic republicans and the members of the ensuing socialist tradition, who opposed all forms of dispossession of the material conditions for a dignified and autonomous life. Steeped in historical consciousness and inquiring into the real-world social forces that bring about domination, Raventos’ text rigorously shapes a notion of freedom in which the essential issue is the material independence of the individual. The author offers an exhaustive overview of the debate on Basic Income, while also showing its emancipatory possibilities for the dispossessed of our own times. It is a timely book of great interest to academics, policy makers, and social and political activists.”David CasassasUniversity of OxfordSecretary of Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN) ‘The basic income proposal merits the attention of everyone in political philosophy, policy studies and constitutional theory. And Daniel Raventos’s book is the best introduction. It offers a first rate history of the idea, develops a powerful case in its support, and explores all its institutional implications. A fine and useful book’. Philip Pettit, L.S.RockefellerUniversity professor of politics and human values, Princeton university
Basic Income is a policy idea that could help us revolutionize the way we organize society. This book is the first proper guide to basic income-what it is, how we can organize it, and how it can benefit everyone,rich and poor alike.Basic Income is simply the idea that everyone has a right to a minimal income. This is paid by the state out of taxation. Set at a subsistence level, it would take the place of unemployment and other benefits. This would bring profound social changes. Anyone could opt out of employment at any time. Those with few skills would no longer be forced to take up jobs with poor prospects, and employers offering McJobs would be compelled to offer better terms. And money wasted by the state in means testing and tracing benefit fraud is saved.The campaign in favor of basic income is growing and governments are beginning to take notice. The is a clear,concise guide to the principles and practicalities of this revolutionaty idea.
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