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Slider comments on Can You Give Support or Feedback for My Program to Alleviate Poverty? - Less Wrong Discussion

10 Post author: Brendon_Wong 25 June 2015 11:18PM

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Comment author: OrphanWilde 26 June 2015 02:34:10PM 2 points [-]

From that perspective, your non-profit could be creating the illusion of progress - helping raise the people you work with in belize out of poverty, while simultaneously taking jobs from other, poverty stricken people in EG india.

The nature of wage markets means the jobs would tend to go to the worst-off people who can take the jobs, whose wage demands would be lowest, as they'd have the most to gain from a given wage (that is, they'd take the job for less money, because the money is more valuable to them). This isn't a bad thing, although it's usually presented as one, particularly by those whose wages would be undercut.

(This doesn't consider market barriers or interference, granted; for one example, a mountain village might have the most to gain, but be unable to offer competitive labor pricing owing to the cost of providing infrastructure.)

Comment author: Slider 27 June 2015 02:47:15PM 0 points [-]

While it is not bad for the system as a whole it can seem so for the previously isolated part of the market when considered separately. If you care 0 about foreigners that you don't interact with you might not notice their blight so starting to notice and then alleviate that isn't so conforting if you lose on a measure you have been caring all the time.