Includes bibliographical references (pages [183]-191) and index.

1. Introduction: It's Time to Think BIG 2. So What's the BIG Idea? 3. Why Did We Lose the War on Poverty? 4. Did You Know? 5. Why Are Jobs Not the Answer? 6. Why Is There So Much Inequality in the United States? 7. How Do Other Countries Handle Economic Security? 8. Why Should the U.S. Adopt a Basic Income Guarantee? 9. Is a Basic Income Guarantee Moral? 10. Why Should I Work to Support Welfare Chiselers? 11. Why Not Guarantee Everyone a Job? 12. Why Not Try Other Programs? 13. Can the U.S. Afford a Basic Income Guarantee? 14. Will a Basic Income Guarantee Work? 15. Has the Basic Income Guarantee Ever Been Tested? 16. What About the Work Ethic? 17. What Will Life Be Like Under a Basic Income Guarantee? 18. Will a Basic Income Guarantee Threaten Democracy? 19. How Is a Basic Income Guarantee Administered? 20. What's Happening with BIG Around the World? 21. Can America be Convinced? 22. Realistically, What Are the Chances for a BIG in the US? Appendix A. The Cost of a Basic Income Guarantee Appendix B. Current Social Welfare Programs Appendix C. A Brief History of a Basic Income Guarantee Appendix D. Alternate Forms of a Basic Income Guarantee Appendix E. Resources Appendix F. Suggested Reading.

A Basic Income Guarantee (BIG) is the unconditional government-ensured guarantee that all citizens will have enough income to meet their basic needs without a work requirement. There are two main versions of such a program – BIG and a Negative Income Tax (NIT). BIG provides an income to all people whether they have other income or not. The NIT provides an income only to those who lack sufficient other income. Reading about BIG can be confusing because these terms are used in different ways by different people. Any policy that gets cash into the hands of people without saddling them with conditions or supervision moves in the direction of BIG. These are questions such as: Can the U.S. afford a BIG? Why can't everyone get a job? Why don't the current welfare programs work? Why should we adopt a BIG? Why not guarantee everyone a job? Would anyone work if his or her income were guaranteed? Does everyone have a right to a BIG? Has a BIG ever been tested? This book answers each question in simple, easy-to-understand language, updates many of the statistics in the 1983 version, and answers even more questions.