> And you seem to miss the fact that with UBI you have no incentive to live and stay in an expensive area.
Like many people here on HN, I can work from anywhere with electricity, Internet and decent cell phone coverage. But I still strongly prefer a bigger city, and I even prefer to be close to the city center, not out in suburbia. The reasons are many:
- close to the city center I can chose between some of the best schools in the country for my kids. Outside the city center, I would have to chose a mediocre school. In the cuntryside, I would have to have to go with whatever is there
- I like going out with my wife. In the city we can chose between all kinds of cuisines, cafes and bars. In a village, we would be lucky to find a pub with fries. In suburbia that would be a strip mall.
- Shopping in easy in the city center. Whether you like it or not, you need to do groceries on a daily basis and to buy clothes etc every now and then, and this is far easier when you live in the city.
- I like to walk for things (walk my kids to school, walk to do groceries, or just walk for the sake of it). Curiously, I find that this is easier in the city center with sidewalks and parks than in the countryside, where I would walk in the side of a highway or road.
- In the city center I can do sports (tennis, soccer). Yes, I might find that option in the countryside or in suburbia, but in the city I can chose between 10 different teams, venues etc.
- I like people. There are many more people in the cities, especially younger people.
- I like to travel. I can take the metro to the airport in the city and visit hundreds of places within a a few hours of flight. Driving 2 hours to the nearest local airport to transfer to a bigger airport would kill that.
I live far from my family and friends. They would visit much less if I didn't live near an international airport.
What I am trying to say is that I think nowadays people live in the city for many other reasons than work.
The numbers suggest that the supposed urbanization trend is the product of a narrow demographic--relatively wealthy childless younger people. (Of course, there are exceptions.)
> What I am trying to say is that I think nowadays people live in the city for many other reasons than work.
I think we both agree there.
From my own limited sample I see the opposite trend as well, people who would rather live country side.
What I was getting at is that even if people like me are a small sample (20%? more, less, who knows. If anyone has got numbers I'm interested), if you free us to go live country side suddenly there's more space and housing available for people like you.
I think Mikushi's point would be that UBI gives both of you greater freedom to choose. It would probably reduce inner city housing costs a little as some of the people who currently are there only because they have no other way of getting an income decide to take their labour elsewhere where they can get more value for their contribution..
Those corporations provide the goods and services that makes life liveable for 7.3 billion people on this planet. I'm curious what other alternatives to capitalism and firms (to use Ronald Coase's term) would have been able to achieve and sustain a quality of life equal to or better than what these 7.3 billion currently enjoy. Capitalism is the basis of the quality of life for 7.3 billion humans on Earth. Telling yourself otherwise is just lying to yourself.
And telling yourself that on such a small sample (200years) Captialism is a success is lying to yourself. We're already facing the hard consequences of capitalism and consumerisms, and with no real change in sight all the QOL improvement in the world will not matter when this planet is mostly destroyed.
Like many people here on HN, I can work from anywhere with electricity, Internet and decent cell phone coverage. But I still strongly prefer a bigger city, and I even prefer to be close to the city center, not out in suburbia. The reasons are many:
- close to the city center I can chose between some of the best schools in the country for my kids. Outside the city center, I would have to chose a mediocre school. In the cuntryside, I would have to have to go with whatever is there
- I like going out with my wife. In the city we can chose between all kinds of cuisines, cafes and bars. In a village, we would be lucky to find a pub with fries. In suburbia that would be a strip mall.
- Shopping in easy in the city center. Whether you like it or not, you need to do groceries on a daily basis and to buy clothes etc every now and then, and this is far easier when you live in the city.
- I like to walk for things (walk my kids to school, walk to do groceries, or just walk for the sake of it). Curiously, I find that this is easier in the city center with sidewalks and parks than in the countryside, where I would walk in the side of a highway or road.
- In the city center I can do sports (tennis, soccer). Yes, I might find that option in the countryside or in suburbia, but in the city I can chose between 10 different teams, venues etc.
- I like people. There are many more people in the cities, especially younger people.
- I like to travel. I can take the metro to the airport in the city and visit hundreds of places within a a few hours of flight. Driving 2 hours to the nearest local airport to transfer to a bigger airport would kill that. I live far from my family and friends. They would visit much less if I didn't live near an international airport.
What I am trying to say is that I think nowadays people live in the city for many other reasons than work.