Charity Can Be Crippling

Author Linda Brady Traynham

I wrote, recently, over on Whiskey and Gunpowder, about why I am so opposed to US government aid to Haiti. It isn’t our country, we have no strategic interest there–not even Kruschev thought it worth putting missile silos on–and we have been flinging billions at those people since the time of Woodrow Wilson without doing the least bit of good to anyone much other than Papa Doc, Baby Doc, and similar warlords.

That does not mean that I am opposed to attempts to help others in time of tragedy. I means, quite simply, that I am against using scarce tax dollars to fund such largesse and doing it in ways which will not bring true change.

Americans pride ourselves on our big hearts and are universally reviled for our attempts to help others. Hugo Chavez, for example, is railing against putting troops in the local airport! Well, Hugo doesn’t have a great deal of experience in doing good, and it is always nice to secure the landing zone for ‘planes full of goodies those with a history (for over 200 years) of violence want. Publisher Michael Rough commented today that the “aid” we are providing will exceed the normal standard of living in Haiti.

My question is still…why? It’s a tropical island! The half on the other side of the mountains has been successful, even granting that it is on the right side of the fault line. The classic example of messing up a simple agrarian economy with a great tourist attraction is Cuba. Fidel Castro did a brilliant job, and his doddering brother, Raul, is holding on to power. Pass enough laws and regulations, put troops in the streets, and kill enough people…and I’m starting to think of the way America is going. The Dominican Republic is heavily forested at 25%. Haiti is down to 4% between clearing land for banana trees (did they all die?) and perhaps instead of begging from tourists the locals could try replanting or make shell pictures or catch fish.

The difference in the Haitian lifestyle is cultural, and the worst thing we can do is lead Haitians to suppose that Uncle Sugar is going to continue to fill in the gap. Another cultural difference is that the American people had raised over $210,000,000, yes, two hundred and ten million dollars, privately a day or two ago. An international organization promised a hundred milliion (most of which probably came from us), and the rest of the world just goes its merry way, holding that only Amis are dumb enough to give their money to strangers.

What should we do instead–if anything? My hard-hearted view is that charity begins at home and that there are American citizens who could make a great deal more out of a very little bit of assistance. Sure, I feel sorry for those caught in earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, volcano eruptions, and tsunamis, but I help people one at a time and ask only that they, in turn, help someone else when they are able. THAT is the traditional American way, and a great deal more effective than the “entitlement” system.

Another suggestion, given individual resources, is to go help ourselves. If you have the time and the money, go to Haiti. Plant gardens. Teach a skill. No, not another government program like the Peace Corps (a pretty universal flop, as all government programs are) but a case of “each one teach one.” A few retired entrepreneurs…a few people with skills to teach those who are scarcely out of the Stone Age, and who knows what could be accomplished? Even India has managed to learn to use treadle sewing machines and make items by hand which are saleable worldwide. What Haiti has is beautiful weather (not counting hurricane season, of course!), the ocean, arable land, and a very large potential work force. I have difficulty thinking as a philanthropist because I’m more of an Ayn Rand Trader and a Survivalist, but for those who have the means and are really touched by the plight of the Haitians, instruction is far better than an MRE and money.

When will we learn? You can’t just throw money at problems. Money doesn’t buy happiness; it only buys great toys and short term solutions. What Haiti needs is education, capitalism, and something to encourage the inhabitants to believe that a better life is possible. All you get from feeding the starving is another, larger generation of those who will produce nothing other than even more big-eyed, starving children. If we haven’t learned from the unsustainable disaster of the “Great” society, the least we could do is not export it to Haiti. If you can offer genuine assistance, please do. If not, don’t make things worse.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 28th, 2010 at 10:55 am and is filed under Economics, Linda Brady Traynham, Opinion, Preparedness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.