Reimbursed Mutual Assistance > UBI or Guaranteed Job Programs

What if some form of universal basic income were to become a reality? Alas, should traditional employment decline in the near future, UBI is not a practical long term solution, especially given the nature of present day fiscal obligations. At most, UBI might serve as a stopgap measure, should a wide array of employment sources dry up simultaneously due to technological change. 

Chances are, UBI would also prove somewhat demoralizing, since many recipients would lose valuable opportunities for economic and social connections with others. Not only is a UBI approach likely to reduce our chances of greater economic integration, it could further polarize an already divided society - especially in terms of knowledge use and meaningful participation. 

Small communities in particular need proactive solutions for economic dynamism and long term potential, instead of compensation for basically being forgotten or left behind. Toward this end, compensation in the form of monetary reimbursement for voluntary mutual assistance, would be more practical than policy choices that don't address widespread social isolation. What's more, mutual assistance could be symmetrically aligned (via matched or reciprocal time) so as to create new wealth instead of additional demands on fiscal policy. Indeed, what could be better than creating internal rewards for our natural inclination as humans, to come together in order to get things done? 

Compensated or reimbursed mutual assistance at local levels, is also a better solution for many than guaranteed job programs. Unlike government generated work which often requires participants to relocate, compensated mutual assistance would allow local communities to create new job opportunities and workplace responsibilities in their own midst. And rather than attempting to fulfill the wants and needs of governments, the time arbitrage of mutual assistance would allow people to create entirely new local markets - markets which are responsive to shared individual wants and needs. 

Reimbursed mutual assistance contains other advantages as well. For instance, it could lead to the local creation of knowledge based services - services which otherwise tend to be difficult to access via hourly wages alone. Fortunately, the supply side approach of reimbursed mutual assistance would bring additional value to our collective time, so as to make it capable of meeting a full range of basic needs. Eventually, better coordination of time value could lead to greater community trust as well. This is especially needed in the U.S. where a substantial degree of trust has been eroded away.

New patterns of mutual assistance could lead to more voluntary and spontaneous forms of association than are now common in many time based service activities. As individual groups structure their combined efforts to build a shared continuum of activity, they gradually create new wealth which approximates what is often possible through more traditional forms of employment. In a time when advancing technology makes near future work potential less certain, people can breathe easier once viable replacements create new sources of normalcy and stability for all concerned.