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I wrote about this a while back [1]. Thinking that more charitable donations will create more upliftment is a false premise. Don't get me wrong, charities do se

I wrote about this a while back [1]. Thinking that more charitable donations will create more upliftment is a false premise. Don't get me wrong, charities do serve a function. But most of the human suffering emanates from greedy politics, corruption, and dumb policies. Most of the world problems can't be solved with capital alone. Poor African countries, for instance, have received trillion dollars in aid, and yet because of the incompetence of their leaders, poverty is still wide-spread. I don't think if billionaires doubled their donations, it'll create a change the situation significantly. [1]: https://shubhamjain.co/2016/10/02/fallacy-of-hating-the-rich/ https://shubhamjain.co/2016/10/02/fallacy-of-hating-the-rich...

chesimov 9y ago
I wish to confirm what you have written about African countries. I speak about sub-saharan Africa here. Even without donations Africa has enormous unrealised wealth and potential (minerals, gas, agricultural potential). Geopolitically also well positioned. With the exception of places like Nigeria, also comparatively underpopulated. Money is not the main problem here - an educated populace and strong institutions like proper independent courts, etc are needed. Without them, a very predictable form of feudalism emerges frighteningly fast. The west does work differently, but there are important lessons to be learned by watching what's happening here.
CryptoPunk 9y ago
I haven't watched it yet, but Poverty Inc is a documentary that makes the case that aid does more harm than good: https://www.povertyinc.org https://www.povertyinc.org
oligopoly 9y ago
Often the aid does more harm than good and actually keeps the very people in position of power that are corrupt. The Dictator's Handbook: Why Bad Behavior is Almost Always Good Politics[0] examines the very phenomenon. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11612989-the-dictator-s-handbook https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11612989-the-dictator-s-...
- bayonetz 9y ago
  Awesome book. I find the lessons apply at all levels of leadership and influence, i.e., from running a country to running a high school clique. I worked in Africa under PEPFAR/CDC and can confirm, like 5% on average of that aid actually reaches the intended targets and has the intended impacts. The rest is siphoned off and diverted to the dictators and their coalitions (as defined by the book, the people actually keeping the dictator in power, not the populace).
Mz 9y ago
Diet for a Small Planet also found that at the time the book was written, there were no countries incapable of feeding their people. Starvation mostly had roots in political problems, including civil war. It wasn't due to an absolute lack if food. Sending food to starving countries often isn't a panacea. Frequently, the same political problems that caused the starvation in the first place prevent the food from getting distributed to the people who most need it. If it does get distributed, it can change the tastes of locals, who will now want to purchase a Western diet that they can't really afford. This leads to more hunger as people reject a diet of affordable local traditional foods and spend money on meat and wheat and other products beyond their means. The first half of the book is a political piece. The second half is a vegetarian cookbook. It is one of the best books I have read.

chesimov 9y ago

I wish to confirm what you have written about African countries. I speak about sub-saharan Africa here. Even without donations Africa has enormous unrealised wealth and potential (minerals, gas, agricultural potential). Geopolitically also well positioned. With the exception of places like Nigeria, also comparatively underpopulated. Money is not the main problem here - an educated populace and strong institutions like proper independent courts, etc are needed. Without them, a very predictable form of feudalism emerges frighteningly fast. The west does work differently, but there are important lessons to be learned by watching what's happening here.

CryptoPunk 9y ago

I haven't watched it yet, but Poverty Inc is a documentary that makes the case that aid does more harm than good: https://www.povertyinc.org https://www.povertyinc.org

oligopoly 9y ago

Often the aid does more harm than good and actually keeps the very people in position of power that are corrupt. The Dictator's Handbook: Why Bad Behavior is Almost Always Good Politics[0] examines the very phenomenon. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11612989-the-dictator-s-handbook https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11612989-the-dictator-s-...

bayonetz 9y ago
Awesome book. I find the lessons apply at all levels of leadership and influence, i.e., from running a country to running a high school clique. I worked in Africa under PEPFAR/CDC and can confirm, like 5% on average of that aid actually reaches the intended targets and has the intended impacts. The rest is siphoned off and diverted to the dictators and their coalitions (as defined by the book, the people actually keeping the dictator in power, not the populace).

Mz 9y ago

Diet for a Small Planet also found that at the time the book was written, there were no countries incapable of feeding their people. Starvation mostly had roots in political problems, including civil war. It wasn't due to an absolute lack if food. Sending food to starving countries often isn't a panacea. Frequently, the same political problems that caused the starvation in the first place prevent the food from getting distributed to the people who most need it. If it does get distributed, it can change the tastes of locals, who will now want to purchase a Western diet that they can't really afford. This leads to more hunger as people reject a diet of affordable local traditional foods and spend money on meat and wheat and other products beyond their means. The first half of the book is a political piece. The second half is a vegetarian cookbook. It is one of the best books I have read.