No

Just like socialistic societies don't work, big govt programs don't work. Why do we keep trying this? Generally speaking, if people are given stuff by the govt, they won't take care of it.

Humans need dignity. This is done by providing what others need and getting paid for it, i.e. taking care of yourself - not being taken care of. Humans without dignity leads to all kinds of bad stuff.

This is one thing the left doesn't understand - the basic realities of humanity.

Yep. Communism ignores basic human nature . Most people want to improve their and their family's lives and are willing to work smarter and harder to make it happen. Communists want you to think you can't make it without the state

Phatbob said:

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We are still dealing with problems the New Deal put into place. Let's not use that as a template for anything other than things to avoid.

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but giving everyone free things worked so well in the Soviet Union from 1917-1989!!!

other than the entire "55 million dead citizens" thing.

but other than that- it was GREAT.

Great idea comrade. Are you going to absorb all the current home builders and outlaw independent home builders? This is the eventuality with socialized work programs, see Stalin outlawing independent farms once the nationalized their farming industry.

3rd and 2 said:

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I thought about this idea after talking to some dad's at my son's football pratice and wanted a sanity check:

With the rapid advancement of AI, many people are rightly concerned about the future of work. Instead of simply providing a Universal Basic Income (UBI), what if we took a page from history and created meaningful work programs, much like the ones implemented during the New Deal under President Franklin D. Roosevelt?
What if there were a federally funded group dedicated to building high-quality, aesthetically pleasing houses in areas where housing costs are out of control.

This new federal entity would own these homes and rent them out at a reasonable rate (or people would have the option to buy them outright), below the current market price. By introducing a new supply of affordable, high-quality rental units, we could naturally drive down both housing rents and home prices across the board. This would not only give people work but also provide places to live.

The culture of this program would be something to be proud of. Imagine a workforce with the same commitment and esprit de corps as firefighters or paramedicspeople dedicated to serving their communities and building a better future.

To ensure accountability and prevent the program from becoming a permanent bureaucracy, it would be built with key, measurable indicators for success. If the program fails to meet these goalssuch as driving down average rents in target areas or providing a specific number of housing units at a reasonable costit would be designed to automatically shrink until it's phased out entirely.

This wouldn't be a handout. It's a way to tackle the housing crisis, create good jobs, and build a more resilient society in the face of technological change.

What'ya think?

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The government would mess it up, but I like the idea of a Habitat for Humanity type company to run it.

What would be best is that instead of welfare, you join the work program to learn a trade and build homes. You get a temporary shelter, show up and work with others to build a neighborhood. Once the neighborhood is complete, each person who worked on the project gets a free home that you helped build. 1) you learn a skill, 2) you receive shelter and meals for your work, 3) you acquire an asset that has value. Hopefully you then take those skills to continue in the trade elsewhere or at a minimum now have the work ethic to find work in another area/trade.

Cabrini (sp) Greens in Chicago were supposed to be really nice, government owned apartments that would be leased to minority groups or people who could not afford "good" homes.

I went in 2004 as part of a mission trip to help some families "fix-up" their units. Pee everywhere outside the units (hallways and elevators). The bathroom I was assigned to was painted Aggie maroon. It was awful. Not only that, we had to leave by 2 to avoid potential gang-bangers from waking up from the night before.

Government run housing never works.

You set up this company or idea and by the time you get it set up, A.I. and robots are gonna come along and do it better.

In the future, we are all gonna just sit around and ***** about stuff on Texags.

Nope. AI will certainly automate some things but they are far from creative/critical thinking. Humans will still need to do that. So the message to the Dad's should be to train their kids on how to think and solve problems for themselves.

To sum up the thread:

Not only is this a bad idea, it makes the Jump To Conclusions mat look like a stroke of brilliance.