The Plan

This message should appeal to most of our neighbors:

  • Progressives get fairness without punishment. It lifts the bottom.

  • Conservatives get personal responsibility—with a boost, not a bureaucracy.

  • Libertarians get more freedom and less micromanagement.

  • Centrists get a practical, evidence-based, incremental roadmap.

But even with many heads nodding, there is much to do.

Take Action
UBI is an elegant system hack that solves many problems, real and imagined. It’s (almost) magic. But it doesn’t solve all our problems. Just because it’s unconditional doesn’t mean it can’t come in nice packaging. A helpline, a handshake, a hug makes it human. UBI doesn’t solve the problem of the homeless man living in a densely packed downtown. But it does make the problem solvable. The well-paid executive recklessly living paycheck to paycheck is still going to face tough times when their company “decides to go in a different direction.” But again, the problem becomes solvable.

Messiness means we can’t have all the answers—and we shouldn’t pretend to. But we know the direction we need to go. The specifics? That’s where testing and adjusting matter. UBI must be designed to grow with feedback, not ideology. Is it only for adults? Does it vary by location? As we move in the right direction, the next steps come into focus.

Bust the myths, using the stories and objections as needed. Then build it—step by step, with data, not dogma. Universal (Almost) Basic Income (UBI) isn’t a leap of faith; it’s already a tested path we can walk together. Here’s how we join the movement, scale it up, and make it stick.

Start now
Do something. Share the stories. In your personal life, practice giving, no strings attached. Eliminate rules, roles, hoops, and traps wherever you can. Get together with friends, raise a little cash, and give. Limited dollars, limited time, but enough to make a difference. Heard that a family is struggling? Grab 5 friends and commit $100 a month each to provide a little cushion for a year. Don’t know who or how? Reach out to a nonprofit to serve as the middleman. Go a little bigger, a little more formal, create a little buzz. $250 for 10 families. Every step helps. Any town. Any amount. Simple, unconditional support makes an immediate difference—and sends a message: we trust people. We believe in their worth. We’re not waiting for UBI. We already have permission to care.

Test with Purpose—Let Communities Compete
We need some data. Make your town one of 20+, big and small— a rust-belt city, a coal town, a reservation. Give $750 a month for 24 months, no strings attached. Fund it with philanthropy, local budgets, or tech donors. Track jobs, health, small businesses, stress levels. Universal cash isn’t the only option, it’s just the cleanest. But there’s room to experiment. Compare. Learn. Let’s race to the future—cash, homes, food—and see what wins. Just don’t lose the thread. Trials must test systems. Don’t let old myths creep in: that there’s a moral difference between the rich and poor, that poverty reflects personal failure, that some are deserving and others not. These beliefs aren’t just false, they’re toxic to progress. No hoops, no judgment—just chips for everyone to play the game.

Scale Regionally—Build the Case
Take the winners to a bigger stage. Watch markets shift: a diner hires more hands, a nurse retrains instead of burning out. Public dashboards keep it honest: every dollar tracked, every outcome shared.

Go National—Set the Floor
Legislate a universal $800/month for all adults. Phase it in—start with 18–30-year-olds or low-income regions—to smooth the transition.

Lock It In—Learn as We Go
Set up a bipartisan UBI Innovation Commission. Review inflation, jobs, mental health quarterly. Tweak the amount—up if it’s working, down if it’s not. But measure what matters! This isn’t blind spending; it’s a system that listens. Trials aren’t about proving people’s worth—they test what lifts us all. Scarcity clouds judgment; luck shapes more than merit. Let’s build on that truth.

In summary: Do something—even if it’s wrong. We’ll course-correct as we go. But we can’t afford to sit still.