What does you gut instinct say about a lawyer who is paid an average of a quarter of a million dollars for a year’s work in which e puts an average of 2 innocent people in jail for six years each and donates on average 2% of er income (5000 dollars) to buying mosquito nets for third world children, saving on average 10 lives?
My gut instinct says “2*6 years of OECD citizen freedom > 10*45 years of sub-Saharan African lifespan”. Not sure where my point of indifference is. Note that I’m making a very charitable assumption as to how much a mosquito net extends lifespans; typically interventions like this just keep you alive long enough to hit your next emergency.
I’m sorry, this is ambiguous. Does “this” refer to the second half of your post, my post, or both?
Stepping through some of the math, in case others are interested:
Assume the people in question earn the median American salary- 6 years of not working is 2*6*$32k=$384k, and add on the cost of imprisoning them: 2*6*$22k=$264k. So the lawyer is doing damage to the tune of $648,000, and in return is putting $5,000 (that’s .77%) to use saving people. Let’s assume they’re earning, say, the Liberian per capita GDP (which is generally higher than median income) of $424, and again make the charitable assumption that the $5000 converts into 450 years of lifespan. We’ve added $190,800 by keeping them alive.
Net dollar loss: $457k. So this lawyer’s participation in the system is eating half a million dollars per year; is that worth “extended lives in Liberia”—“imprisoned years in America”? I strongly suspect not.
My gut instinct says “2*6 years of OECD citizen freedom > 10*45 years of sub-Saharan African lifespan”. Not sure where my point of indifference is. Note that I’m making a very charitable assumption as to how much a mosquito net extends lifespans; typically interventions like this just keep you alive long enough to hit your next emergency.
This is the kind of response I want: one that doesn’t say “damn the numbers”.
I’m sorry, this is ambiguous. Does “this” refer to the second half of your post, my post, or both?
Stepping through some of the math, in case others are interested:
Assume the people in question earn the median American salary- 6 years of not working is 2*6*$32k=$384k, and add on the cost of imprisoning them: 2*6*$22k=$264k. So the lawyer is doing damage to the tune of $648,000, and in return is putting $5,000 (that’s .77%) to use saving people. Let’s assume they’re earning, say, the Liberian per capita GDP (which is generally higher than median income) of $424, and again make the charitable assumption that the $5000 converts into 450 years of lifespan. We’ve added $190,800 by keeping them alive.
Net dollar loss: $457k. So this lawyer’s participation in the system is eating half a million dollars per year; is that worth “extended lives in Liberia”—“imprisoned years in America”? I strongly suspect not.
Your post! I am very pleased that someone examined their gut reaction to my scenario with numbers. :)
Then I’m glad I asked, because I read that the other way first and my first draft reflected that :P