New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing cash payments to reward “good” behavior by the city’s poor. In yesterday’s Times Magazine, James Traub comments that, given the intense political disagreement about the causes and cures of poverty, this kind of incrementalism may be one of the few politically-feasible approaches:
The whole thing is reminiscent of a famous maxim coined by Daniel Patrick Moynihan: “The central conservative truth is that it is culture, not politics, that determines the success of a society. The central liberal truth is that politics can change a culture and save it from itself.” The central Bloombergian truth may be that in the absence of serious political energy, a modest appeal to self-interest will have to do.
Years ago, one of my son’s Scout leaders had some advice for him about how to achieve the daunting goal of becoming an Eagle Scout: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
Leave a Reply