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The world is simultaneously awash in opportunity and tragedy. Those of us who possess much have moral responsibilities to those who possess little. But massive new international schemes incorporating vast new resource transfers are a discredited throwback to the past rather than a sophisticated vision for the future.
The best, most creative and efficacious aid is privately conceived, raised, and provided. The poor will always be with us. But people willing to give both generously and thoughtfully can reduce the number of the poor in the future.
Doug Bandow is a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute. Co-editor of Perpetuating Poverty: The World Bank, the IMF, and the Developing World, he is a member of the Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy.