Olasky, The Tragedy of American Compassion

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Marvin Olasky and Amy Sherman, The Tragedy of American Compassion. Crossway Books, 2008.

Referenced in: Christian Perspectives on Economics and Public Policy

LifeandLeadership.com Summary

Olasky is an economist from the University of Texas, and is regarded as the originator of the term “compassionate conservative.” In this book, he says neither free markets nor welfare-by-government provisions alone provide truly compassionate solutions to social problems. Instead, he harkens back to those in the late 19th century and as far back as the colonial era who, when confronted with widespread social need, addressed poverty by personal aid and one-to-one hospitality. Theirs was a “warm-hearted but hard-headed” philosophy that believed the slothful should suffer, but those willing to shape up should receive rapid and generous aid. As individuals practiced this genuine compassion toward the deserving, towns organized relief to assist their efforts, but always with accountability measures. Olasky adeptly describes how the creation of the welfare-state since the late 1800s has actually replaced this purer form of generosity with a detached and demoralizing multi-generational dependency on entitlements that do little to restore dignity and industriousness to those served. Alongside this is a growing cynicism among those who oversee the distribution of that institutionalized aid. By contrast, the generosity of the previous eras was marked by seven attributes: affiliation, bonding, categorization, discernment, employment, freedom, and God. He discusses how individuals, charitable groups, and even government programs can and should be reconceived and restructured to reflect these same values.

Critics of Olasky argue that his proposals are unrealistic. Also, his ideas became so subsumed under the Bush administration’s “compassionate conservative” campaigns that they were lost to many social liberals who may have been more prone to actually live out Olasky’s dream than the political conservatives who articulated it. Regardless of one’s reactions to Olasky’s affiliations and shortcomings, his proposals on genuine generosity are excellent. They provide only one piece of the puzzle of a just society, but a crucial piece nonetheless. It is perhaps for this reason Olasky’s endorsers include such champions of social justice as John Perkins (see Editoral Reviews below). Church leaders who are serious about ministries of social compassion should familiarize themselves with The Tragedy of American Compassion.

Publisher’s Product Description

The fifteenth anniversary reissue of this groundbreaking book has a new foreword and preface to encourage a new generation in a historically and biblically based approach to welfare. William J. Bennett once called it “the most important book on welfare and social policy in a decade. Period.” It influenced the Clinton Administration’s welfare reform and deeply affected then-Governor George W. Bush’s policies in Texas. But with the war on terror, the ideas in The Tragedy of American Compassion have taken a backseat.

Because it is based on historical successes and ancient wisdom, however, Tragedy is as timeless as ever. Marvin Olasky’s groundbreaking book turns on its head both conventional history and rhetoric, showing that America’s volunteer poverty-fighters were often more effective than our recent professionalized corps. His research also reveals that the real problem of modern welfare is not its cost but its stinginess in offering the true necessities: challenging, personal, and spiritual aid rather than entitlement and bureaucracy. So this book is now being reissued with new front matter to prepare a new generation of Americans to offer help that actually helps and to effectively confront once again the establishment that still impoverishes the impoverished. Foreword by Amy Sherman.

Editorial Reviews

“One of the 50 most influential policy books of all time.” — Policy.com

“A richly documented, controversial history of the welfare state.” — Publishers Weekly

“Significant changes in government social welfare policy have unfolded since The Tragedy of American Compassion emerged in 1992-just think about the paradigm-shifting federal welfare reform of 1996. Both the book’s critics and its promoters would argue that Olasky’s ideas mattered and gave shape, to some degree, to some of those changes.” — Amy L. Sherman, Senior Fellow, Sagamore Institute for Policy Research

“Those who read and understand Olasky’s work will be better prepared to move creatively in affirming the dignity of the poor, and in affirming work as a virtue.” — John M. Perkins, President, John M. Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation and Development

“For domestic policy understanding, no better book recommends itself than Marvin Olasky’s splendid The Tragedy of American Compassion.” — Orange County Register

“One of eight books that changed America.’” — Philanthropy

“Illuminating.” — Colorado Gazette-Telegraph

“Fascinating.” — Wall Street Journal

“There is no disagreement between liberals and conservatives about whether to help the lot of the poor, but there is grave disagreement about how to help them, especially because the wrong kind of ‘help’ is more likely to harm. In The Tragedy of American Compassion, Marvin Olasky shows that although government can assist the merciful efforts of persons, organizations, and communities of faith, it cannot take their place.” — J. Budziszewski, Professor of Government and Philosophy, University of Texas at Austin; Author of What We Can’t Not Know: A Guide

“A comprehensive, well documented, and much needed study of the decline of true compassion that provides fresh analysis and provocative insight into the causes and cures of this American tragedy. Must reading for people who want to understand and help correct the plight of hurting people.” — Anthony T. Evans, Founder, The Urban Alternative

About the Author

Marvin Olasky (PhD, American Culture, University of Michigan) is a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, vice president for academic affairs at The King’s College in New York, and editor-in-chief of World Magazine. He has been interviewed numerous times by the national media as the developer of the concepts of compassionate conservatism and biblically objective journalism and is the author of twenty books.

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