Competition can be useful

Excerpts from The Sin in Doing Good Deeds 
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF ( NY Times ) 
Published: December 24, 2008

One breast cancer charity that parted ways with Mr. Pallotta began producing its own fund-raising walks, but the net sum raised by those walks for breast cancer research plummeted from $71 million to $11 million, he says.

Mr. Pallotta argues powerfully that the aid world is stunted because groups are discouraged from using such standard business tools as advertising, risk-taking, competitive salaries and profits to lure capital.

“We allow people to make huge profits doing any number of things that will hurt the poor, but we want to crucify anyone who wants to make money helping them,” Mr. Pallotta says. “Want to make a million selling violent video games to kids? Go for it. Want to make a million helping cure kids of cancer? You’re labeled a parasite.”

If you know me then you know I don’t care about money. But $71 million to $11 million? Let the man make $300,000 if he can get cancer researchers $60 million more.