When is Giving to the World's Poor is Bad

Everyone has heard the Christian Saying; "Do not give a man a fish, teach him to fish" and for the most part this wisdom cannot be debated. Thus, we are all careful in the US to not just give free-hand-outs, but rather assist individuals and groups get back on their feet. Feeding the World's poor is a monumental task. There are over 1 Billion people living in Urban Slums throughout the World and 2 more Billion people in the living on less than $1.00 per day.

We need to feed these people say the large non-profit groups. "We must feed the children and orphans, be a hero!" state the smaller non-profit groups promising to take your money and put it to good use. They show us horrific pictures in places like the Kibera, Nairobi, Kenya Super Slums that appeal to our inner need to help, so that we send them money.

But how much good are we doing if we send in the cash? If we send money to Africa, why not send it to Mexico City, Haiti or Central America, where there are 10s of millions of starving slum dwellers living in desperate situations. The reason, I believe is that we know about nearby local ethic poor, filth and the crime elements that typically go with slum situations, but we have no reference to those in far-away cultures with what goes on there. I submit that the issues are very similar.

If we give money to the World's poor without teaching them self-reliance, then we are not teaching them to fish. If we feed the World's poor they will out-produce more people faster than we can feed them and crash all the World's economies. I submit to you what is needed is temporary sterilization of those who take handouts and very careful giving. We need to teach them how to fish.

Simply giving aid, food and assistance only increase the number of people with their hands out and decreases their self-reliance in my opinion. I certainly hope this article is of interest and that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you.

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"Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington

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