Zeros

The Viral Economy at Work : How Venmo's PayPal Stablecoin Ads Preview the Future of Digital UBI If you've been using Venmo lately, you've probably seen them: those persistent ads encouraging you to invest in PayPal's stablecoin (PYUSD) with promises of earning rewards . You're not alone in wondering what this is all about, and you're right to see it as something bigger than just another investment opportunity. What we're witnessing is a perfect case study of the viral economy in action—and a compelling preview of how Universal Basic Income could actually work in our digital future. The Viral Economy Meets Digital Currency Venmo's aggressive push for PYUSD adoption isn't just about getting you to buy cryptocurrency. PayPal is offering a 3.7% annual yield on PYUSD holdings, with rewards accruing daily and paid monthly. But here's where it gets interesting: this isn't traditional investing— it's viral economics at its finest...

The Marketing Freelancer's UBI: Building Economic Security in the Creator Economy Examining why creative professionals need a parallel welfare system that actually understands their reality. The traditional employment model is broken for millions of creative professionals, marketing freelancers, and digital nomads worldwide. We exist in an economic limbo —too skilled for conventional welfare, too inconsistent for traditional employment benefits, and too often dismissed by systems designed for 9-to-5 workers who never existed in our reality. But what if we stopped waiting for governments to catch up and built our own solution instead? The Professional Association Revolution Imagine a marketing professional association unlike any other—one specifically designed for the gig economy reality. This isn't your grandfather's union demanding, better chairs  in the break room. This is a digital-first organization that combines UBI distributio...

The Pop Culture Economy : Where NFTs Meet UBI in the Essentials Marketplace The convergence of Universal Basic Income (UBI) and NFT culture isn't happening in government halls or corporate boardrooms—it's brewing in the space between what we need and what we want , powered by the same forces that make memes go viral and collectibles skyrocket in value. Beyond Necessities: The Essentials Economy While necessities keep us alive —food, shelter, healthcare— essentials keep us human . That limited-edition sneaker drop, the concert ticket, the artisanal coffee, the streaming subscription that connects you to your tribe. These aren't survival items, but they're not luxuries either. They're the cultural currency of belonging, status, and self-expression. This distinction becomes revolutionary when applied to inflation-proof necessity clubs using shared digital currencies. Imagine expanding these networks to include essentials markets alongside basic nee...

Building a Parallel Welfare System: The Digital UBI Revolution What if we could create a welfare system that actually works for the people who need it most? Not through government bureaucracy or political promises, but through the decentralized power of digital currency networks and community organizing . The pieces are already there, waiting to be assembled into something transformative. The Foundation : Micro-UBI Through Digital Assets and Self-Selecting Anyone who's ever spare-changed or witnessed digital panhandling understands the fundamental math: ten cents collected ten times equals a dollar . This simple principle can scale into a revolutionary parallel welfare system using cryptocurrency claims . Instead of waiting for politicians to debate UBI , we can build it ourselves. Picture this : a network where individuals can claim small digital currency amounts—perhaps daily or weekly—that accumulate into meaningful support. These aren't traditional...

Digital Currency and Universal Basic Income: Current Approaches and Models As discussions around Universal Basic Income (UBI) continue to evolve, digital currencies have emerged as a potential delivery mechanism for basic income programs. Two notable projects— GoodDollar and SocialGood —represent different philosophical approaches to implementing UBI through blockchain technology, each with distinct models that reflect broader debates about how basic income should function. The Daily Claim Model: GoodDollar's Per Diem Approach GoodDollar operates on what could be described as a (daily) per diem system. Users can claim a small amount of G$ tokens each day through their platform, creating a consistent but modest income stream. This approach mirrors traditional per diem concepts—regular, small payments designed to cover basic daily expenses rather than comprehensive monthly stipends. The daily claim structure offers several practical advantages. It creates habit for...