The Easy Way

We make the big problems harder than they need to be. Let’s start with hunger. How should we go about this? Well, let’s see…

This problem is important, so we better cooperate instead of compete.
It’s really important, so it just wouldn’t be right to get paid well to do it.
And resources are scarce. (Well, food isn’t, but still.) So right, scarcity, so we better make sure only the truly “deserving” get our attention.

But this is all crazy. Markets were made to solve exactly this type of problem in the most efficient way.

Look what happens when we give our neighbors cash:

We engage the market, where we compete and bring our A-game, instead of trying to figure it out after hours.
People who work on the problem can make money doing it, and a lot if they do it well.
Abundance is no longer wasted, and we focus our ability to innovate on the most important problems.

Give cash. It’s easy to do, and it solves the problem better than any of the alternatives.

Think about it. Other solutions must be tailored, and that makes them more expensive. Why might we be willing to pay that extra cost?

Exploitation: We take advantage of people’s time. But we’re not doing that anymore.
Coercion: We dangle help to win them to our faith or political position. But those wins don’t last. Let’s fill bellies and win with hearts and minds.
Paternalism: We think we know better than them what they need. But … it’s food and shelter!
Fear: We think they won’t actually spend it on their needs, and we’ll still have to solve the problem … essentially paying for it twice.

Not many of us are willing to justify the first two. The third one sounds silly, but it’s ok to look for more evidence. That fourth one could have legs. So look into it, again like your life depends on it. Because it does. We are wasting too much time, money, and cognitive bandwidth on the fallout from poverty. Before dismissing a simple solution, you want to be sure it won’t work. We’re convinced that it does. Look into the trials. Go meet someone living on the edge. If you give the poor a steady stream of cash, they’ll spend it wisely.