[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:01.58,0:00:04.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'd like to start with a simple question:
Dialogue: 0,0:00:06.00,0:00:09.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why do the poor make\Nso many poor decisions?
Dialogue: 0,0:00:11.85,0:00:13.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I know it's a harsh question,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:13.43,0:00:15.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but take a look at the data.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:15.42,0:00:17.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The poor borrow more, save less,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:17.28,0:00:19.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,smoke more, exercise less, drink more
Dialogue: 0,0:00:19.97,0:00:21.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and eat less healthfully.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:22.37,0:00:23.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why?
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.45,0:00:25.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, the standard explanation
Dialogue: 0,0:00:26.00,0:00:29.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was once summed up by the British\NPrime Minister, Margaret Thatcher.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:29.41,0:00:32.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And she called poverty\N"a personality defect."
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.82,0:00:34.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.68,0:00:36.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A lack of character, basically.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.46,0:00:41.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, I'm sure not many of you\Nwould be so blunt.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:42.50,0:00:46.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the idea that there's something\Nwrong with the poor themselves
Dialogue: 0,0:00:46.37,0:00:48.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is not restricted to Mrs. Thatcher.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:49.28,0:00:52.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some of you may believe that the poor\Nshould be held responsible
Dialogue: 0,0:00:52.51,0:00:54.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for their own mistakes.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:54.29,0:00:58.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And others may argue that we should\Nhelp them to make better decisions.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:58.85,0:01:02.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the underlying assumption is the same:
Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.65,0:01:05.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there's something wrong with them.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.06,0:01:07.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If we could just change them,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:07.94,0:01:10.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if we could just teach them\Nhow to live their lives,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:10.46,0:01:11.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if they would only listen.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:13.23,0:01:14.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And to be honest,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:14.95,0:01:18.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this was what I thought for a long time.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:19.08,0:01:21.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was only a few years ago\Nthat I discovered
Dialogue: 0,0:01:21.22,0:01:24.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that everything I thought I knew\Nabout poverty was wrong.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.29,0:01:28.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It all started when I accidentally\Nstumbled upon a paper
Dialogue: 0,0:01:28.96,0:01:30.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by a few American psychologists.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:30.59,0:01:33.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They had traveled 8,000 miles,\Nall the way to India,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.17,0:01:34.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for a fascinating study.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.24,0:01:38.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it was an experiment\Nwith sugarcane farmers.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:38.84,0:01:42.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You should know that these farmers\Ncollect about 60 percent
Dialogue: 0,0:01:42.21,0:01:44.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of their annual income all at once,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.37,0:01:46.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,right after the harvest.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.10,0:01:49.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This means that they're relatively\Npoor one part of the year
Dialogue: 0,0:01:49.66,0:01:51.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and rich the other.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.60,0:01:56.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The researchers asked them to do\Nan IQ test before and after the harvest.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:57.90,0:02:01.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What they subsequently discovered\Ncompletely blew my mind.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:03.16,0:02:07.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The farmers scored much worse\Non the test before the harvest.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.46,0:02:10.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The effects of living\Nin poverty, it turns out,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:10.78,0:02:14.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,correspond to losing 14 points of IQ.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.17,0:02:16.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, to give you an idea,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:16.07,0:02:18.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that's comparable\Nto losing a night's sleep
Dialogue: 0,0:02:18.53,0:02:20.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or the effects of alcoholism.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.68,0:02:24.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A few months later,\NI heard that Eldar Shafir,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:24.97,0:02:28.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a professor at Princeton University\Nand one of the authors of this study,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:28.54,0:02:30.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was coming over to Holland, where I live.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:30.88,0:02:32.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So we met up in Amsterdam
Dialogue: 0,0:02:32.31,0:02:35.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to talk about his revolutionary\Nnew theory of poverty.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:36.39,0:02:38.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I can sum it up in just two words:
Dialogue: 0,0:02:39.42,0:02:41.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,scarcity mentality.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:42.65,0:02:44.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It turns out that people\Nbehave differently
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.82,0:02:47.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when they perceive a thing to be scarce.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:47.34,0:02:49.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And what that thing is\Ndoesn't much matter --
Dialogue: 0,0:02:49.57,0:02:52.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,whether it's not enough time,\Nmoney or food.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.08,0:02:54.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You all know this feeling,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:54.76,0:02:56.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when you've got too much to do,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:56.75,0:02:58.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or when you've put off breaking for lunch
Dialogue: 0,0:02:58.79,0:03:00.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and your blood sugar takes a dive.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:00.48,0:03:03.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This narrows your focus\Nto your immediate lack --
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.33,0:03:05.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the sandwich you've got to have now,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:05.36,0:03:07.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the meeting that's starting\Nin five minutes
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.65,0:03:10.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or the bills that have\Nto be paid tomorrow.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:11.05,0:03:14.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So the long-term perspective\Ngoes out the window.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:15.84,0:03:18.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You could compare it to a new computer
Dialogue: 0,0:03:18.39,0:03:20.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that's running 10 heavy programs at once.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:21.20,0:03:23.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It gets slower and slower, making errors.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:23.100,0:03:25.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Eventually, it freezes --
Dialogue: 0,0:03:25.84,0:03:27.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not because it's a bad computer,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:27.97,0:03:30.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but because it has too much to do at once.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.46,0:03:34.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The poor have the same problem.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:34.83,0:03:37.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're not making dumb decisions\Nbecause they are dumb,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.65,0:03:39.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but because they're living in a context
Dialogue: 0,0:03:39.59,0:03:41.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which anyone would make dumb decisions.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.54,0:03:45.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So suddenly I understood
Dialogue: 0,0:03:45.51,0:03:49.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,why so many of our anti-poverty\Nprograms don't work.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:50.65,0:03:55.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Investments in education, for example,\Nare often completely ineffective.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:55.20,0:03:58.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Poverty is not a lack of knowledge.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.76,0:04:01.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A recent analysis of 201 studies
Dialogue: 0,0:04:01.34,0:04:03.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on the effectiveness\Nof money-management training
Dialogue: 0,0:04:03.68,0:04:07.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,came to the conclusion\Nthat it has almost no effect at all.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:07.45,0:04:08.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, don't get me wrong --
Dialogue: 0,0:04:08.92,0:04:11.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this is not to say the poor\Ndon't learn anything --
Dialogue: 0,0:04:11.44,0:04:13.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they can come out wiser for sure.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:14.01,0:04:15.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it's not enough.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:15.67,0:04:18.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or as Professor Shafir told me,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:18.70,0:04:20.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"It's like teaching someone to swim
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.71,0:04:23.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then throwing them in a stormy sea."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:24.69,0:04:26.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I still remember sitting there,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:27.20,0:04:28.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,perplexed.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:29.29,0:04:30.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it struck me
Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.47,0:04:32.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we could have figured\Nthis all out decades ago.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:33.01,0:04:36.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I mean, these psychologists didn't need\Nany complicated brain scans;
Dialogue: 0,0:04:36.28,0:04:38.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they only had to measure the farmer's IQ,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:38.32,0:04:40.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and IQ tests were invented\Nmore than 100 years ago.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:41.22,0:04:44.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Actually, I realized I had read about\Nthe psychology of poverty before.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:45.55,0:04:49.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,George Orwell, one of the greatest\Nwriters who ever lived,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:49.24,0:04:52.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,experienced poverty\Nfirsthand in the 1920s.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:52.86,0:04:55.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The essence of poverty,"\Nhe wrote back then,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:55.06,0:04:57.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that it "annihilates the future."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:59.15,0:05:01.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he marveled at, quote,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:01.93,0:05:05.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"How people take it for granted\Nthey have the right to preach at you
Dialogue: 0,0:05:05.24,0:05:06.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and pray over you
Dialogue: 0,0:05:06.41,0:05:08.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as soon as your income falls\Nbelow a certain level."
Dialogue: 0,0:05:08.91,0:05:12.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, those words are every bit\Nas resonant today.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:15.14,0:05:17.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The big question is, of course:
Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.15,0:05:18.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What can be done?
Dialogue: 0,0:05:18.51,0:05:21.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Modern economists have\Na few solutions up their sleeves.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:21.33,0:05:23.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We could help the poor\Nwith their paperwork
Dialogue: 0,0:05:23.42,0:05:26.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or send them a text message\Nto remind them to pay their bills.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:26.42,0:05:31.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This type of solution is hugely popular\Nwith modern politicians,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:31.15,0:05:32.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,mostly because,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:32.88,0:05:34.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,well, they cost next to nothing.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:36.14,0:05:40.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These solutions are, I think,\Na symbol of this era
Dialogue: 0,0:05:40.17,0:05:42.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which we so often treat the symptoms,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:42.37,0:05:44.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but ignore the underlying cause.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:45.67,0:05:46.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So I wonder:
Dialogue: 0,0:05:47.79,0:05:51.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why don't we just change the context\Nin which the poor live?
Dialogue: 0,0:05:51.72,0:05:53.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or, going back to our computer analogy:
Dialogue: 0,0:05:53.87,0:05:56.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why keep tinkering around\Nwith the software
Dialogue: 0,0:05:56.04,0:06:00.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when we can easily solve the problem\Nby installing some extra memory instead?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:00.12,0:06:03.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,At that point, Professor Shafir\Nresponded with a blank look.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:04.29,0:06:05.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And after a few seconds, he said,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:06.92,0:06:09.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Oh, I get it.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.66,0:06:13.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You mean you want to just hand out\Nmore money to the poor
Dialogue: 0,0:06:14.14,0:06:15.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to eradicate poverty.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:16.02,0:06:18.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Uh, sure, that'd be great.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:19.91,0:06:22.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But I'm afraid that brand\Nof left-wing politics
Dialogue: 0,0:06:22.24,0:06:24.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you've got in Amsterdam --
Dialogue: 0,0:06:24.11,0:06:25.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it doesn't exist in the States."
Dialogue: 0,0:06:26.52,0:06:30.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But is this really\Nan old-fashioned, leftist idea?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:31.39,0:06:33.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I remembered reading about an old plan --
Dialogue: 0,0:06:33.40,0:06:36.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,something that has been proposed\Nby some of history's leading thinkers.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:36.91,0:06:40.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The philosopher Thomas More\Nfirst hinted at it in his book, "Utopia,"
Dialogue: 0,0:06:40.75,0:06:42.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,more than 500 years ago.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:43.20,0:06:46.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And its proponents have spanned\Nthe spectrum from the left to the right,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:46.78,0:06:49.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from the civil rights campaigner,\NMartin Luther King,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:49.57,0:06:52.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the economist Milton Friedman.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:53.27,0:06:56.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's an incredibly simple idea:
Dialogue: 0,0:06:57.24,0:06:59.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,basic income guarantee.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:01.46,0:07:02.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What it is?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:03.00,0:07:04.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, that's easy.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:04.73,0:07:07.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a monthly grant, enough to pay\Nfor your basic needs:
Dialogue: 0,0:07:07.48,0:07:09.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,food, shelter, education.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:09.68,0:07:11.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's completely unconditional,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:11.53,0:07:14.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so no one's going to tell you\Nwhat you have to do for it,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:14.31,0:07:17.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and no one's going to tell you\Nwhat you have to do with it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:17.15,0:07:19.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The basic income\Nis not a favor, but a right.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:19.47,0:07:21.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There's absolutely no stigma attached.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:22.37,0:07:25.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So as I learned about the true\Nnature of poverty,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:25.03,0:07:26.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I couldn't stop wondering:
Dialogue: 0,0:07:27.21,0:07:30.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is this the idea\Nwe've all been waiting for?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:30.70,0:07:32.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Could it really be that simple?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:34.35,0:07:36.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in the three years that followed,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.17,0:07:38.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I read everything I could find\Nabout basic income.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:38.73,0:07:40.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I researched the dozens of experiments
Dialogue: 0,0:07:40.70,0:07:42.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that have been conducted\Nall over the globe,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:42.84,0:07:45.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it didn't take long before I stumbled\Nupon a story of a town
Dialogue: 0,0:07:45.93,0:07:48.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that had done it --\Nhad actually eradicated poverty.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:48.43,0:07:49.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But then ...
Dialogue: 0,0:07:50.48,0:07:52.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,nearly everyone forgot about it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:53.59,0:07:56.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This story starts in Dauphin, Canada.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:57.05,0:08:02.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 1974, everybody in this small town\Nwas guaranteed a basic income,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:02.66,0:08:05.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,ensuring that no one fell\Nbelow the poverty line.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:05.41,0:08:07.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,At the start of the experiment,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:07.03,0:08:10.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,an army of researchers\Ndescended on the town.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:11.37,0:08:13.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For four years, all went well.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:14.51,0:08:17.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But then a new government\Nwas voted into power,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:17.97,0:08:21.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the new Canadian cabinet saw\Nlittle point to the expensive experiment.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:21.50,0:08:25.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So when it became clear there was\Nno money left to analyze the results,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:25.78,0:08:30.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the researchers decided to pack\Ntheir files away in some 2,000 boxes.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:32.18,0:08:34.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Twenty-five years went by,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:34.99,0:08:37.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then Evelyn Forget,\Na Canadian professor,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.70,0:08:38.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,found the records.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:38.94,0:08:42.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For three years, she subjected the data\Nto all manner of statistical analysis,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:42.93,0:08:44.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and no matter what she tried,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:44.54,0:08:47.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the results were the same every time:
Dialogue: 0,0:08:47.97,0:08:51.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the experiment had been\Na resounding success.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:53.31,0:08:54.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Evelyn Forget discovered
Dialogue: 0,0:08:54.50,0:08:57.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the people in Dauphin\Nhad not only become richer
Dialogue: 0,0:08:57.10,0:08:58.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also smarter and healthier.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:58.66,0:09:02.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The school performance of kids\Nimproved substantially.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:03.16,0:09:07.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The hospitalization rate decreased\Nby as much as 8.5 percent.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:08.12,0:09:09.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Domestic violence incidents were down,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:09.96,0:09:11.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as were mental health complaints.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:12.15,0:09:14.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And people didn't quit their jobs.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:14.51,0:09:18.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The only ones who worked a little less\Nwere new mothers and students --
Dialogue: 0,0:09:18.27,0:09:19.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who stayed in school longer.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:20.89,0:09:22.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Similar results have since been found
Dialogue: 0,0:09:22.79,0:09:25.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in countless other experiments\Naround the globe,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:25.21,0:09:27.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from the US to India.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:29.61,0:09:30.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So ...
Dialogue: 0,0:09:31.68,0:09:33.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,here's what I've learned.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:33.100,0:09:36.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When it comes to poverty,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:36.18,0:09:41.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we, the rich, should stop\Npretending we know best.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:42.21,0:09:44.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We should stop sending shoes\Nand teddy bears to the poor,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:44.99,0:09:46.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to people we have never met.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:46.53,0:09:50.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we should get rid of the vast\Nindustry of paternalistic bureaucrats
Dialogue: 0,0:09:50.09,0:09:52.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when we could simply\Nhand over their salaries
Dialogue: 0,0:09:52.30,0:09:54.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the poor they're supposed to help.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:54.13,0:09:56.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:09:56.45,0:09:59.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because, I mean, the great\Nthing about money
Dialogue: 0,0:09:59.34,0:10:01.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that people can use it\Nto buy things they need
Dialogue: 0,0:10:01.72,0:10:04.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,instead of things that self-appointed\Nexperts think they need.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:05.88,0:10:10.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Just imagine how many brilliant scientists\Nand entrepreneurs and writers,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:10.31,0:10:11.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,like George Orwell,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:11.48,0:10:14.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are now withering away in scarcity.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:14.30,0:10:16.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Imagine how much energy\Nand talent we would unleash
Dialogue: 0,0:10:16.78,0:10:19.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if we got rid of poverty once and for all.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:19.54,0:10:23.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I believe that a basic income would work\Nlike venture capital for the people.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:25.09,0:10:27.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we can't afford not to do it,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:27.16,0:10:30.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because poverty is hugely expensive.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:30.55,0:10:33.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Just look at the cost of child poverty\Nin the US, for example.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:33.96,0:10:38.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's estimated at 500 billion\Ndollars each year,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:38.22,0:10:41.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in terms of higher health care\Nspending, higher dropout rates,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:41.19,0:10:42.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and more crime.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:42.60,0:10:46.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, this is an incredible waste\Nof human potential.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:48.36,0:10:50.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But let's talk about\Nthe elephant in the room.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:51.33,0:10:54.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How could we ever afford\Na basic income guarantee?
Dialogue: 0,0:10:55.05,0:10:58.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, it's actually a lot cheaper\Nthan you may think.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:58.18,0:11:01.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What they did in Dauphin is finance it\Nwith a negative income tax.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:01.76,0:11:03.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This means that your income is topped up
Dialogue: 0,0:11:03.80,0:11:06.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as soon as you fall\Nbelow the poverty line.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:06.23,0:11:07.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in that scenario,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:07.62,0:11:10.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,according to our economists'\Nbest estimates,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:10.16,0:11:13.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for a net cost of 175 billion --
Dialogue: 0,0:11:13.20,0:11:18.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a quarter of US military spending,\None percent of GDP --
Dialogue: 0,0:11:18.14,0:11:21.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you could lift all impoverished Americans\Nabove the poverty line.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:22.57,0:11:25.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You could actually eradicate poverty.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:26.14,0:11:27.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, that should be our goal.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:28.72,0:11:29.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:11:29.82,0:11:32.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The time for small thoughts\Nand little nudges is past.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:32.78,0:11:36.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I really believe that the time has come\Nfor radical new ideas,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:36.11,0:11:39.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and basic income is so much more\Nthan just another policy.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:39.34,0:11:43.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It is also a complete rethink\Nof what work actually is.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:43.100,0:11:45.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in that sense,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:45.69,0:11:47.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it will not only free the poor,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:48.53,0:11:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also the rest of us.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:51.26,0:11:53.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Nowadays, millions of people feel
Dialogue: 0,0:11:53.53,0:11:56.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that their jobs have little\Nmeaning or significance.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:56.06,0:11:58.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A recent poll among 230,000 employees
Dialogue: 0,0:11:58.90,0:12:00.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in 142 countries
Dialogue: 0,0:12:00.83,0:12:05.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,found that only 13 percent of workers\Nactually like their job.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:06.60,0:12:10.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And another poll found that as much\Nas 37 percent of British workers
Dialogue: 0,0:12:10.29,0:12:13.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,have a job that they think\Ndoesn't even need to exist.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:14.39,0:12:16.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's like Brad Pitt says in "Fight Club,"
Dialogue: 0,0:12:16.70,0:12:20.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Too often we're working jobs we hate\Nso we can buy shit we don't need."
Dialogue: 0,0:12:20.38,0:12:21.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:12:21.89,0:12:23.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, don't get me wrong --
Dialogue: 0,0:12:23.31,0:12:25.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm not talking about the teachers\Nand the garbagemen
Dialogue: 0,0:12:25.89,0:12:27.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the care workers here.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:27.39,0:12:29.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If they stopped working,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:29.03,0:12:30.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we'd be in trouble.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:30.99,0:12:34.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm talking about all those well-paid\Nprofessionals with excellent résumés
Dialogue: 0,0:12:34.64,0:12:36.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who earn their money doing ...
Dialogue: 0,0:12:36.47,0:12:38.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,strategic transactor peer-to-peer meetings
Dialogue: 0,0:12:38.53,0:12:41.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,while brainstorming the value\Nadd-on of disruptive co-creation
Dialogue: 0,0:12:41.58,0:12:42.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the network society.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:42.78,0:12:43.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:12:43.83,0:12:44.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:12:44.87,0:12:46.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or something like that.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:46.10,0:12:49.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Just imagine again how much\Ntalent we're wasting,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:49.04,0:12:52.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,simply because we tell our kids\Nthey'll have to "earn a living."
Dialogue: 0,0:12:53.64,0:12:57.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or think of what a math whiz working\Nat Facebook lamented a few years ago:
Dialogue: 0,0:12:57.40,0:12:59.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The best minds of my generation
Dialogue: 0,0:12:59.29,0:13:02.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are thinking about how\Nto make people click ads."
Dialogue: 0,0:13:04.70,0:13:05.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm a historian.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:06.99,0:13:09.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And if history teaches us anything,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:09.08,0:13:11.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it is that things could be different.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:11.90,0:13:13.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There is nothing inevitable
Dialogue: 0,0:13:13.32,0:13:16.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about the way we structured our society\Nand economy right now.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:16.30,0:13:18.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Ideas can and do change the world.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:18.68,0:13:21.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I think that especially\Nin the past few years,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:21.21,0:13:22.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it has become abundantly clear
Dialogue: 0,0:13:22.66,0:13:24.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we cannot stick to the status quo --
Dialogue: 0,0:13:24.64,0:13:26.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we need new ideas.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:28.50,0:13:31.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I know that many of you\Nmay feel pessimistic
Dialogue: 0,0:13:31.74,0:13:33.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about a future of rising inequality,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:33.82,0:13:35.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,xenophobia
Dialogue: 0,0:13:35.12,0:13:36.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and climate change.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:36.99,0:13:39.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it's not enough\Nto know what we're against.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:39.23,0:13:40.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We also need to be for something.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:40.86,0:13:43.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Martin Luther King didn't say,\N"I have a nightmare."
Dialogue: 0,0:13:43.42,0:13:45.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:13:45.32,0:13:46.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He had a dream.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:46.50,0:13:47.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:13:47.60,0:13:48.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So ...
Dialogue: 0,0:13:49.84,0:13:51.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,here's my dream:
Dialogue: 0,0:13:52.30,0:13:53.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I believe in a future
Dialogue: 0,0:13:53.96,0:13:56.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where the value of your work\Nis not determined
Dialogue: 0,0:13:56.34,0:13:57.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by the size of your paycheck,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:57.84,0:13:59.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but by the amount of happiness you spread
Dialogue: 0,0:13:59.90,0:14:01.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the amount of meaning you give.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:01.90,0:14:03.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I believe in a future
Dialogue: 0,0:14:03.16,0:14:06.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where the point of education is not\Nto prepare you for another useless job
Dialogue: 0,0:14:06.84,0:14:08.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but for a life well-lived.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:09.20,0:14:10.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I believe in a future
Dialogue: 0,0:14:10.51,0:14:13.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where an existence\Nwithout poverty is not a privilege
Dialogue: 0,0:14:13.62,0:14:15.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but a right we all deserve.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:15.66,0:14:17.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So here we are.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:17.15,0:14:18.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Here we are.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:18.33,0:14:20.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We've got the research,\Nwe've got the evidence
Dialogue: 0,0:14:20.54,0:14:21.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we've got the means.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:21.73,0:14:25.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, more than 500 years after Thomas More\Nfirst wrote about a basic income,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:25.66,0:14:29.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and 100 years after George Orwell\Ndiscovered the true nature of poverty,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:29.74,0:14:32.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we all need to change our worldview,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:32.20,0:14:35.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because poverty\Nis not a lack of character.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:35.83,0:14:38.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Poverty is a lack of cash.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:39.32,0:14:40.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:40.53,0:14:44.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)