ABSTRACT
In recent years, many analysts have noted that within advanced capitalist societies, income polarization has steadily increased. Such a polarization is a direct consequence of the emergence of a new accumulation paradigm that, in recent times, several scholars do not hesitate to define as cognitive capitalism (Fumagalli 2000; Vercellone 2003, 2006). The aim of this article is to show that basic income (BI) is not a Utopian proposal, but rather an economic intervention necessary to deal with the unprecedent flexibilization of the labor market required by the post-Fordist accumulation paradigm. We will argue that BI should not be considered as a measure aimed at raising both living standards and social well-being; rather, it should be seen as an indispensable structural policy for achieving a healthier social order geared around a more equitable compromise between capital and labor than those characterizing both past and present accumulation paradigms. In these respects, we will show that the introduction of BI together with juridical citizenship would decisively contribute the full economic and social status of citizens and their complete enjoyment of civil liberties.
