Scott Alexander critiques the inefficiency of psychiatric care for poverty-related issues, suggesting a Basic Income Guarantee as a potentially more effective solution. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses the inefficiency of psychiatric care for patients whose primary issue is poverty. He relates a case where a suicidal patient, in debt for $5000, is hospitalized at a cost of $5000, which doesn't address the underlying financial problem. The post criticizes the current system as wasteful and patronizing, highlighting the dilemma between libertarian and liberal approaches to such issues. Scott suggests that a Basic Income Guarantee might be more effective and cost-efficient than current psychiatric interventions for poverty-related issues, potentially saving money in both psychiatric care and prison systems. Shorter summary

Scott reviews 'A Future for Socialism', finding its economic proposals underwhelming but valuable for its insights on corporate governance and principal-agent problems. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reviews John Roemer's book 'A Future for Socialism', which proposes a system where everyone owns an equal share of nationalized industries through non-transferable stock coupons. The book argues this would align incentives and solve public goods problems. Scott finds the basic income aspect underwhelming and questions some assumptions, but appreciates Roemer's clear thinking on capitalism's strengths. The review highlights how joint-stock corporations effectively solve principal-agent problems, which Scott finds to be the book's most valuable insight. Shorter summary

Scott critiques the misuse of consent-based arguments to justify bans, arguing that they often disguise sacred values and can lead to more harm than good. Longer summary

This post critiques the misuse of consent-based arguments to justify banning practices. Scott starts with a satirical proposal to ban healthcare to prevent non-consensual treatment, then extends this to banning non-Democrat candidates to prevent accidental voting. He argues that these 'fake consensualism' arguments are often used to disguise sacred values as neutral principles. The post explains that while consent is important, banning practices entirely based on the possibility of non-consent often leads to more harm than good. Scott concludes by calling for a higher burden of proof for such arguments and suggesting that Basic Income Guarantee would be a better way to ensure genuine consent. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critiques a plan to cure youth unemployment by abolishing minimum wage, arguing that unemployment might be preferable to miserable employment at extremely low wages. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses Federico's plan to cure youth unemployment through policies like abolishing minimum wage and reducing labor regulations. He explores the potential consequences, comparing unemployment to underemployment at very low wages. The post delves into historical communist strategies, technological unemployment, and the challenges of adapting to a changing job market. Scott argues that unemployment might be preferable to miserable employment at extremely low wages, as it could lead to solutions like a Basic Income Guarantee. He concludes that minimum wage and labor regulations might serve to turn miserably-employed people into unemployed welfare recipients, creating a problem society is more likely to address. Shorter summary