> Giving $1200 check to someone without food and shelter most definitely isn't going to provide them food and shelter. It will more likely go to a stamp bag, scratch off, 40 ounce, etc.
At first, absolutely, for some significant percentage of the homeless. Anyone would be a fool to think otherwise. And yet I still strongly support the idea because I think think a bit farther than that, and not just because many will rise up to the opportunity.
You can't even casually approach the issue without considering the cycle of poverty. It's equally foolish to doubt that; higher-income areas don't magically produce harder-working, more responsible kids.
A UBI allows more opportunities for those that do want to rise up. A UBI provides drastically more stability for kids, taking away the major dragging force that causes so much violence, homelessness, and instability. So many low-income parents are away all the time working shitty jobs. You can ignore it all you like, but these people are in shitty situations from the beginning.
And ditch the personal narrative. It doesn't help. I grew up poor (rural, not urban) and got educated, etc. Yet, looking back, my situation wasn't too bad; my mom was always around, education was a priority, government programs offered a lot of help, and ultimately the state paid for a lot of my education. I am very much the exception that proves the rule, and almost without fail, any time I meet someone like you describe yourself, I find they had lots of advantages, too. Sure, not as many as someone from the middle class, but not nothing.
At first, absolutely, for some significant percentage of the homeless. Anyone would be a fool to think otherwise. And yet I still strongly support the idea because I think think a bit farther than that, and not just because many will rise up to the opportunity.
You can't even casually approach the issue without considering the cycle of poverty. It's equally foolish to doubt that; higher-income areas don't magically produce harder-working, more responsible kids.
A UBI allows more opportunities for those that do want to rise up. A UBI provides drastically more stability for kids, taking away the major dragging force that causes so much violence, homelessness, and instability. So many low-income parents are away all the time working shitty jobs. You can ignore it all you like, but these people are in shitty situations from the beginning.
And ditch the personal narrative. It doesn't help. I grew up poor (rural, not urban) and got educated, etc. Yet, looking back, my situation wasn't too bad; my mom was always around, education was a priority, government programs offered a lot of help, and ultimately the state paid for a lot of my education. I am very much the exception that proves the rule, and almost without fail, any time I meet someone like you describe yourself, I find they had lots of advantages, too. Sure, not as many as someone from the middle class, but not nothing.