Posted on 01/30/2008 5:22:41 AM PST by Red in Blue PA
Long ago, I gave up worrying about every poor country and every poor person in the world. Corrupt governments and bankrupted cultures cause poverty and misery and trying to make me feel guilty about someone’s problems doesn’t work on me anymore.
The foreign countries which intervene could not trust Haitian officials and would need to set up shop in Haiti to distribute anything. My .02
Thank you for providing a Constitutional argument against your position so far presented on this thread. In so doing, you have raised a most significant issue.
Can the Ffederal (and, by extension, the state government) do charitable acts?
Google the encounter between one Congressman Davy Crockett and Horatio Bunce.
Note carefully that the crucial point in that actual event was that Crockett had voted for Congress to give money to the impoverished widow of a U.S. Navy captain.
In so voting, Horatio Bunce correctly accused Rep. Crockett of casting a vote that violated the Constitution.
Crockett finally admitted that he had violated the Constitution when he voted for government charity.
I’d be most interested in your explaination of how you think America can give money to foreign countries and not violate the Constitution?
We were so poor when I was a kid, we used to dream about eating dirt.
These people are not being “forced to eat dirt.” They could plant a garden, raise chickens, sell the eggs, on and on.
BTW people eat dirt and other things in this country. The practice is called pica. It is prevalent among black women, especially in the south and especially when pregnant or nursing.
Feeling guilty isn’t the same thing as having compassion or having pity.
Well, the Dominican Republic is not faring well these days either. One of Puerto Rico's problems is illegal imigrants from DR crossing the Mona strait between the two islands. Last week another boatload died trying to cross. Puerto Rico is a US commonwealth so these problems in the carribean are significant to the US and our support is important to national security.
I agree with your assessment. Sometimes it feels overwhelming and nothing can be done.
But does this mean one should not try?
Having no compassion is the antithesis of being human.
Until a soldier shows up and steals your crops, chickens, eggs, etc.
That's the problem in most of the third world, not poverty in and of itself.
Kinda changes the subject, ya think?
I don’t know what your background is, but seeing poverty and corruption first hand is different than simply reflecting upon it.
Really, after awhile, it gets easy turning away. You simply cannot change a country, a society, nor a people, and to dwell on all of it is a meaningless and overwhelming exercise.
“Re: Around the world, not one black country has ever succeeded.”
Then If this is your measure of whether a people succeed or not, I think you need to reevaluate your logic.you wrote: “If this is your measure of whether a people succeed or not, I think you need to reevaluate your logic.”
What you are to transparently trying to imply (that I am a racist) is NOT what I wrote. Neither is it responsive to the issue I raised.
That all black societies have failed is a matter of fact. That all such societies have no protection of property may be of significance.
That such societies do not provide security of person may also be of significance.
Melanin level is not determinative, but societal core values seem to be.
Re: What you are to transparently trying to imply (that I am a racist) is NOT what I wrote.
LOL.....this coming from the person who unequivocally stated that black countries do not succeed. They are your own words!
Re: Really, after awhile, it gets easy turning away. You simply cannot change a country, a society, nor a people, and to dwell on all of it is a meaningless and overwhelming exercise.
Is bringing this to people’s attention in a world where Paris Hilton gets $100,000 for merely attending a party a “meaningless excercise” too?
GG has a good point. Name a successful black dominated country (or hispanic for that matter). If you can name one, you will see they have adopted western ideals. Until they do that, as a whole society, they will exist in these hells.
Re: or are blinded by tears for your fellow man.
I am not “blinded” by anything.
I posted an article to bring to light how people are eating dirt. Many here seem to think this is perfectly acceptable. I “see” all too clearly.
This is a wonderful summary of the socialist state. And in many ways we already see this in the US... thinking of generational welfare families.
Eating dirt?...Don’t let the Mother Earth crowd find out, that’s cannibalism to them.
Haiti is not a “socialist state”! They have no welfare, Medicare, nor midicaid, nor ANYTHING for their people.
Sounds like you are a victim of the public school system.
To get a better idea idea of what we’re talking about.....here’s a blurb from the CIA Fact Book:
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with 80% of the population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty. Two-thirds of all Haitians depend on the agricultural sector, mainly small-scale subsistence farming, and remain vulnerable to damage from frequent natural disasters, exacerbated by the country’s widespread deforestation. A macroeconomic program developed in 2005 with the help of the International Monetary Fund helped the economy grow 3.5% in 2007, the highest growth rate since 1999. US economic engagement under the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act, passed in December 2006, has boosted the garment and automotive parts exports and investment by providing tariff-free access to the US. Haiti suffers from higher inflation than similar low-income countries, a lack of investment due to insecurity and limited infrastructure, and a severe trade deficit. In 2005, Haiti paid its arrears to the World Bank, paving the way for reengagement with the Bank. The government relies on formal international economic assistance for fiscal sustainability. Remittances are the primary source of foreign exchange, equaling nearly a quarter of GDP and over double the total for exports.
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