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174 Rutger Bregman: Utopia for Realists

Challenging the status quo, this book explores the possibilities of a utopian future with basic income, shorter workweek, and open borders.

Duration: 06 hours
34 minutes
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Rutger Bregman: Utopia for Realists

Summary

In "Utopia for Realists," Rutger Bregman challenges conventional wisdom by presenting radical ideas for a better society. Bregman proposes three main solutions: a universal basic income, a shorter workweek, and open borders. By analyzing historical examples and contemporary research, he argues that these ideas could eliminate poverty, increase happiness, and spur economic growth. Bregman also addresses potential objections and offers a vision for a more just and prosperous world.

About

Title: Utopia for Realists

Author: Rutger Bregman

Publishing year: 2017

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Length in hours: 6 hours and 34 minutes

5 main ideas

  1. A universal basic income is the solution to poverty and inequality.
  2. A shorter workweek is necessary to improve people's well-being and productivity.
  3. Open borders could benefit both migrants and host societies.
  4. History shows that utopian ideas can become reality.
  5. Our current social and economic system is not sustainable, and radical change is necessary.
Rutger Bregman: Utopia for Realists

5 funny quotes

  1. "Nobody ever got rich by doing their job well."
  2. "The real problem with poverty is not a lack of money, but a lack of cash."
  3. "In a perfect world, we would all be born with a trust fund and a sense of purpose."
  4. "I'm a utopian, but not an idiot."
  5. "The 15-hour workweek could save humanity from the menace of overconsumption and bring us world peace. Or it could lead to a universal craze for home improvement projects."

5 thought-provoking quotes​

  1. "The more powerful the myth of meritocracy, the more powerful the reality of privilege."
  2. "In the past, the greatest utopian thinkers were those who dared to imagine that the world might be different. Today, the true utopians are those who believe this is the end of history."
  3. "It's easier to imagine the end of the world than a modest change in the economic order."
  4. "Poverty is not a lack of character. It's a lack of cash."
  5. "If we can put a man on the moon, why can't we afford to give everyone a basic income?"

5 dilemmas

  1. How can we ensure that basic income doesn't disincentivize work?
  2. How can we ensure that the implementation of a robot tax doesn't stifle innovation?
  3. How can we ensure that a shorter workweek doesn't lead to decreased productivity?
  4. How can we ensure that a world without borders doesn't lead to a race to the bottom in terms of worker's rights and environmental protections?
  5. How can we ensure that universal basic services are of high quality and accessible to all?

5 examples

  1. The basic income experiment in Manitoba, Canada, in the 1970s.
  2. The shorter workweek implemented by Henry Ford in the 1920s.
  3. The success of the open borders policy in the European Union.
  4. The rise of the welfare state in post-World War II Europe.
  5. The utopian experiments of the 19th century, such as Robert Owen's New Lanark and Charles Fourier's Phalanxes.

Referenced books

Other books quoted or referenced in "Utopia for Realists":

  1. "The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time" by Jeffrey D. Sachs
  2. "The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class" by Guy Standing
  3. "Capital in the Twenty-First Century" by Thomas Piketty
  4. "The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies" by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee
  5. "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Share a quote

"The 15-hour workweek could save humanity from the menace of overconsumption and bring us world peace. Or it could lead to a universal craze for home improvement projects."

Rutger Bregman: Utopia for Realists

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