Karl Widerquist, 2023. The Problem of Property: Taking the Freedom of Nonowners Seriously (Official version of the book), Palgrave MacMillan (138 pages)
- This book is Karl Widerquist’s first statement of the “indepentarian” theory of property, called, “Justice as the Pursuit of Accord.” It argues the natural-rights-based arguments for unequal private property have failed to establish that institution as a natural right. As currently constituted, it is a legal privilege, inconsistent with the maximum equal freedom from interference. The book discusses how to establish and maintain a property system that best promotes freedom from interference for everyone—including nonowners. Paying taxes and obeying regulations is part of the purchase price of the right to control, use, or use-up any good made partly out of natural resources (i.e. all goods), because doing so interferes with people who control, use, or use-up fewer natural resources. A sufficient portion of that tax revenue has to be redistributed in the form of a Universal Basic Income to ensure the property system is in the interest of everyone.
Karl Widerquist and Grant S. McCall, 2021. The Prehistory of Private Property: Implications for Modern Political Theory (Official version of the book), Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press (317 pages)
- This book examines the original and development of the private property system to show that three commonly held beliefs about private property are false: the belief that individualistic private property develops naturally, the belief that private property promotes negative freedom, and the belief that inequality is natural and inevitable.
- Short video presentation based on the book
- Longer video presentation about the book
- Written summary of the book
- Playlist of 13 videos related to this book and the first book in the series, Prehistoric Myths
Karl Widerquist, 2018. A Critical Analysis of Basic Income Experiments for Researchers, Policymakers, and Citizens (Official version of the book), New York: Palgrave Macmillan (167 pages)
- This book discusses the problems and possibilities of UBI experiments, arguing that only with a strong understanding of the limitations of UBI experiments can we fully appreciate what we can learn from them.
- Video presentation based on the book
- Written summary of the book
- Review of the book
- More articles on UBI experiments
- Playlist of 7 videos on UBI experiments
Karl Widerquist and Grant S. McCall, 2017. Prehistoric Myths in Modern Political Philosophy (Official version of the book), Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press (274 pages)
– Free download of the complete book
- This book uses extensive anthropological and historical evidence to falsify the commonly held belief that everyone benefits from the state and/or the property system. Although many people benefit, the least advantage are worse off in contemporary capitalist states than people typically were in stateless societies with common property systems.
- Free Online Appendix to Prehistoric Myths in Modern Political Philosophy (70 pages)
- Hour-long video-lecture based on the book
- 8-mintue audio summary of the book
- Written summary of the book
- Short opinion piece based on the book
- “Why private property?” Text of discussion based partly on the book
- Playlist of 13 videos related to this book and the sequel, the Prehistory of Private Property
Karl Widerquist, March 2013. Independence, Propertylessness, and Basic Income: A Theory of Freedom as the Power to Say No (Official version of the book), New York: Palgrave Macmillan (241 pages)
- This book outlines a theory of freedom as independence, “effective control self-ownership, or “freedom as the power to say no. In doing so, it begins my effort to create an “indepentarian” theory of justice called, justice as the pursuit of accord.
- Hour-long video lecture based on the book
- 9-minute speech based on the indepentarian theory of freedom and justice
- List of articles and videos related to indepentarianism
Karl Widerquist and Michael W. Howard (eds.) 2012. Exporting the Alaska Model: Adapting the Permanent Fund Dividend for Reform around the World (Official version of the book), New York: Palgrave Macmillan (291 pages)
- This two book series (including Exporting the Alaska Model and Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend) discusses the Alaska Dividend as a model of a small Universal Basic Income in practice.
- Lessons From Alaska (video 1:02:15)
- Links related articles and videos
Karl Widerquist and Michael W. Howard (eds.) 2012. Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend: Examining its Suitability as a Model (Official version of the book), New York: Palgrave Macmillan (267 pages)
- This two book series (including Exporting the Alaska Model and Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend) discusses the Alaska Dividend as a model of a small Universal Basic Income in practice.
- Lessons From Alaska (video 1:02:15)
- Links related articles and videos
Karl Widerquist, Michael Anthony Lewis, and Steven Pressman (eds.), 2005. The Ethics and Economics of the Basic Income Guarantee (Official version of the book), Aldershot, UK: Ashgate (352 pages)
- This book is a collection of essays discussing the Universal Basic Income from economic and philosophical perspectives.
My contributions to this book include:
Michael Anthony Lewis and Karl Widerquist, 2002. Economics for Social Workers: The Application of Economic Theory to Social Policy and the Human Services (Official version of the book), New York: Columbia University Press (204 pages)
- This textbook explains what we believe every social worker needs to know about economic theory. It is typically assigned for courses in economics required for the degree of Masters in Social Work.
Karl Widerquist, Jose Noguera, Yannick Vanderborght, and Jurgen De Wispelaere (eds.), 2013. Basic Income: An Anthology of Contemporary Research (Official version of the book), Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell (563 pages)
- This book is a compilation of six decades of some of the most influential Basic Income literature.
- It includes 74 chapters of both empirical research and theoretical argumentation on all aspects of the Basic Income proposal.
- It includes sections on freedom, justice, reciprocity and exploitation, feminism, economics, post-productivism, implementation, institutions, and politics.
