Universal Basic Income in Viennese Late Enlightenment: An Austrian Perspective on Josef Popper-Lynkeus?s in-Kind Social Program
Sprache des Vortragstitels:
Englisch
Original Tagungtitel:
7th Austrian Economics Meeting Europe
Sprache des Tagungstitel:
Englisch
Original Kurzfassung:
Austrian engineer, philosopher, and political economist Josef Popper-Lynkeus (1838?1921)?uncle of the well-known philosopher of science Karl Popper?was a renowned public intellectual. His relationships with luminaries such as Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Wilhelm and Otto Neurath, Ernst Mach, Wilhelm Jerusalem, Richard Mises, and Wilhelm Ostwald indicate his central role in Viennese Late Enlightenment. In this paper, we unearth and explore Popper-Lynkeus?s social program. It sought to implement social conscription in order to guarantee an unconditional basic level of goods and services for every human individual. We also appraise the ethical justification provided by Popper-Lynkeus for his allegedly rational and objective proposals. Finally, we introduce a conceptual framework for a more systematic comparison between Popper-Lynkeus?s social program and contemporary proposals for a universal basic income (UBI), characterizing both as alternatives to traditional welfare states.
In the context of the 7th AEM Europe Socialism and Liberty, the paper is particularly relevant because it:
? presents Popper-Lynkeus?s peculiar amalgamation of socialist and liberal elements;
? unearths almost forgotten ideas which were prominent in the heyday of the Austrian School;
? facilitates critical discussion of the relative scientific, political, and ethical merits of UBI-like proposals as compared to traditional welfare states;
? explores to what extent Austrian arguments from the socialist calculation debates affect the partially socialized economy envisaged by Popper-Lynkeus;
? tracks the development of the notion of rationality from the arguably overblown aspirations in the wake of the French Enlightenment via Popper-Lynkeus?s more modest approach to the ?cautionary enlightenment? (Linsbichler 2021) represented by Friedrich August Hayek, Ludwig Mises, Otto Neurath, Karl Menger (son), and others.
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