Jimmy Carter: US Must Rebuild Afganistan, Must Do More For World's Poor

Newday ^ | 11/15/01

[11th Earl of Mar]

By Associated Press

November 15, 2001, 2:37 PM EST

ATLANTA -- Former President Jimmy Carter said more must be done to help Afghanistan and other poor countries, calling the chasm between rich and poor nations "by far the most important single problem in the world."

If more were done for the poor, he said, "there would be a lot less animosity and a lot less inclination to commit suicide to kill an American."

In his first public appearance since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Carter said Wednesday that the United States must be willing to help rebuild Afghanistan to ensure future stability in the war-torn country.

Carter said aid should be significant and chided the United States for "making a big deal" about dropping 35,000 food packets on a country with 3 million refugees.

Afghans will need help with housing, health care and rebuilding roads and schools, in addition to a new government that encompasses different ethnic groups, he said.

Joined by his wife Rosalynn, Carter made his remarks in a town hall meeting before a sold-out audience at the Carter Center, an event originally scheduled for Sept. 11.

Expressing confidence that Osama bin Laden eventually will be brought to justice, Carter called bin Laden and his followers "deviants" who have committed acts of murder in the name of religious faith.

He compared the terrorists to Klansmen who burned crosses in the yards of black families' homes. "I've been embarrassed all my life by the Ku Klux Klan," Carter said.

Copyright © 2001, The Associated Press

[w1andsodidwe]

If more were done for the poor, he said, "there would be a lot less animosity and a lot less inclination to commit suicide to kill an American."

Well, well!!! Now Jimmy has joined X42 in proclaiming that it is our own fault.

Jimmy, now that America has been hit and suffered 5,000 dead, can we now hold a grudge against Moslems for 10,000 years and announce our intention to kill them all?

That is apparently what x42 is promoting, and now Jimmy joins the blame America crowd.

Jimmy shut up and go back to Plain and build houses. That is what you are good at.

[OrioleFan]

We are dropping little packages of peanut butter crackers (we called them nabs when I was growing up) on everyone over there.

[Moonman62]

Teach them Capitalism, best thing we can do.

Unfortunately, we and the IMF usually teach them socialist demand management. You know -- take money from the productive, subtract a handling fee for the bureaucrats, and give what's left to the unproductive so that they can buy goods from the productive.

[My Favorite Headache]

Is there anyway we can get him and Bill just by themselves to work and live on site at Ground Zero and dig and rebuild all by themselves in a Habitat For Humanity kind of way? This way they can realize we are at war here?

I am tired of our country having to be the world police and give in to every suck up.

[Pentagram]

Carter is a fool. Afghanistan will cease to be poor at such time as it chooses to quit destroying itself. When they establish the rule of law and protect the rights of private property from the whims of both the mob and whatever government they choose, then they will begin to enjoy some material comforts. Until then, we would only feed their existing suicidal tendencies.

[toenail]

Ahhhhhh, if only the U.S. government had the responsibility or Constitutional authority to alleviate all the world's ills. The U.S. government has no right to steal my money to give it to other countries. Period.

[newgeezer]

If more were done for the poor, he said, "there would be a lot less animosity and a lot less inclination to commit suicide to kill an American."

Sure. A little love is all it takes to convince the Islamic fundamentalists to rewrite or ignore their Qur'an.

[nmh]

Send jimmeh and his wife over NOW. If he's that impatient, then send him there NOW.

It's not the fault of the U.S. what has happened to Afganistan. If anything it is the terrorists who should rebuild this country. Jimmeh is an idiot, as usual.

[45Auto]

The entire world lives off the back of the American taxpayer and has done so for the last 50 years. Only Finland repaid its war debt after WWII. The damn Germans still owe us a lot of money. What did they do with the gift of freedom provided by the Reagan adminstration, i.e. the reunification? They squandered it by electing that pseudo-commie idiot Gerhardt Schroeder. Europe is nothing but a smouldering pot of socialist dung gatherers. A pox on them all.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I'm not so sure about Jimmy being kind. He deliberately tried to sabotage President Bush's Desert Storm campaign by writing letters to the Arab heads of state asking they not cooperate. Then whined around for the Nobel Peace Prize. He's little more than a traitor if you ask me.

[discontinue]

I guess the billions upon billions we give away to the world just isn't enough for Carter. Maybe, we could cough up yet another 5% of our income in taxes for those that hate us.

[Marysecretary]

If the heads (dictators) of these poor countries didn't steal the money, there wouldn't be so many poor. The US has tried to help out many times and the aid gets sold on black market or stolen by the officials of the country. It's time to give the money to the Christian groups in those countries and let them help. They know the needs and they're right in the midst of those they could help the most. The dictators just help themselves.

[gopno1]

I have a fairly liberal poli-sci professor who thinks Jimmy Carter was one of the worst presidents ever. We are talking the presidency right now and he just rips on Carter non-stop. Amazingly, he also admitted that FDR screwed everything up with all of the social spending crap, too. Ronald Reagan, even in his current condition, is still smarter than that jackass, one-termer Carter.

[Mark17]

Jimmy Carter: US Must Rebuild Afganistan, Must Do More For World's Poor

I think Jimmy Carter, and most Demon Cats, will not be satisfied, till every man, woman and child on earth, is on the US welfare rolls.

[Tallguy]

Hey Jimmy, we'll consider doing 'rebuilding' afghanistan right after we finish rebuilding the CIA, FBI, NSA, the Navy, the Airforce -- well you get the idea!

[Yankee]

J. Carter is a very good, moral and kind man, but not a great stragist.

Reminds me of my ex-wife's father. Nice guy, extremely hard working, not too bright, and a sucker for a sob story.

We were invited for a barbeque one time, at his sister's house, right after her husband got laid-off from Pan-Am, where he was an A&P mechanic.

These people were masters at "crying poverty".

So my father-in-law tells his sister not to buy any food for the barbeque, and shows up to the party with a week's worth of groceries.

He had to park and carry the groceries in from the street though, because his "destitute" brother-in-law's brand, spanking new Oldsmobile was blocking the driveway, with the hefty price sticker in the back window, listing all the options. My father-in-law's car was 15 years old and burned more oil than gasoline.

[KQQL]

Hey Carter, who is gonna pay for all this , your mama

[Mind-numbed Robot]

Hey, Jimmy, why don't you and slick willie go somewhere and console yourselves by banging each other on the head with a hammer? All I have heard from either of you is criticism of a president who can do what you guys never could. Are you just jealous because he has a pretty wife while you are stuck with those shrews of yours or envious of his accompishments?

[thinktwice]

The Creed of Need drones on, with most everyone ignoring facts --- It is capitalism and individual freedom that creates wealth, and it is socialism and enforced self sacrifice that creates poverty.

Give them liberty, Jimmy, or continue giving them death.

[putupon]

Any post about a statement by that stoopid goober growin' cracker Carter should have a barf alert.