“I mean, I get the idea that money can never be transferred except in a leaky bucket, I accept that.”
Ok, say you have 10 bucks you want to go to helping “poor people”. You have some choices, let’s see what happens to the 10 bucks...
(1) You find a poor person yourself, and directly hand him the 10 bucks. 100% makes it to help a “poor person”. No leaks.
(2) You go to your local church or other local charity, and put 10 bucks in the “Help the Poor” fundraiser. Your local institution is small and honest, but it still has some modest administration costs. 50 cents of your 10 bucks goes toward these administration costs, and 9.50 goes to help the poor. You have a small leak.
(3) You give the 10 bucks through your employer’s United Way fundraising program. The United Way is international, large and corrupt. 5 bucks is siphoned off for “expenses”, and only 5 bucks goes “to help the poor”. You have a big leak.
(4) You give the 10 bucks to the Federal government when you pay your taxes on April 15th, with a note asking that the extra 10 bucks should be earmarked to help the poor. The 10 bucks is used to pay for a cursory review of your tax filings. Irregularities are found, an audit is conducted, and you are fined 100 dollars for your errors. You have just a bucket handle.
“I mean, I get the idea that money can never be transferred except in a leaky bucket, I accept that.”
The concede it but call it the leaky bucket to still have a hint of derision?
I have not heard the leaky bucket analogy, but I do have an echo from my youth:
There’s a Hole in the Bucket
There’s a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza,
There’s a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, a hole.
Then mend it, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Then mend it, dear Henry, dear Henry, mend it.
With what shall I mend it, dear Liza, dear Liza?
With what shall I mend it, dear Liza, with what?
With a straw, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
With a straw, dear Henry, dear Henry, with a straw.
The straw is too long, dear Liza, dear Liza,
The straw is too long, dear Liza, too long,
Then cut it, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Then cut it, dear Henry, dear Henry, cut it.
With what shall I cut it, dear Liza, dear Liza?
With what shall I cut it, dear Liza, with what?
With a knife, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
With a knife, dear Henry, dear Henry, with an knife.
The knife is too dull, dear Liza, dear Liza,
The knife is too dull, dear Liza, too dull.
Then sharpen it, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry
Then sharpen it, dear Henry, dear Henry, sharpen it.
On what shall I sharpen it, dear Liza, dear Liza?
On what shall I sharpen it, dear Liza, on what?
On a stone, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
On a stone, dear Henry, dear Henry, a stone.
The stone is too dry, dear Liza, dear Liza,
The stone is too dry, dear Liza, too dry.
Well wet it, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Well wet it, dear Henry, dear Henry, wet it.
With what shall I wet it, dear Liza, dear Liza?
With what shall I wet it, dear Liza, with what?
Try water, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Try water, dear Henry, dear Henry, water.
In what shall I fetch it, dear Liza, dear Liza?
In what shall I fetch it, dear Liza, in what?
In a bucket, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
In a bucket, dear Henry, dear Henry, a bucket.
There’s a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza,
There’s a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, a hole.
Use your head, then! dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Use your head, then! dear Henry, dear Henry, use your head!