It's a pilot program, not a nationwide initiative. That said, the economics of it would be positive if applied nationwide.

If you're interested in the pilot, it's documented very extensively in this book, which the Wikipedia article ought to be referencing: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Income-Renana-Jhabvala-Soumya-Standi...

Sure, to be clear I would like basic income. My point was that it is really easy to raise capital and test it on a scale like this. While I was making a joke, the implications are real. Inflation can rise if people are all still buying things at the same economic level and region. Where does the money come from?

The problem with basic income is that when the conditions exist to make it possible, it wont matter anymore. We need large transition to solar, automated farming, automated transportation and distribution networks, etc. Then the marginal cost of food, transportation, energy will be $0 so we can afford to give it away.

Economics is not always the zero sum game it is made out to be. Microlending could work, and getting these people access to conputers and internet will too.