"The Locust Effect" by Hauden and Boutros. A Review
I have been a financial supporter of International Justice Mission (IJM) since around 2006 and have known about Gary Haugen’s aim and work throughout those years. I have been most attracted to IJM’s work toward legally ending sex trafficking and human trafficking. So, I was delighted when IJM sent me a gratis copy of this 384-page paperback, “The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence” written and published by Haugen (founder and president of IJM) and Victor Boutros. I didn’t ask for it but am grateful it was sent, and so decided I would do a short review. It essentially lays out the reasons behind IJM’s purpose but has much broader application. The first chapters are tough going because of the real-life stories of brutal injustice recounted. The remainder of the work explains why most of our poverty alleviation projects have minimal results. It’s primarily due to the lack of a viable and valuable criminal justice system in the vast majority of...