[justinhj]

Isn't this a chicken and egg problem? Corruption generally thrives where people are poor. In the normal course of their daily lives the government cannot save them from starving or from disease. So with no legitimate safety net you may have to fall to crime to keep your family healthy and fed. Maybe you rob someone, or maybe you take bribes at work. If a charity comes in and provides what you need it is no longer an easy choice to fall to crime. I'm not naive enough to think it's this simple at all, but you do have to start somewhere.

[themartorana]

Is it people are poor, or poor in comparison to the appetites of the ruling class? I look at Russia - not rich, per se, but not exactly Third World - but corruption there is as open as it can be. But even if Russia has a majority "First World" middle class, the appetites of the ruling class are in the billions of dollars. The difference between the middle class and the oligarchy is probably more dichotomous than in third world nations.