- Do we want to solve the problem of poverty?
- Do we want to solve the problem of exclusion?
- Do we really want to establish a time of equal opportunities for all?
- Do we want to move towards the humanisation of the social system?
- Do we want to organise ourselves in a way that guarantees the livelihood of each and every one of us? Do we want to promote freedom of choice for all human beings?
- Do we want to collaborate for the realisation of women’s independence and advance against the patriarchal system?
- Do we really want each and every one of us to be able to direct our lives in the direction of our vocation?
- Do we want human dignity to be essential, for the simple fact of existing, and not on the basis of a meritocratic and deceitful scheme?
- Do we, as a society and as individuals, want to gain in mental health, in freedom, in peace, in confidence in ourselves and in others?
- Do we as individuals and as a society want to strengthen community, family and interpersonal bonds?
The old struggle for individual survival becomes meaningless at this time in human history when the accumulation of scientific and technological knowledge makes it possible to guarantee food, housing, health, education, energy, communications and recreation for all human beings. If this does not happen, it is not because of an astrological mystery, but because of the inability we still have as a society to guarantee the needs of each of its individuals. It is because of a culture that privileges individual achievement over collective life. It is because of a series of political and economic myths that still submerge the individual human being in the prehistoric notion that the quality of life you live is derived from your ability to work. We all know that this is not true for millions of individuals across the length and breadth of our world.
We also know that policies for the poor do not work anywhere on the planet. There are no schemes that have lifted their beneficiaries out of poverty. There are no schemes that effectively achieve coverage for all those in need. There are fewer and fewer jobs and the current dynamics show that there will be fewer and fewer jobs for more and more people.
As long as access to vital goods and services is mediated by money, it is time to push for a Universal and Unconditional Basic Income for all human beings. It is the only social policy that is dignified and in keeping with our times.