What would you do with your Freedom Dividend? We asked a member of the Yang Gang to tell us about his plans.
One thousand dollars. The Dividend would certainly open a lot of new doors for me. Since it’s not set aside by the government for spending on specific items, the possibilities are almost endless. I could fund the pursuit of my number one passion, tennis. This would contribute to my physical and mental health. I could use it to pay for my college so I wouldn’t have to face the choice of either taking a limited class schedule or getting a loan, which would help me financially. I could use it to move out of my mother’s house and get my own place, which would help me be more independent and grow in my personal journey. I could also put it into penny stocks and make the dividend grow.
The path I’d take with it is to get myself a car, though. I live in the suburbs, so public transit is not much of an option, and bicycling everywhere is equally inconvenient, especially given the fact that I’m located in central Florida and the humidity and temperature are often very high. Ride-sharing apps are expensive, and friends can’t give you a ride everywhere. Getting a car would mean freedom for me to pursue all manner of things, and it would open new job opportunities and help me find new ways to enrich myself. As Sandhya Anantharaman said, basic income doesn’t solve every problem, but it makes every problem easier to solve.
Ori S. B., 18, Florida
The Futurist 