I am sure that it is often trying to be married to an economist. I used to carpool with an economist who one day told me he had upset his wife because he had questioned one of her friend's charitable activities. It seems that she would spend countless hours and money making quilts for the homeless. My friend pointed out that if she truly wanted to help the homeless stay warm, she should take the hours she spent on the quilt and work at McDonald's instead. In doing so she would earn enough to buy several mass-produced sleeping bags that would be far more effective in keeping the homeless warm. Needless to say, this suggestion was not taken in the spirit in which it was intended.

Today I realized that my friend was merely channeling Gordon Tullock.

"[i]n my classes I commonly tell my students that if they really want to help the poor what they should do is get two jobs, work as hard as they possibly can, and then give all their income except the minimum amount that they need to stay alive to the inhabitants of India. They normally object to this pattern of behavior, but are normally not willing to admit that the reason they object is simply that they do not really feel that charitable."*

Gordon Tullock, "The Charity of the Uncharitable," Western Economic Journal 9 (1971): 387.