Head, Heart, and Water Buffaloes

On Dec. 26, 2006, Phillip Greenspun posted an entry on his weblog entitled "Water Buffalo: Worst Possible Christmas Present Ever?" It seems that for Christmas, a friend had had a water buffalo given to a needy family in her name through Heifer International, a charitable organization dedicated to ending world hunger. Greenspun read the fine print on Heifer International's web site, however, and was disconcerted to discover a gift of $250 didn't actually purchase a water buffalo for a needy family. Instead, Heifer International explained,

Each purchase is symbolic and represents a contribution to the entire mission of Heifer International. Donations will be used where needed most to help struggling people.

Robert Thompson, who is living in China, read Greenspun's blog entry and was moved to ask local farmers if a water buffalo would, indeed, be a useful thing for a poor Chinese farmer to have. The answer was a resounding yes, and it led to Greenspun and Thompson collaborating to purchase one water buffalo for a needy family. Thompson also made a very moving short video, 4 Generations, which documents the process of buying and giving away the buffalo.

This story was then posted on Metafilter with the title "How Much is that Water Buffalo in the Window?" What is most interesting is the discussion which follows. Is Heifer International misleading the public? Did Greenspun and Thompson demonstrate the impact a couple of people can make when you cut through the bureaucracy and touch lives directly? Or is the counterpoint correct:

If you want to make a difference in the world at large, you work with large governmental and non-governmental organizations, shift policy and create systematic change. This is the kind of stuff Heifer.org's founders do/did. If you want to change one family's life and make it more interesting, and possibly more profitable, you give one water buffalo to one family and film it and make lots of 1st world viewers cry.

The issue is not an easy one to answer.