You: Bernie's not a socialist. He's a social democrat. He just wants America to be more like Denmark; to have universal health care like other developed countries. It's not like he wants some sort of centrally-planned, government-run economy. Stop calling him a socialist. Me:https://twitter.com/washingtonpost/status/988476300162752513 …
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Unemployment in the Great Depression, when the government created make-work jobs, was 25%. Now it's 4.1%. Not clear there are many Americans who want a job and can't find any openings.
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What problem is Bernie trying to solve? Not unemployment, which is low. Many are unhappy with jobs they can get--unfulfilling, doesn't pay enough to meet cost of living, etc. Govt-guaranteed, well-paying employment doesn't solve that, at least not without creating other problems.
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Most likely result of government-guaranteed employment is swelling of the public rolls. Paying all those new employees means new taxes. That shifts funding away economically useful areas. Remember, these are make-work jobs, not people hired to do something the government needs.
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"Should every American who wants to work be able to get a job that pays enough to support a family?" Yes. That sounds good. "Would you give up a chunk of your paycheck so the government can hire people to do things the country doesn't really need?" That sounds... less good.
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Supporters of govt-guaranteed employment say it'll raise wages. Basically, govt offers $15 an hour, companies have to offer that or no one will work for them. But instead of raising wages, many companies would automate. If you want to raise minimum wage, just raise minimum wage.
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Not that stagnant wages, rising cost of living, declining lower- to mid-skill employment opportunities, etc. aren't problems. They are. Tough problems, many possible solutions, none perfect. But govt-guaranteed, well-paying employment would make things overall worse. (END)
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What I'd do is the "Living Wage" idea. You get
$X per month to exist. If you chose to work, you make more money obviously. But no more welfare. Welfare (at least in Canada) is so far from what it was intended when it was created, it's not funny. -
Universal basic income would be a better idea than guaranteed employment. Not sure if it would be a good idea. But definitely better than guaranteed employment.
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Yeah, guaranteed employment feels like something that will become a new form of slavery.
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