This is a world-building element of Heinlein’s posthumous novel, For Us the Living, where UBI allows people to do art or other low-pay trades. The UBI system in the novel enables people who don’t want to work, are tired of work, or who aren’t good at working, to live and pursue what does make them happy since their livelihood doesn’t rely on working a job. Of course, Heinlein has some libertarian nonsense to harp on in the book, but it’s wild just how long we’ve known that there is enough to take care of us all and that working to live is a detriment individually and collectively.
this post was submitted on 04 Sep 2025
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Whoever said this obviously doesn't have a financial backer to develop acrylic paint in easy to eat tubes (specifically in yellow)
the money also gets them famous
Just like most things. No not everyone is a creative or able to be happy doing creative things. And when you start talking about groups in the tens or hundreds of millions even small percentages become significant.
The vast, vast majority of artists do it as a job to survive and not for fun though.
It can certainly be a hobby that is done for fun with no time constraints, where you can just make whatever you please, but it can also be stressful, soul-sucking necessity once money gets involved.
Can confirm. I've gone full-time gigging musician. Don't get me wrong, I chose this path after exhausting all other options because it's the only career I can stomach, but when you make your hobby your job, your hobby becomes your job.
I've managed to pay rent and bills, but I still got credit card debt from the beginning when I was really scraping by. Every month feels like I'm unemployed until I get saved by a big gig, but it is quite terrifying still.
I would consider many of the construction trades a form of art, and thats certainly still a job. Art is more a way of doing something than a specific action in my opinion. You can also create art in a way thats not expressive, which would mean the person making it might not be an artist.
Okay? What about all those billionaires destroying the world? Guess they must be the exceptions...
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It seems to me like being able to choose to be an artist when rent is due IS what being Privileged means. Yeah, a lot more people probably would choose to express themselves over being a wage slave.
I'm not even sure what this post is trying to convey. Is there a definition of Privilege that doesn't include having opportunities that a lot of other people don't have?
I used to be the kind of optimist that would largely agree with this post. But in the past decade I've seen the truth. Most people are profoundly uncurious and uncreative, even when encouraged to be.
Nope. ^1^
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- I've met artists.