WHY DO WE PLAY GOD BY HELPING PEOPLE LIVE IN MISERY?

"We summarize the situation by saying: 'There is a shortage of food.' Why don't we say, 'There is a longage of people'? Garrett Hardin

Once more there is a clarion call to send food aid to Ethiopia, which is suffering its fifth major famine since 1958. As always, the remedy is thought to be the immediate provision of food by foreign sources, just as it was 25 years ago when Bob Geldoff led an international crusade to save starving children and adults in that foresaken nation. As a consequence, the population has since doubled from 40 to 81 million people, and now we are told that if we don't act now, 6.2 million Ethiopians will die of starvation before the New Year. Dr. Russell Hopfenberg has documented the validity of the Malthusian and Hardian insight that human beings, like the species Darwin observed, only grow their numbers when food is made more available, postponing the day of reckoning until an even greater number of people will return to exhaust food resources and then die. But the following observation confirms that comprehension is not exclusive to scientists. People with half a brain and a pair of functioning eyeballs can come to similar conclusions. Unless of course, their rational, scientific judgment and vision is impaired by religious obscurantism and soppy (in)'humane-itarianism'. Lo Fleming is one individual with a clear head:

"In a small rural village in Mexico they traditionally had many children, but because of the limited in advance in medicine most of the children would die. This was their culture. When their children would die the villagers would have beautiful funerals. It was sad, but beautiful and because of this there would be enough food for everyone in the village.

Years pass…the US steps in and they are horrified at the dying children. The funerals make everyone sad so the US decides to “help” the people in this small rural village, but they still have the same amount of children. Of course you can deduct what happened. There are too many people and not enough food. And so what do we in the US do again, we “fix it” by giving them food…

I don’t know…that story always seemed very cruel to me. If people had just left things alone, but how can you leave things alone. I think in America there is this thing that we feel we have to help everyone to be just like us, but we do it in this very half assed way.

It always seems to make things worse.

We always think we’re being nicer by saving people from death regardless of the quality of life. I would never want to play God with people, but who are we to play God by helping them live in misery."

Tim Murray, November 11/09

PS

I would rather be operated on by a cold calculating bastard of a surgeon with a heart of stone and steady hands, than a clumsy Good Samaritan gushing with good intentions who would cripple or kill me with his compassion. God save us from those with high-minded motives.

Canada's ultimatum to Africa, Afghanistan, Haiti and the Philippines, among others, should be: "No condoms, no food. Take it or leave it. We'll take our philanthropy elsewhere, to nations like Thailand or Madagascar who are serious about helping themselves. Get with the program or get off the gravy train!" And to Monbiot and the Green apologists: "Stop focusing on the greedy excesses of the rich in order to excuse the irresponsibility of the poor. Blame belongs to all of us. Climate change is not the only game in town. Habitat destruction, poaching and deforestation by the desperate billion rivals our sins of 'emission' in the affluent millions." TM