From: Rafal Smigrodzki (rms2g@virginia.edu)
Date: Tue Sep 03 2002 - 10:34:36 MDT
Max More wrote:
Since I no longer consider myself a strict libertarian. one role for
government that I would at least *consider* (still with general skepticism
about govt. interventions) is limited, temporary, and carefully tracked
subsidies for workers displaced from traditionally stable industries in
order to acquire different skills. Since just about all industries may
potentially be disrupted these days, the subsidies would not be the
preserve of a few. Companies often do a fine job of providing training,
which is one reason such a program should be limited. However, if done
right, it could assist a market economy to reallocate human capital (to use
the bloodless language of the economist) more quickly in cases where it is
not clearly in any individual organization's interest to do this, but where
it is in the general interest. In practice, I can think of all kinds of
reasons why this wouldn't work well, at least after the first few years,
but I wouldn't rule it out in principle.
### How about providing the subsidy in the form of a poorhouse, where any
citizen might turn himself in, to receive food, safety, shelter, and simple
manual work? This would protect the unfortunate ones from harm, without
significantly limiting the incentives to join the productive economy.
Rafal
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