Compassion Misshapen: A Report

In the heart of the Pacific Ocean, an island next door to the Gilbert Islands, Nauru, became the richest place on earth due to its abundance of phosphate rock. The sudden wealth came as a gift, but the outcome was instructive. The Nauruans, amidst their newfound affluence, found themselves bored, listless, and consuming excessively, leading to health issues.

Across the globe, in the eastern African nation of Tanzania, the story was markedly different. Under the leadership of Julius Nyerere, a key figure in the spread of socialism, Tanzania embarked on a redistributive path. Nyerere nationalized banks, appropriated commercial farms, and controlled prices, aiming to create a more equitable society.

However, this approach had unintended consequences. Tanzania became dependent on food imports and foreign aid, with aid representing two-thirds of its foreign-exchange earnings. The regime provided opportunities for corruption, with political connections necessary to buy even basic goods like beer. The more impoverished Tanzania became, the greater the need for foreign aid, creating a vicious circle.

The redistributionist way of thinking denies agency to the poor, encouraging dependency and corruption. In Tanzania, peasants started growing meager amounts of corn for their own consumption due to derisory prices paid by paragovernmental procurement agencies. This led to a collapse in production and the pauperization of the population.

The speaker, who spent a few years in Tanzania, first started thinking about poverty when working as a doctor in the Gilbert Islands, a group of low coral atolls. Life in the Gilbert Islands taught the speaker a lively disrespect for per-capita GDP as an accurate measure of poverty. The speaker's experiences in these two contrasting environments highlight the complexities and challenges of addressing poverty and wealth inequality.

In Britain, the state's intervention in education in the 1870s reduced the capacity and inclination of people to pay for their own choices. The state-dominated education system decided important things for British citizens, reducing the habit of making choices. This approach, while different from Nauru and Tanzania, also raises questions about the role of individual agency and responsibility in societal development.

The speaker was asked to speak on a panel about child poverty in Britain following the economic and financial crisis. The panel consisted of professional alleviators of the effects of social pathology, such as social workers and child psychologists. One panelist was the chief of a charity devoted to the abolition of child poverty, whose largest source of funds is the government.

In conclusion, the stories of Nauru, Tanzania, and Britain serve as cautionary tales about the complexities of wealth, poverty, and the role of government intervention. Each case provides valuable insights into the consequences of different approaches to addressing these issues, underscoring the need for thoughtful, nuanced policies that empower individuals while promoting equitable societies.