Foreign Aid

[Meng Bomin]

According to NationMaster.com, we give the second most econmic aid of any country, but we have one of the lowest amounts of economic aid per capita and per $GDP among the developed nations of the world.
Total Economic Aid (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
Economic Aid per capita (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
Economic Aid per $GDP (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
What do you guys think of this?

[RTShatto]

So what, we give the second most economic aid of any country, and most of the time those countries are ungrateful. We have the 3rd largest population on this planet, is China and India sending the most amount of economic aid (per capita) to other nations? Nope.

Its like whats going on inside the U.S. you want the government to give you money in forms of Social Security checks and in "universal medicare (when that comes out) etc, but people need to realise that when the government gives you money, you are giving them your freedom because they have a say in why they should give you there money.

So its like the world hates us because we boss people around, but if we give alot of money to other nations, dont we have a say in how that nation works?

[Meng Bomin]

But are China and India rich nations? We can afford to give much more than we do. One of the only reasons that we give as much as we do is because we are so big. This is why I hold the per $GDP info as the most telling of the group.

[mog]

So its like the world hates us because we boss people around, but if we give alot of money to other nations, dont we have a say in how that nation works?
I don't think the governments receiving aid are allowed to spend it in any way they like.

[chadn737]

Foriegn aid is worthless. Rarely does it do any good.

[Telex]

....what?

[Meng Bomin]

Actually, chad has a good point, foreign aid is basically a bribe, not necessarily a charitable contribution, as we can see is the case with Israel. The people of Israel have a higher standard of living than the surrounding countries, yet recieves more aid from the US.

[chadn737]

Govts have a funny way of srewing things up. I've already mentioned this in another thread, but about two or so years ago, we sent tons of grain to Zimbabwe or Zaire (maybe some other african country, Icant remember). They were currently having a serious drought and people were dropping like flies. The govt of that despotic country refused to give its starving masses the grain because they were GMOs. Perfect example how govts screw even the most innocent and humane acts.

[Andacanavar]

You talking about Mogadishu?

[chadn737]

No, I guess it was Zambia.

Heres the full story: To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.


Someone in the crowd pleaded: "Give us the food anyway, our government has no right to stop you."

"I don't think they are trying to protect the people because people are dying right now; they are starving," said Chinamanya.

"We are not afraid," said Chisanga. "What we want is food today, and if we die tomorrow, no problem. What we want is food."

[Meng Bomin]

Somehow I don't think that the Zambian is withholding the food because it is genetically modified...:(

[chadn737]

Regardless of the purpose, it reveals how govts can twist what is otherwise an attempt at saving millions. It shows how ineffective our attempts can be.

[Meng Bomin]

Most definitely.

[sjjs]

An old story, but I'm sure it's replicated today:

Prior to the first Iraq war Yemen voted against the resolution to attack Iraq in the UN. A senior American diplomat told the Yemeni ambassador, "That was the most expensive 'no' vote you ever cast" and within three days a US aid programme of $70m to one of the world's poorest countries was stopped. America (like most countries) does not give economic aid as a charitable act, it is all to do with bribery and reciprocity.

[mog]

Examples of that go back to 1947 when the Phillipines was told that if it didn't vote for Jew/Arab partition in Palestine it would not receive aid.

[Telex]

It may be for the wrong reasons, but foreign aide still makes a difference to those countries. Saying that the aide rarely does any good is an exageration, in my opinion.

[chadn737]

The good done is minimal and is often a wasted effort. The political twist placed on these glorified bribes has probably caused more harm than anything else. When aid is handed over to these third world nations, there leaders use it as a pawn to keep them in power. Corruption is rampant in the foriegn aid business, with huge portions being embezzled by despotic rulers. During Indonesia's Suharto administration over 20% of all rurla bank loans made by the World Bank "unexplainably" disappeared and the World Bank knew this was going on all along. Mr. Mobutu, president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo regularly took money out of foriegn bank accounts monitored by Washington DC aid institutions.

[CC]

Which is why our government should not be in the business of feeding the starving masses of other places. If the money were not taken from us, and remained in our hands, then the organizations that are non government run (and churches) would help these people without political implications or reciprecations.

By allowing the government to take on humane measures, we allow them to do so at a greater expense than if it were done by the private sector. Not to mention that our gov often holds the food over the starving masses heads as a tool to get what the gov feels they need there.........................:O)

[The Admiral]

I don't think we should be giving foreign aid at all. Our own budget has en ever-increasing defecit...yet we continue to just give money to other countries? Shouldn't we solve our own financial problems before we worry about everyone else's?

[SouthernDem]

World economy, its a question of Macro-economics and how other countries relate to our own budget that you speak of

[KevinBrowning]

So what, we give the second most economic aid of any country, and most of the time those countries are ungrateful. We have the 3rd largest population on this planet, is China and India sending the most amount of economic aid (per capita) to other nations? Nope.

Its like whats going on inside the U.S. you want the government to give you money in forms of Social Security checks and in "universal medicare (when that comes out) etc, but people need to realise that when the government gives you money, you are giving them your freedom because they have a say in why they should give you there money.

So its like the world hates us because we boss people around, but if we give alot of money to other nations, dont we have a say in how that nation works?
India is not a wealthy nation. The majority of the citizens of Calcutta practically live in human feces. I do not think China is especially rich, either. Countries with over a billion population each can barely support their own people, usually.

[WatsonGlenn]

According to NationMaster.com, we give the second most econmic aid of any country, but we have one of the lowest amounts of economic aid per capita and per $GDP among the developed nations of the world.
Total Economic Aid (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
Economic Aid per capita (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
Economic Aid per $GDP (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
What do you guys think of this?

I think those numbers do not take into account the amount of individual and church based giving the USA does around the world. It also does not take into account military aid or our support for the UN.

[CC]

I don't think there is any question that the USA provides much needed assistance all over the world when tragedy strikes. We seem to handle our disasters with little or no help. We, in this country, as WG pointed out, are also helping others and each other through a myriad of different ways. It is some thing that I am very proud of us for doing. The USA helps out, more so than any other country, we do have many resources, but we share them when necessary. Just think, had we not spent over 100 billion on the war in Iraq, and that money went to aid the suffering.....just a thought..............:O)

[FruitandNut]

Yes Kevin, we are the only species that will smile, hold out our hands to accept aid, wag our tails and kick the doner where it hurts, at the same time.

I hear that Sir Bob Geldorf is suggesting some sort of International Marshall Plan for Africa - that he sees it as a 'basket' case otherwise.

The trouble is that so much aid, if not carefully thought out and planned can be counter- productive. One example is the supply of wheat to the likes of Sub-Sahara territories. In the short term it is fine, in the longer term it can alter their sense of taste and make them reliant on a crop that cannot grow in such hot and low rainfall conditions. The means of getting these people back into self sufficient ways, via safe water and low tech farming aids are equally important.

Also it is important to treat such people with dignity and partnership, this we would wish if the boot was on the other foot.

We should check that the money goes to those that need it, and not to providing international airports, palaces and dodgy arms deals.