Basic Income and the Video Game Myth

Basic Income — a regular payment of money for every resident citizen, regardless of their circumstances, sufficient to pay for essentials.

It sounds like a wonderful idea, but not everyone’s convinced. And one of the main objections people raise is the claim that if you pay everyone a Basic Income, millions upon millions of people will decide to give up work entirely and play video games all day instead. They envisage so many people doing this that the economy will be seriously depressed and might even collapse altogether.

But I suggest this claim is not just overblown — it stands in complete contradiction to what we know about human nature, based on a huge amount of available evidence.

Will some people give up work and play video games all day? Yes, some people will. But are we talking about millions of people? Are we talking about so many people that it will seriously depress the economy? No, we’re not, because all but a few people just aren’t like that.

For a start, Basic Income, when introduced, will most likely only be sufficient to pay for essentials and little else. It won’t provide anything like what most gamers would consider sufficient funds to support their hobby. It won’t cover the cost of buying a console or a TV. It won’t cover the cost of buying the latest games. It won’t cover the cost of…