A lot of people are pushing for universal basic income as a way to soften the blow of joblesnes from technology. The idea that happiness involves just getting a check seems crazy to me. A world in which 30 %, forty percent of america all lives on the on the doll is that a good world? Or theyly living on the doll they'd be living on the 70% reportant the the doll alwars,. maks aiget's comin from somewhere else.
Why are fewer men working over the last few decades? Is a universal basic income a good policy for coping with the loss of employment? Economist Edward Glaeser of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about what Glaeser calls the war on work--the policy changes that have reduced employment among prime-aged men. Glaeser does not see the universal basic income as a viable solution to the decrease in work especially if technology ends up reducing employment opportunities more dramatically in the future. The conversation also includes a discussion of the role of cities and the reduction in geographic mobility in the United States.