G8...

My dad forwarded an article to me condemning the G8. This was my response...

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An interesting article full of half truths and one-sidedness.

I agree, pop stars are stupid and should be the last place to go to get
informed on politics. Some of them never finished high school, most of them
never went to college, and all of them are either recovering alcoholics or
fomer drug users.

But, there are three main points that can be taken from the One Campaign
(www.onecampaign.com): 1) 6,500 people each day die from starvation in
Africa. This is an epidemic; 2) In the grander scheme of foreign war
fighting and globalized economies, the cost to end this epidemic is fairly
small (sending a child to school for a year with books in Africa is about
$15. Do a little math and you'll see just how many stealth fighters can save
this continent); 3) Africa has neither the ability nor the intracontinental
connectivity to end this epidemic. It is up to the other 5 populated
continents to help.

We don't have to do anything. Our economy won't fail, terrorism won't come
sprawling out of Niger to fly planes into American buildings, no, they're
too busy eating a square inch piece of rotten bread in a bug infested metal
shack hoping they won't die before the next nonexistent meal. I didn't
learn this because I blindly believed some rock star, I read and watched it
for myself... the rock star just brought it to my attention and I figured it
out on my own.

No educated mind looking at Africa can blame anyone but Africa for it's
problems. You could argue that because, like your article states, developed
nations gave the handouts for the Africans to squander with soaring
population and thus become more poor, we are partially to blame. I won't
even say THAT. I put the entire blame on sparring African tribes, a lack of
civil order within these poor countries and, yes, evil dictators supporting
corruption and self power (30 years of drought doesn't help either, but
that's God's fault).

Now I ask you this, since when was America into the doctrine of only fixing
problems that it is responsible for causing? If you ask the current
administration, America has never been responsible for fixing ANY problem
it's created because it hasn't created any! WWI, WWII, Vietnam... Jesus,
what about the Suez and Panama Canals? Their non existence was a problem
and we fixed it. And if you think we have nothing to gain from Africa
defeating it's poverty and starvation then just think about two things...
cheap raw materials and cheap labor.

And this population thing... telling a civilization it can't procreate is a
law against nature. You have to find a way to educate the people and let
them see the benefits of social change. Dubbyuh's into this doctrine of
spending $300 billion on social change, why not share HALF of that cost with
the rest of the world for a PEACEFUL solution simply to KEEP PEOPLE FROM
DYING? The benefits are more than monetary.

Your article is based on one principle, give money to a group of people to
pull them out of poverty and they procreate their way into more poverty. I
agree with that if a half assed donation is given to some uneducated
homeless man who has to decide what to do with it. That is not social
change, that's not promoting education and a better life. That's not what
this campaign is about. It is about, for once, responsible expenditures of
large, but reasonable amounts of humanitarian aid, medicines, food,
contracts to build basic needs for people, REAL support and pressure for
political change, and a progressive movement into the world economy.

Yes, you're right, we can do nothing. We can let hungry people die and
blame it on them. But as a moral person with a value for humanity I cannot
support such a selfish, self serving mentality.

H!