Easterly wins, hands down. Sachs' motivations are of course decent and humane (as I'd hope those of all are); but completely ignores the reality that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Even when the aid distribution bureaucracy allows some amount of money to flow; what *does* flow is sapped off by the oft-corrupt local officials in the clear majority case. Sachs doesn't even address this obvious truth.

I'd like to know how much of each 100 cents of each aid dollar actually arrives to its supposed beneficiary. Two, perhaps? Less? How long *after* the need arises does it take those two cents to get there? Keep in mind that suffering is immediate.

Easterly is further correct in that this allocation of current aid funds impedes our abilities to do other things.

We should start thinking about how to change the current "throw money at it" foreign aid policies and with what it should be replaced. It is obvious that the administration of these dollars has -- in and of itself -- become a cottage industry; utterly useless and counterproductive as it may be.