Misallocation Quotes
His definition of foreign aid given in this quotation is a classic example of political rhetoric. It is exaggerated somewhat, but basically true. The poor in America do not really pay much in taxes that would pay for foreign aid. However the middle class does. In the foreign counties much of the foreign aid money gets siphoned off by graft and corruption which is inevitably dominated by some of the rich of the country. Even if the money is spent without any graft or bribery, materials have to be procured and labor has to be supplied and foreign rich people own the companies which make the profits selling goods, labor and services to the foreign aid projects. In some nations the rich had set up a two-tier pricing for their products and services. One for normal business and commerce; a higher one for foreign aid projects.
Paul wanted to abolish the Federal Reserve Board. This is a political viewpoint that goes back to the Founding Fathers debates about a national bank. Andrew Jackson terminated the national bank and later the concept of the Federal Reserve Bank took its place.
He observed that Saudi Arabia was the only oil rich country that at least modernized itself in spite of the amount wasted on corruption. Bandar’s point was that the bribes enabled the country to transform itself and without the bribes, modernization would have been impossible as in other oil counties.
At a 1935 New York City hearing into the operations of the city Relief Administration during the great depression. He was asked what he taught the relief recipients to do in his training program. He then explained that this was the old pioneer designation for weaving ropes and similar handicrafts. The phrase has been used ever since in politics. See Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
