Another one to watch

 Universal Basic Income is an idea that's been around for a while, arguably for centuries, but it's started gaining more traction in the wake of COVID. It tends to be popular in progressive circles, although it has some surprising support from libertarian and conservative circles where it's non-paternalistic and unbureaucratic approach resonates.

The idea is pretty much what it sounds like: guarantee every citizen a certain amount of money on a regular basis. It's been touted as a solution to poverty, a degree of protection from automation, and a safety net for the growing "gig economy" (a phrase that makes me think of unfortunate frogs hunted for their legs).

It's been tried to a limited degree in some places and the results seem promising. The latest city to announce an experiment with it is Compton, CA, a city with a poverty rate about twice the national average (sounds like a place I know). According to Mayor Aja Brown, the idea is to "challenge the racial and economic injustice plaguing both welfare programs and economic systems." According to CNN, 800 low income residents will pilot the program, as described in this fact sheet.

It will be interesting to watch the results. One thing I'm pretty sure about, in a climate of growing inequality, we're going to need something like a universal basic income or guaranteed employment program. Pope Francis issued a similar call earlier this spring.

Thoughts on seeing bears

My daughter, sometimes referred to here as La Cabrita, is a seriously educated woman. As in doctorate. Most of her views on the world are fairly conventional, with a few exceptions.

One such exception is her oft stated conviction that a zombie apocalypse on the order of The Walking Dead could actually occur.

In her words, "that **** could really happen!"

( Another, sad to say, is her belief that living in trees would be a solution to that problem. But that's a digression...)

Her other main odd belief is that bears are intelligent, consciously malevolent evil creatures which exist only to do humanity harm.

I disagree with this assessment, thinking of them more as wild, large and somewhat dangerous dog cousins with strange sleeping habits which should be left alone but which are otherwise cool.

Although the black bear is the state animal of West Virginia, I haven't seen a whole lot of them here. My closest views were had in Washington state, Vermont, and Florida.

Now there's a triangle. Talk about going to extremes...

My closest encounter happened while walking with the Spousal Unit and dogs in the Vermont woods, when we saw one coming down from a tree.

This happened at the same time as Pope Francis' visit to the US. My mind naturally ran to two common rhetorical questions: "Is the pope Catholic?" and "Does a bear relief itself in the woods?"

I took that as a sign from above and made it a point to try to answer every question in the affirmative for the next month or so.

Most recently, I was jogging on a trail in Florida that ran by the edge of the woods. The trail ran for about .75 miles long and I was on lap two or three when I saw something in the distance. I asked myself whether that bush or tree was there on the last lap. When I got closer, I saw it standing on all fours, kind of like pictures I've seen or gorillas. Then it got up and walked away.

Florida bears have a reputation, justified in my opinion, of being pretty chill. I kept running the loop but reversed course in order to give it time to get away--and not to push my luck. 

Still, there was a feeling of awe, fascination and a bit of an instinctive spine chill at seeing such a magnificent creature.

I hope I get the chance to feel that again. From a suitable distance.

An idea that makes sense

Like it or not, natural gas production has taken off in WV over the last few years. The question now is, are we going to get anything out of it? My pals at the WV Center on Budget and Policy have an interesting idea: increase severance taxes on the production of natural gas liquids BUT create credits for companies that use the product for manufacturing purposes in West Virginia. You can read more here.

PREDICTABLY SAD: WV's congressional leaders on Pope Francis and climate change.

Quite a crew

What do you reckon Mitt Romney, the CEO of Subway, the CEO of Dairy Queen, former Republican senator Rick Santorum, Bill O'Reilly, Phyllis Schlafly, most small business owners, and a majority of registered Republicans have in common?

They all think it's time to raise the minimum wage, as the Huffington Post reports here and here.

Apparently the majority in the US House hasn't gotten the memo.

SPEAKING OF DANGEROUS RADICALS, Pope Francis used the R word recently, calling for "the legitimate redistribution of economic benefits by the state, as well as indispensable cooperation between the private sector and civil society." Apparently, he hasn't read Ayn Rand's encyclicals. Maybe Paul Ryan will set him straight.

UNDO THE CUTS. Here's more on the effort to restore WV Gov. Tomblin's cuts to early childhood and family violence programs.

URGENT SLIME-SLINGING HAGFISH UPDATE here.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Two from the road

It's been a long afternoon/evening driving through bitter cold so this will be short. I'm pleased to say that my car didn't try to kill me this time. I did manage to find two items worth a look.

FIRST, HOW BOUT THAT FRANCIS? According to this article, he's popular on both sides of the aisle (although I kind of wonder about one of them). At the very least, he is bringing certain topics to public attention. In a good way.

SECOND, WE'RE NOT THAT POLARIZED ABOUT EVERYTHING.  As E.J. Dionne argues here, most Americans agree on basic economic justice issues.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Annals of arrogance

This is rich. Paul Ryan, an Ayn Rand Kool-Aid imbiber who claims to be a Catholic and pretends to care about the poor, decides to lecture Pope Francis about the folly of the pontiff's economic views. I guess maybe next he should also try to teach Jesus, the Hebrew prophets, and possibly God Almighty about the folly of their ways...

Coolest. News. Story. Ever.

The Spousal Unit has been on this Iceland jag lately. Reading sagas, devouring Iceland books. She even has a new favorite Icelandic band, Arstidir, which wikipedia describes as an "indie-folk band with classical, progressive rock and minimalist elements."  I kind of like them too.

So anyhow, my interest perks when I run across news from Iceland. Like a story from NPR earlier this week about how people there are protesting a highway project which may harm "elf habitat" and possibly even damage an elf church.

I would like to attend an elf church of all things.

Elves are pretty big in Iceland apparently. The article cited a survey conducted a few years ago about Icelandic attitudes towards elves:

"Only 13 percent of participants in the study said it is impossible that elves exist, 19 percent found it unlikely, 37 percent said elves possible exist, 17 percent found their existence likely and eight percent definite. Five percent did not have an opinion on the existence of elves.

Apparently, some folks believe that there are 13 different types of elves. Some are only inches high while others are as big as humans.

Learn more about elf detection here.

HOW BOUT THAT POPE FRANCIS? Here's another reason to like him.

REASON 45,343 why West Virginia needs to create a Future Fund here.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

We all could use a mind mess

El Cabrero is something of a literary snob. I mean, Homer, Virgil, Dante, Aeschylus, Melville, Dostoevsky, Austen, Bronte, name it, I'm there. You can find all of the above discussed at length if you search this blog's archives (see upper left).

Still, every so often you gotta blow things out. And for the past few days, I've done this by listening to a Stephen King book. And it stoned me.

Some of you may recall the book or movie The Shining, about a haunted resort in the Colorado Rockies. You may also recall the little kid who said "Redrum" when things went south. King's latest, Doctor Sleep, is about that kid when he grows up.

I listen to books all the time when driving, running or doing mindless tasks. No big deal. But this one crawled up my inner quarters. If your mind needs messed with, give it a try.

OK, SO THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A SOCIAL JUSTICE BLOG. Well, for one thing, Stephen King is pretty progressive. For another, here are two great op eds by two of America's greatest columnists. Here's E.J. Dionne on Pope Francis, who is almost making me switch from the Anglican to the Roman team, and here's Paul Krugman on raising the minimum wage, which some of us are going to try to do in WV.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Kant believe it

It's been a few days since I was struck by a news item from Russia, but I'm finally getting down to blogging about it. It seems that two young men there struck up a conversation about the philosophy of Immanuel Kant that degenerated first into a fist fight and then into gun shots.

News reports did not specifically identify which aspect of the 18th century philosopher's work set off the quarrel.

I have a pet theory. It would be supremely ironic if the argument turned out to be over which of Kant's two main formulations of the ethical categorical imperative was best. Maybe it went down something like this:

Person 1: I believe that one should "Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law without contradiction."

Person 2: That's bull***t. One should "Act in such a way that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of any other, never merely as a means to an end, but always at the same time as an end."

Person 1: I got your end right here, you Bozo...

And so it goes. At least nobody was killed. All I can say is it's a good thing they weren't arguing about Nietzsche.

OVER COMING AN OBSESSION. How about that Pope, anyway?

SPEAKING OF WHOM, Francis would consider cutting food stamp benefits for poor Americans to be supremely tacky. Some friends of mine in WV made some noise about that yesterday.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

What he said

 From a recent address by Pope Francis to newly appointed ambassadors to the Vatican:

The worship of the golden calf of old (cf. Ex 32:15-34) has found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any truly humane goal.

...human beings themselves are nowadays considered as consumer goods which can be used and thrown away. We have started a throw-away culture. This tendency is seen on the level of individuals and whole societies; and it is being promoted! In circumstances like these, solidarity, which is the treasure of the poor, is often considered counterproductive, opposed to the logic of finance and the economy. While the income of a minority is increasing exponentially, that of the majority is crumbling. This imbalance results from ideologies which uphold the absolute autonomy of markets and financial speculation, and thus deny the right of control to States, which are themselves charged with providing for the common good. A new, invisible and at times virtual, tyranny is established, one which unilaterally and irremediably imposes its own laws and rules. Moreover, indebtedness and credit distance countries from their real economy and citizens from their real buying power. Added to this, as if it were needed, is widespread corruption and selfish fiscal evasion which have taken on worldwide dimensions. The will to power and of possession has become limitless.

Read the rest here.

WHAT A SURPRISE. Locking kids up in juvenile prisons doesn't do a whole lot of good.

BE THERE IF YOU CAN. Here are op-eds by the Rev. Ron English and the Rev. David Fryson about the upcoming celebrations of the African American contribution to WV's first 150 years that will take place June 16-19. Details are in the links. If you know WV's history it's hard to deny this basic statement: no black folks, no West Virginia.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED