I agree with much of what you've written here (for a change lol). There is the worry of giving even more power to the state but as you say with current employment trends what choice will we have? Robots and computers are going to increasingly take jobs and employment will increasingly dependent on creativity and local/ niche "industries". A safety net that allows people to try (and try again) seems necessary to me. Paying for it will require some innovative thinking but I believe it's possible.
RE: A somewhat Utopian overview of Universal Basic Income ( UBI )