#universal basic services

[probablyasocialecologist]

Ending mass human deprivation and providing good lives for the whole world's population can be accomplished while at the same time achieving ecological objectives. This is demonstrated by a new study by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB) and the London School of Economics and Political Science, recently published in World Development Perspectives. About 80% of humanity cannot access necessary goods and services and lives below the threshold for "decent living." Some narratives claim that addressing this problem will require massive economic growth on a global scale, multiplying existing output many times over, which would exacerbate climate change and ecological breakdown. The authors of the new study dispute this claim and argue that human development does not require such a dangerous approach. Reviewing recent empirical research, they find that ending mass deprivation and provisioning decent living standards for 8.5 billion people would require only 30% of current global resource and energy use, leaving a substantial surplus for additional consumption, public luxury, scientific advancement, and other social investments. This would ensure that everyone in the world has access to nutritious food, modern housing, high-quality health care, education, electricity, induction stoves, sanitation systems, clothing, washing machines, refrigerators, heating/cooling systems, computers, mobile phones, internet, and transport, and could also include universal access to recreational facilities, theaters, and other public goods. The authors argue that, to achieve such a future, strategies for development should not pursue capitalist growth and increased aggregate production as such but should rather increase the specific forms of production that are necessary to improve capabilities and meet human needs at a high standard, while ensuring universal access to key goods and services through public provisioning and decommodification. In the Global South, this requires using industrial policy to increase economic sovereignty, develop industrial capacity, and organize production around human well-being. At the same time, in high-income countries, less-necessary production (of things like mansions, SUVs, private jets and fast fashion) must be scaled down to enable faster decarbonization and to help bring resource use back within planetary boundaries, as degrowth scholarship holds.

July 25 2024

[phroexx]

[krakenartificer]

The choice for or against [economic growth as a primary value] decides whether

unemployment, that is, the effective liberty to work free from wages and/or salary,

shall be viewed as sad and a curse, or as useful and a right.

— Ivan Illich [x] (emphasis mine)

Hot damn, Mr. Illich out here 40 years ago dropping takes from 3024

[why-do-i-need-this2]

Universal basic services would stop all the madness. Shelter, water, food, electricity, internet, clothing, education and healthcare. Just imagine how productive humans could be.

[kavaleyre]

(wip) I am never going to get over them and their ending I fear

[zecoritheweirdone]

saw the news that @scorpionoesit's fic vagabonds will be making a return in a few days,, and i am!! hyped!!!!! so hyped that i made some more art for it!!!

basically i thought a bit too much about a stuffed bear and then this happened,, sksnskjsk. ended up doing a slight redesign of my own vagabonds!tommy design,, slightly inspired by this art! tho i did keep the ascot and the denim jacket i gave him, if a bit modified for the latter,,, loved loved the idea of michael braiding his hair a bit!!

[shazleen]

i think all workers should just shut up and do their jobs

This is so funny to me lol.

Has this chilchuck post found like capitalism apologist tumblr

[lazlolullaby]

Need for Speed, a Sonic Movie AU

Where Tom was previously a race car driver + came to Green Hills to retire + figure out his life after that. And bonus early Sonic adoption.

...because we don't deserve Copganda.

it's more involved than my other AUs so more is under the cut.

...

OK so this Tom is basically an adaption/foil of Sam Fair AKA "Sam Speed" from the Sonic X TV show. you know. Chris Thorndyke's uncle. the police driver that uses high-speed race cars to catch criminals. Who has a rivalry with Sonic + constantly wants to race him.

And NASCAR specifically started as a way to modify cars to outrun cops to deliver moonshine, specifically because "f*ck 'em". I do not believe that Racer!Tom would have any respect for cops + passed that to Sonic. There's some respect for laws of physics and making sure what you're putting on the road is safe, but cops? Nope.

So. Tom was so interested in going fast, he left his home of Green Hills at 16, learned engineering + car repair on the job, has a career from 18-25 as a race car driver. He won big, got sponsorships, saved up all the money so he could to send it back home.

And then there was a crash. And Tom could not race anymore. He decides to go back home to Green Hills. His father and him rebuild their relationship, but soon after Tom came back, Wachowski Sr. passed away. Every single cent Tom sent to his dad is back to him now. He doesn't have to worry about a house since he inherited, and no car because Green Hills is perfectly walkable, but...what was the point in getting up in the morning if he couldn't make his Dad proud? If he couldn't race?

Tom ends up getting Ozzie as a therapy dog. Ozzie fetches his meds, does weight compresses, guards his back in public places. Taking care of Ozzie helps him get into a routine of taking care of himself again.

Tom gets more known around town, as "that car guy" or "that helpful guy". because. he's rich and he's got time to help. Even if it's just helping someone who's car broke down or blocking traffic for ducks to cross.

Maddie is the towns only Veterinarian. Maddie + Tom end up bonding over Ozzie, fall in love and get married.

Ok. So all of the above? That's set just in the background. a little outright, a little implied. Because this isn't about Tom + Maddie and their arcs.

This is a Sonic movie. We do not have time for human nonsense except the bare emotional minimum.

Sonic has his opening scene, where he's followed back home by Echidnas, and Longclaw throws him through a portal. Sonic runs, he hides, he survives by himself for some time.

But Tom likes to go on his walks. And Ozzie is always keenly aware of his surroundings while he's on the job. They hear Sonic, and try to corner him.

Normally, Sonic is fast. But this is a younger Sonic who hasn't been able to care for himself recently. And since Tom already has natural + trained reflexes from "going fast" as a race car driver...

Tom is able to scoop Sonic up while he's running and hold him. And he's like. "Ah. my kid now."

And the only other person that had been able to catch Sonic has been Longclaw. So he's like. "New parent?"

So Tom takes Sonic home. He tries to tell Maddie, but she interpreted it as "wandering child with a hedgehog." Then she sees Sonic doodling at the kitchen table, kicking his legs. And it's like, "ok. Be super proud that I'm not freaking out."

And then the hedgehog gets adopted.

Tom starts researching hedgehog care + picking up child care books + English as a second language picture books. There was one with Pokemon + Japanese that Sonic really loved. Tom explains it as "might have accidentally adopted a kid from his old job."

Sonic grows up as a Wachowski. Tom makes carts and drones so that he can "Race" Sonic safely. They keep pranking Wade at the speed trap. Sonic also "plays" with Crazy Carl and his traps. Tom and Sonic both justify this racing and training just in case Sonic has to go on the run.

Anyway. Tom gets invited to a racing conference in San Francisco. Apparently someone (Robotnik + the US Military) noticed his cars that he's been making to race Sonic + thought he was back in the racing game.

It's the first time Sonic is without Tom for an extended period + he's got separation anxiety. Tom tries to talk to Sonic about how it's going to be fine. But Sonic takes it the wrong way and goes "I have to protect Tom!" And sneaks away to keep him safe.

Something also about both Sonic and Tom losing parents and coping without them. Holding on really tight to the people they care about after that. That's the real emotional core here.

But yeah iconic external threat Robotnik time. And speed chases. Yada yada.

Also Tom grabbing an Egg Drone + taking it apart + understanding it. Kind of taking Robotnik down a peg in the "aloof standalone genius" way but also illustrating that Robotnik could connect and be happy with people AND still be a genius but he doesn't.

Anyway. You've got blanket permission to use these ideas in your fanworks, but no AI please, it's not enrichment if you're not doing it.

[probablyasocialecologist]

Capitalism is highly inefficient from an ecological perspective, and we know from empirical studies that it is possible to have a much more efficient economy that delivers high levels of wellbeing with much lower levels of total production. In fact, it is possible to provide good lives for 8.5 billion people on this planet with much less energy and resources than we presently use, if that was the objective of production. Universal public services are key to such a future. I mean not only healthcare and education, but also affordable housing, childcare, recreation facilities, clean energy, internet and nutritious food. This approach ensures that the most important goods and services are always produced in sufficient quantities, and available to everyone. The claim that there is ‘no money’ for universal services is totally wrong. Money simply represents productive capacity in the economy – real resources and labour that can be used to produce things. And we know that in the UK there is massive productive capacity. The problem is that it is misdirected. The key is to reallocate it. This can be done by using credit policy to reduce investment in damaging and unnecessary sectors, thus liberating resources to be redirected elsewhere. Then you use public finance to directly mobilise necessary production – for example, renewable energy and public services. With this approach we can rapidly solve our social and ecological problems, and maintain price stability at the same time.

23 April 2025

[phroexx]

[genesisgijinka]

hi hope you're doing alright! i have a worldbuilding question for you: how does the League system work in Genesis? you've mentioned there being separate systems for Gijinka and Pokemon (except for Unova) but i'm curious as to the role of a team's trainer on a Pokemon team versus on a Gijinka team, or if it's basically the same. i was also curious about the elite 4; do each of the elite 4 trainers have both Gijinka and Pokemon teams like the gym leaders do or does it work differently for them?

the league system works mostly the same as they do in the games. Gijinka trainers defs have more on their plate, as they have to manage people relations in addition to everything else that running a team requires. But other than that, in battles, trainers act as an extra set of eyes to call out warnings or offer new strategies. In the worst cases, the trainer can be an extra witness if something bad happens.

As for the Elite 4, whether specific trainers have a pokemon and gijinka team each, or if there's a different E4 person for each league depends on the region. Managing both sides to the league is a little easier for gyms leaders to manage, since being the Best of the Best isn't as big of a priority as it is for the E4 and champion.

Another note about the gijinka league (for some regions at least) is that it counts as military training after 5 or 6 badges have been acquired, and teams may be called upon during times of disaster and emergencies. That's why Diantha and her team showed up during the Pokemon Village evacuation, even tho Gawain and his team relinquished her from her champion duties years ago.

[ramonapest]

you know you've got problems when the phlebotomist recognizes you

[atissi]

if you are 1) currently in a university where your student healthcare covers hormone therapy, and 2) in a good financial, emotional, and social position to start hormone therapy, i would recommend pursuing it. because in my experience, it's a huge pain in the ass to get an endocrinologist once you're on your own

[slayedpoet]

basically either nothing happens, at all...or everything everywhere all at once

[tidepoolalgae]

I think I'm having such a hard time getting plans together to move again because I've never been more comfortable with where I'm at

[maryellencarter]

i think the hill i'm going to die on here is that lasting anti-fascist activism begins and ends with unrestricted social services.

protests are great. kind of indispensable right now. but in times when we can be less reactive, you want to know what you're protesting *for*, not just against.

today i saw a post elseweb saying "why aren't white women fleeing maga? they have to know by now that tradwife means sex slave". and like... it's very simple. they can't leave because they would end up like me.

they're, we're, deliberately made unemployable so that we'll have to marry whatever mediocre white man picks us out. as it happened, i was unappealingly intersex, fat, butch, and autistic, so none of the mediocre white boys of my generation ever took a second look at me, but that didn't give me job skills or career connections.

i knew multiple women whose husbands divorced them and took the house as part of their midlife crises. they had to send the kids to live with relatives and take dead-end jobs like bagging groceries because they were in their forties with zero job experience. if they'd rejected the worldview, if they'd alienated their families and what few friends didn't victim-blame them for the divorces, they'd have had nowhere to turn.

it's been over twelve years since i got out. psychologically, medically, i'm healthier. but i've chased a fresh start through half a dozen states. i spent my inheritance getting a degree. none of it helped. there are no supports for abandoning (or being abandoned by) your support network.

you won't defeat fascism until my people are free to leave the cult if they realize they want out. until we can access free housing to get away from financial abuse, free comprehensive job training and placement services to help us start careers, national healthcare so we can flee across state lines if necessary without losing any medical care we're lucky enough to have access to, protections for children and teens so they can flee without needing a parent's help... universal basic income would be really good but there are smaller steps that could help with financial independence.

and it all has to be available to everybody, including people you think are "unworthy". people who hold the wrong opinions. drug addicts. people whose husbands or parents make too much money. people who aren't from around here. unrepentant bigots. if they want out, you have to give them a path out. minds can change later, once people are less scared and less pressured.

(i'm ex-catholic. do you want to hear about what happens when you force people to profess certain beliefs in order to access basic assistance? i have two thousand years of examples.)

"but if they really wanted out they'd do the Right Thing and leave without support!" Better to be one man's sex slave than turning tricks on the street. "staying just proves they're actually evil and there for the bigotry!" Live in your car for six months in 100°F heat, twice, and then talk to me again. There's no virtue in cutting yourself off from society just to prove some kind of moral point. All that does is get you dead or worse.

("JT, you're not dead" I'm a fucking cockroach. Most people would be dead by now. Survival bias goes both ways; we're not all the same model of airplane.)