Lori Pollock's The Royal Flush

"The Royal Flush" by Lori Pollock

As seen countless times in the history of the world, Western civilization has always perceived itself as being the light that shines upon the rest of the world, generous and kind in their quest to help others escape ignorance and poverty – only to later realize that this so-called “enlightenment”, with which they say to have illuminated other civilizations, has actually damaged these people in ways that can never be undone. In the short story The Royal Flush from 2013, Lori Pollock paints an all too accurate picture of how well meaning Westerners flock to developing countries with their own little missions of saving them, only to wreak havoc on the local communities instead.
In the beginning of the story, protagonist Lindsey

She thought she was helping – that’s what matters, isn’t it?
The answer to the above question depends on one’s stance on the matter of ethics. Some deontologists – adherents of the belief that one should act out of selfless duty – would deem Lindsey’s actions ethically correct, given that she carried them out with good intentions. However, others of the same belief might say that her wish to impress with her “act of sacrifice” makes her actions unethical, since this means that she did, in fact, not go into it with nothing but a selfless wish of bettering the lives of others.
All in all, the character of Lindsey accurately represents the foolishness with which many an action carried out by a well meaning – but gravely clueless – Westerner has been carried out. As exemplified by the colonization of America, Africa and other areas, in which many natives have either been killed, or from which they have had to flee due to unbearable terms set by the “enlighteners”, Western interference based on Western ethics, traditions or perceptions is scarcely well-executed and will often have devastating consequences for local communities – unless a drastic change of methods is on the