Do you think America actually gives money to poor people in other countries?
Americans are regularly told by politicians and the media, that America is the world's most generous nation. This is one of the most conventional pieces of 'knowledgeable ignorance'. According to the OECD, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the US gave between $6 and $15 billion in foreign aid in the period between 1995 and 1999. In absolute terms, Japan gives more than the US, between $9 and $15 billion in the same period. But the absolute figures are less significant than the proportion of gross domestic product (GDP, or national wealth) that a country devotes to foreign aid. On that league table, the US ranks twenty-second of the 22 most developed nations. As former President Jimmy Carter commented: 'We are the stingiest nation of all'. Denmark is top of the table, giving 1.01% of GDP, while the US manages just 0.1%. The United Nations has long established the target of 0.7% GDP for development assistance, although only four countries actually achieve this: Denmark, 1.01%; Norway, 0.91%; the Netherlands, 0.79%; Sweden, 0.7%. Apart from being the least generous nation, the US is highly selective in who receives its aid. Over 50% of its aid budget is spent on middle-income countries in the Middle East, with Israel being the recipient of the largest single share. The purpose of 99% of foreign "aid" is to create foreign markets for US products, especially arms sales. Foreign aid aids the giver (America), not the recipient. The leaders get the money, not the people. Giving money to the people is both not useful to the US as well as rather impossible. There are no people driving up to villages with cash and handing townspeople money making sure to distribute it evenly. They give it to the government and or the rebel leadership to allot. Richer nations receive the most aid. 1 third of all American aid goes to Israel and Egypt. After that it goes to places like Columbia, Pakistan, Jordan etc... not Rwanda or Burundi or Botswana. When looking at how it's allotted by the US, it's clear that strategic considerations, political alignment and drug policy are the biggest considerations while the poorest nations receive the least if any aid. The U.N. Voting Record doesn't even count, if you can't do anything for the US. Sweden spends the majority of it's aid on places like Sierra Leone, Gaza & the West Bank and Liberia and the rest of Africa. When will Americans come out of their government / media induced coma and realize the propaganda that is fed them? Of course America doesn't give money to poor people. They don't even give any to poor dying Americans, why would they give it to a Botswanian? http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/10/08/bush_brings_faith_to_foreign_aid/ http://www.networkeurope.org/feature/sweden-cuts-foreign-aid-recipients http://www.vexen.co.uk/USA/foreign_aid.html "Below 50%" - 500 million. He's not worth 50 billion. Anyway, re-read, you're not getting it. "End the Fed" - Please no more self-delusional America speak about how we all mooch off America's generosity in defending us. We neither want nor need America's "protection". "Cracker" - The topic is foreign aid genius, not charities in America for Americans.
Politics - 11 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I did not know that. Pretty shocking... but unsurprising.
2 :
Yes I do. At least in terms of individual donations to charity, and not purely government statistics like the ones you use. Americans (not government) give more to charity than any other nation in the world. So your lame attempt to denigrate Americans (for whatever reason) is laughable. Rant much? How does it feel to be a "Top Contributor" that's shown to be selective in their data, dishonest in it's presentation, exposed, and frankly outfoxed by a lowly level 1 with no avatar calling himself "cracker"? Must feel embarrassing.
3 :
Very surprising I did not know this.
4 :
When they stop rushing back and forth from their jobs so they can pay taxes.
5 :
bill gates donated $50 billion dollars for AIDS research, do you know of a man from denmark who gave that much money away.
6 :
We do give for our own gain but when you say Japan gives all that money I say yeah because they barely pay for their defense because the U.S. does. The bankers manipulated us into being world police and hegemony guardians, some countries benefit greatly while others get tyrannized. The U.S. provides defense and hits for half the world, the people allow it to happen because they don't know the wisdom of non intervention and are taught there is no other way.
7 :
Not surprising. I didn't know the exact numbers but I know that all the money the U.S. gives for aid is directly tied to helping U.S. interests worldwide. I suppose the reasoning is that such aid helps U.S. businesses and sets up stable markets so that the people can use them. Then again, it also tends to lead them into dependency, which does them no good. Thanks for the numbers. However, you seem to imply that Sweden, Denmark, and Japan give money to these poorer states out of some perceived charity. I would dispute that. When Sweden gives money to Sierra Leone, they are seeking after their interests just as much as the United States is by investing in Egypt or Israel or whereever. Don't think for a moment that they are doing it out of the kindness of their heart. Swedish interests may not be economic in nature, especially to places like Sierra Leone, but they are getting some benefit out of it, be it business, defense, or diplomatic. It may even be a prestige thing. To quote Lord Palmerston, a former British Prime Minister, "Nations have no permanent friends or allies, they only have permanent interests." Cheers! ©2009 SinisterMatt. All Rights Reserved.
8 :
I am not surprised as we just write a check and let some idiot decide who gets what , without conditions why write th check? We need to end all foreign aid!
9 :
That's a joke right they rather build their military then give to the poor
10 :
The American people donate more money than any single government on Earth to charity, including our own. Your numbers are just government aid, not the total of government and private aid. If you tell the whole story instead of cherry picking your numbers, then America is clearly the most generous nation on Earth.
11 :
not at all surprising.
