Everywhere a Hammer on a Nail  by | 4.1.2009 at 1:18pm | 53
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Children in school  When holding a hammer in your hand, every
problem can look like a nail. Dambisa Moyo’s book Dead Aid gives
fresh meaning to this old adage, applying the perspective of a
top-tier investment banker to the plight of the poorest people
in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Economist recently panned the book by
likening it to caricature. The underlying weaknesses are found
in both its diagnosis and prescription.  On the diagnostic side,
Moyo’s very selective use and misuse of evidence leads to a
blanket condemnation of the entire aid process. The book flogs
the time-honored marketing technique of throwing out big
aggregate numbers to try to intimidate readers. “A trillion
dollars” are said to have been wasted in Africa over the past 60
years, with no results to show. The analytical rigor is roughly
equivalent to writing a history of the countless billions of
dollars worth of shady Pen