Others might argue that you should treat all children in the world equally, but these people are unwise. Priorities should exist and a delicate balance must be struck. Parents should generously donate resources and plan fastidiously to aid their children, aiming to keep intact for their children the struggles and challenges that inspire growth and real responsibility.

So I made sure my kids had everything they needed and some things they didn’t. I also made sure they knew how lucky they were, which, in Jewish mother fashion, probably made them feel guilty.

For us, it was a “when we had it to give, we gave” situation. We helped others as much as possible, and still do.

It’s tricky finding the right balance, Adam. In a perfect world, all children would have what they need. This is not a perfect world.

Now my grandchildren, that’s harder. I want them to have everything there little hearts desire.

Historically, while there are and have been occasional (and sometimes phenomenal) successes in global health, those successes have been few and far between. That trend seems to be changing thanks to people like Gates and Farmer, and programs like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria, and the Measles Initiative.

I still think that more emphasis needs to be placed on the impact that initiatives such as immunization campaigns are having on health systems in developing countries. After all, the goal should not be to increase immunizations, per se. It should be to decrease suffering, and increase health.

“So the next time you’re tempted to justify your failure to help needy children by saying it would reduce what you provide for your kids, remember that in choosing to give your children a play kitchen set, or to take them to the museum, you’re choosing to let God get diphtheria (assuming, of course, that were you to pay the $100, the immunization would have been effective in preventing diphtheria because there would have been health workers in place to administer the vaccines, and refrigeration equipment in working condition to keep the vaccines effective, and a health system in place so that the other vaccines in the series could be administered in the future as required, and hundreds of other donors to cover the cost of mass vaccinations, and a local ministry of health that will ensure that your sudden influx of money will not drain human capacity from other important public health programs such as AIDS and maternal health, and monitoring policies to ensure that the funds are used without significant corruption, and epidemiologists trained to track adverse side effects of immunizations).”

I agree with your premise, that Christians should view everyone as Christ does. In real life practice, however, it’s much more complicated than choosing between a kitchen play set and getting a shot.

Personally, I think that humanitarian work and charity needs to be more systematic, evidence-based, and results oriented.

Either way, the $10 will be spent. That’s the logical fallacy in the “my consumption creates jobs” — the needy or the charities we give money to will spend it, creating jobs too. The only difference between giving money to a needy person and buying him a hot dog is whether we or them determine how the money is spent. (We’ve already decided the needy person is the beneficiary.) That is just a judgment call. I’d give money to a person I thought would use the money responsibly because they better know their needs, and would give them non-fungible aid when I think I know their needs better than they do.

88. Thanks Chad, that’s a great point. I guess I just don’t want us to get all “zero-sum” when we think about how resources are used. It is unfortunate that there isn’t more free trade with the African continent. I think one of the best things that could happen for Africa would be for Europe to stop subsidizing its agriculture so heavily.

As an aside, there is an interesting thread on this sort of theme over at the Freakonomics blog. The basic question is as follows: if you have $10 do you give it to the panhandler on the corner or buy a hot dog from the vendor on the corner–or do you buy the hot dog and then give it to the panhandler as M. Evans might prefer?