Make Poverty History

Many blogs have a cute little "corner banner" in the top-right corner of the screen encouraging people to "Make Poverty History" and linking them to the appropriate website. While I am sure these people are very sensitive and caring individuals, I have to wonder if they have really given any thought to the organization they are promoting. Do they really want to get behind this effort with these people?

If we are going to talk about persons living in poverty, we have to define who is poor and who is not. However, defining poverty is arbitrary to some degree because opinions clash on whether poverty should be defined in absolute terms (i.e., the inability to meet very basic needs) or in relative terms (i.e., distance from the community norm). In fact, upon closer examination, virtually all measures of low income are relative (except the most extreme), and they differ mainly in their underlying assumptions about how wide a gap should exist between "the poor" and fellow citizens within the same society. So, are these people promoting a goal of ensuring that everyone has the resources to meet very basic needs (a very noble goal, but unachievable) or do these people want a world where everyone has the same amount of stuff (an ignoble goal, and very much unachievable)?

The makers of the "Make Poverty History" website show which one of these is their goal on their "What we Want" tab where they say "The gap between the world's rich and poor has never been wider." These people are not measuring poverty in absolute terms, but in relative. The they believe that everyone should have the same amount of stuff. In other words, people who work harder and produce more should be forced to give the fruits of their labor to those who don't work as hard.

I believe we have seen that this kind of socialism is evil. Time and time again history show that when socialist regimes force their ideology on people, the enforcers become rich and everyone else becomes poorer. The producers move away or give up working so hard since there is no reward for it and thus, everyone sinks to the lowest common denominator. Where is the nobility in this kind of system? Where is the justice? Where is the fairness? The gap increases as there is no middle class and the powerful act in their own self interest to maintain their wealth and their power and this is what makes this goal unachievable.

So, all you people with "Make Poverty History" banners need to really sit down and consider if you want to support an evil and unattainable goal.

UPDATE

My brother properly has chastised me for this entry on his blog. This was a hastily written response intended to be directed mainly at the socialistic efforts of the particular website, "Make Poverty History," not those people who make personal decisions to sacrifice for the sake of others. While poverty will never be eradicated (making it an unattainable goal), that is not a good enough reason to ignore the problem. Poverty can be eradicated on an individual basis one person at a time and that is to be held in high honor. However, that change will not come just by giving money to the person. It takes personal interaction to teach and train someone how to not be poor. However, I am going off on a tangent. The people with "cute little banners" are supporting a socialistic organization who seeks to use the power of government to coerce others to achieve a goal that is best left up to individuals. I still think they need to really reconsider posting those banners. You can agree the goal of the organization but not the methods. By posting the "cute little banner" though, you are saying you agree with both the goals and the methods of this particular organization.