The Singer Solution to World Poverty

The Singer Solution to World Poverty is a paper about giving money, how and what you're using your money on, and where it goes to. It talks about two stories: a woman named Dora who is in need of money, sells a boy to an adopter for $1000. To Dora, this buys her a new TV, and she can live in comfort. Her neighbor, however, spoils the fun by telling her that the boy will be killed and his organs to be sold. Dora then sleeps on it, and decides to take the boy back. Another story brought up is a story about Bob, and his valued car. He sees a boy on a rail road track about to be runover by a run away train. If Bob redirects the track, it will hit his valued Bugatti, but will not kill the boy. He decides to keep his car, and the boy is killed. The story compares these two stories and compares greed and generosity. Many sees Bob as an evil man, while Dora is the more soft-hearted woman who cares for kids. However, That Bugatti could've been sold to provide for Bob's life after retirement, which is similar to how we spend our income on TV's and other non-necessities rather than sending it to charity.

"If you still think that it was wrong of Bob not to throw the switch that would have diverted the train and saved the child's life, then it is hard to see how you could deny that it is also very wrong not to send money to one of the organizations listed above. Unless, that is, there is some morally important difference between the two situations that I have overlooked."

"Are you therefore obliged to keep giving until you have nothing left? At what point can you stop?"

I agree with the author in the paper. Really, when will you give enough money where you will not be greedy? In the story, Americans who buy fancy clothes just because it is out of fashion, and going out to beach resorts are portrayed as greedy because that money could've saved many children. If you skipped one month's worth of dining out, you could save a life of a child. But at what point will you be able to call your self generous and not greedy? If this were the case, many many people, if not all of Punahou would be greedy. But we all know that we are not ALL greedy. Sure, some people are greedy, but not everyone is, so what is the dividing line?