&gt; The problem with basic income is that people need purpose, not charity.<p>This is based entirely on the assumption that work=purpose, which I think is bogus.<p>&gt; Look at the success of programs in Africa that give people the ability to make a living...<p>For many, perhaps most of the poor, simply BEING poor inhibits them from being able to make a decent living.  Jobs may not be available, the means to get to a job reliably may not be available, the physical&#x2F;mental health to sustain a job may not be present and the resources to be treated and rehabilitated are obviously not there.<p>In effect, the hypothesis is that in a highly developed economy, handing out cash might be the equivalent of &quot;teach to fish&quot; for, say, rural Africa.  And even then, at least one study showed that basic income guarantee did amazing things for an african village, increasing education and entrepreneurship (sorry - don&#x27;t have the link handy, maybe someone else can point to it).<p>&gt; suffer mostly from hopelessness<p>On a final note, be careful here... if I have cancer, and I can&#x27;t do anything, do I suffer mostly from hopelessness or do I suffer from cancer?  Hopelessness is a symptom of people suffering from poverty.