Page 28 - HQ May June July 2020

The Social Dividend is the best form

of Universal Basic Income

by Alain Pilote more in the air and becoming more popular. The
problem is that we have no viable way to to finance
With the forced cessation of most jobs since the
start of the lockdown following the coronavirus this income, except by going into debt, and ulti-
pandemic, governments in several countries have mately taxing the wealthy and the middle class.
Regular readers of Michael know that Clifford Hugh
put in place emergency programs to help those Douglas and Louis Even presented a more effective
who have lost their wages, and businesses that risk
bankruptcy. These measures will cost hundreds of solution: the Social Dividend. With the payment of
a Social Dividend there would neither be a national
billions of dollars, and will swell nations’ debts to debt nor taxation.
levels never before reached.
Everyone agrees that despite the massive
increase in debt, governments had little choice
because people can not be left without food. But
financial relief programs are subject to different ru-
les, which means that many among the population
are forgotten, and will receive little or no help and
that aid will be delivered only several weeks after it
is needed. In addition, these programs are cumber-
some to administer.
As far as Canada is concerned, advocates, se-
veral in the media and some politicians have sug-
gested that it is time to initiate a minimum basic
income formula, or guaranteed annual income. For C.H. Douglas Louis Even
example, on April 21, 2020, 50 senators, which is
nearly one-half of the members of the Canadian Louis Even (1885-1974) advocated the finan-
Senate, sent a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau as- cial proposals of the Scottish engineer Clifford
king him to establish a “basic minimum income” in Hugh Douglas (1879-1952), first stated in 1918, and
order to ‘stop other Canadians from falling through known as Economic Democracy (after Douglas’
the cracks’ and to create ‘a positive legacy for all first book on the subject), or Social Credit. Louis
Canadians’. According to the Basic Income Canada Even founded a periodical to publicize these ideas,
Network’s recommendation, every adult in Canada Vers Demain in French in 1939, and then Michael
should receive $22,000 per year. in English in 1953. He also founded a movement
In Spain, to limit the impact of the coronavirus dedicated to the advancement of Social Credit, the
on the economy, the Spanish government is wor- Pilgrims of Saint Michael, with headquarters in Que-
king on a series of measures, including the establis- bec, Canada.
hment of a universal income, ‘as soon as possible’ Applying the monetary reform principles of
to help families, said Nadia Calvino, Minister of Eco- Economic Democracy would ensure that the eco-
nomy and Business, on April 5th. But the govern- nomy and society would effectively reach its goals,
ment’s ambition is broader. Calvino advocates that which are the satisfaction of human needs. The sys-
the universal income would continue after the end tem would ensure that production of goods which
of the pandemic so that the system ‘becomes a per- correspond to needs would be financed AND that
manent instrument’. consumption would be financed, thereby ensuring
Pope Francis, in a Letter to Popular Movements, that necessary goods and services reach the popu-
dated Easter Sunday, 2020 wrote: “It is perhaps the lation in a concrete and logical manner.
time to consider a universal basic income that reco- The genius of Louis Even was to popularize
gnizes and honors the noble and essential tasks that Douglas’ principles and place them within the reach
you perform ”. (The letter was written in Spanish. of Mr. and Mrs. Everyone. Mr. Even further showed
The pope used the term salario universal, which that these monetary reform principles are coherent
translates as basic income). with the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church and
As we can see, the idea of a basic income is the philosophy of Saint Thomas Aquinas.

28 MICHAEL May/June/July 2020 www.michaeljournal.org