Want a NOOK? Explore Now
From one of the world’s best-known development economists—an excoriating attack on the tragic hubris of the West’s efforts to improve the lot of the so-called developing world
In his previous book, The Elusive Quest for Growth, William Easterly criticized the utter ineffectiveness of Western organizations to mitigate global poverty, and he was promptly fired by his then-employer, the World Bank. The White Man’s Burden is his widely anticipated counterpunch—a brilliant and blistering indictment of the West’s economic policies for the world’s poor. Sometimes angry, sometimes irreverent, but always clear-eyed and rigorous, Easterly argues that we in the West need to face our own history of ineptitude and draw the proper conclusions, especially at a time when the question of our ability to transplant Western institutions has become one of the most pressing issues we face.
In contrast to the typically well-meaning but allegedly always injurious "planners," the heroes of Easterly's book are those whom he calls "searchers." The division between the planners and the searchers, as seen by Easterly, could not be sharper: "In foreign aid, Planners announce good intentions but don't motivate anyone to carry them out; Searchers find things that work and get some reward. Planners raise expectations but take no responsibility for meeting them; Searchers accept responsibility for their actions. Planners determine what to supply; Searchers find out what is in demand. Planners apply global blueprints; Searchers adapt to local conditions. Planners at the top lack knowledge of the bottom; Searchers find out what the reality is at the bottom. Planners never hear whether the planned got what it needed; Searchers find out whether the customer is satisfied." The radical oversimplification in this overdrawn contrast leads Easterly to a simple summary of his book's thesis in its subtitle — Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good — which supplements a title borrowed from Rudyard Kipling's lyrical paean to high-minded imperialism.
| Ch. 1 | Planners versus searchers | 3 |
| Pt. I | Why planners cannot bring prosperity | |
| Ch. 2 | The legend of the big push | 37 |
| Ch. 3 | You can't plan a market | 60 |
| Ch. 4 | Planners and gangsters | 112 |
| Pt. II | Acting out the burden | |
| Ch. 5 | The rich have markets, the poor have bureaucrats | 165 |
| Ch. 6 | Bailing out the poor | 210 |
| Ch. 7 | The healers : triumph and tragedy | 238 |
| Pt. III | The white man's army | |
| Ch. 8 | From colonialism to postmodern imperialism | 269 |
| Ch. 9 | Invading the poor | 311 |
| Pt. IV | The future | |
| Ch. 10 | Homegrown development | 341 |
| Ch. 11 | The future of western assistance | 367 |
Anonymous
Posted August 13, 2008
Dr.William Easterly convincingly decimates the falsehoods perpetrated by the so called aid-establisment.He enunciates the much more important role of knowledge(compared to money) in poverty-eradication and uses his erudition to demonstrate how ignorant the world really is about this hot-button issue.I highly recommend this book.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 12, 2008
This book underscores the need for pragmatism in helping the poor and financially distressed.The author's remarks are very perceptive and his knowledge tremendous in the correct sense of the term.Extremely Impressive!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 11, 2008
`The White Man¿s Burden¿ speaks volumes about Dr.William Easterly¿s clear-eyed realism and his remarkable ability and courage to highlight the potential shortcomings of foreign aid. Dr.Easterly¿s book is immensely important and valuable.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 9, 2008
A practical approach to cure the menace of poverty Dr.Easterly's insights are truly thought provoking. Dr.Easterly has the rare skill to hit the nail on the head.A book that simply cannot be ignored.Please read it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 16, 2008
Dr.W.Easterly helps us scratch the surface and brings out the pitfalls in our understanding of the problems in the developing world.The panacea he suggests is based on rigorous research and hard facts,not fuzzy or incomplete information.'The White Man's Burden' is an *irrefutably* *indispensable* piece of work.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 6, 2008
I highly recommend this book to one and all,especially the philanthropists who often put the cart before the horse in their attempt to help the financially-deprived.This is not just another book,this is a potential remedy to the ills of poverty.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 18, 2007
At the World Economic Forum in 2007, author William Easterly gave the audience some distressing news: The $2.3 trillion in aid sent to Africa since the 1950s had done nothing to increase Africa's GDP. It had been largely a waste of money. Bill Gates, who was sitting next to Easterly that day, admonished the author for focusing on narrowly economic benchmarks: 'You don't eat GDP,' Gates said petulantly. Easterly's riposte came a few days later in The Wall Street Journal, where he chided the world's richest college dropout for missing 'the economics class that listed the components of GDP, such as food.' Readers who enjoy such debates will love this acerbic, clearheaded book. Easterly, a former World Bank economist who is fervently committed to global prosperity, demolishes the myths that prop up ineffective efforts to help developing nations. He points his wrecking-ball at photo-op celebrities and utopian economists who feel that big plans and big aid budgets will eventually build big economies (the last 50 years of contrary evidence notwithstanding). Ah, you say, at least they are trying to do something good, while many others simply watch the impoverished world's agony in dismay. Instead, the author argues, only alternative, pinpointed aid tactics can succeed, but only if they use local knowledge and implementation. We recommend this to anyone interested in economic development and emerging markets, and to lovers of intelligent polemic on issues that matter.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted April 3, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted November 11, 2008
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted December 27, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted December 6, 2010
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 11, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
From one of the world’s best-known development economists—an excoriating attack on the tragic hubris of the West’s efforts to improve the lot of the so-called developing world
In his previous book, The Elusive Quest for Growth, William Easterly criticized the utter ineffectiveness of Western organizations to mitigate global poverty, and he was promptly fired by his then-employer, the World Bank. The White Man’s Burden is his widely anticipated counterpunch—a brilliant and ...