Meet Arya Gaduh

I've been enjoying a bit of blog-versation on one of my favorite blogs, "On Indonesia and the Economy". It's a ripe, heady blog that feeds my interest in economics as a behavioral indicator on a more global scale than what I could find on, say, cnn. At any rate, Indonesia being a Muslim country, the topic recently has turned to Ramandan, and one of the features of the season being helping the poor. A few postings have been made about begging. In it, Arya...pardon the pun....begs the question of who really benefits by giving to the poor: the poor, or the giver. During Ramandan, it is said that the generous are richly rewarded in heaven. But, the recipient is also a benefactor. Is there a way to quantifiably measure who benefits more? In this series of posts, I commented about an experience in New Delhi when the beggars - during the Hindu Diwali festival - went on strike, thereby preventing any potential donor from accumulating good karma. At any rate, if you are interested in some really good reading, soul-food style, and an appreciation of the economics of Indonesia in particular, by an incredibly well-read and well-writing blogger, check it out. Often.