K
Keith_Lake
Guest
I read the following news item about the Live 8 concerts occurring today:
> Every single day, 30,000 children die needlessly, of extreme poverty. On
> July 6th, we finally have the opportunity to stop that shameful statistic. 8
> world leaders, will gather in Scotland for the G8 summit, and will be
> presented with a workable plan to double aid, drop the debt and make the
> trade laws fair. If these 8 men agree, then we will become the generation
> that made poverty history. But they'll only do it if enough people tell them
> to.
> That's where Live 8 comes in. Ten concerts, 100 artists, a million
> spectators, 2 billion viewers, and 1 message... To get those 8 men, in that
> 1 room, to stop 30,000 children dying, every single day, of extreme poverty.
OK, I'm going to be a real cranky devil's advocate here. Does anyone have any statistics as to how many children were spared an early death SPECIFICALLY because of Live 8 or Live Aid or "Do They Know It's Christmas" or "We Are The World"? Where did they get that 30,000 figure from? Do they audit the death figures from each country? That sounds like a conveniently rounded number.
Obviously the event organizers want to do the right thing and their hearts are in the right place. But any sociologist can tell you that poverty and disease are not eradicated merely by throwing money at them. You have to have a plan for what to do *after* the big shows are over and the stars go back to their limousines and mansions. That's when the REAL work starts.
Much of the food relief supplies purchased with money from the earlier events wound up rotting on the docks or was stolen by corrupt governments. What safeguards are in place to prevent a repeat performance? How many of those G8 world leaders were even aware the concerts were happening? Will it affect whatever decisions they make? Somehow I don't think those guys are big pop music fans.
How much of the Live 8 money will be going for EDUCATION in the poverty- stricken areas of the world? One of the best weapons against poverty is teaching the affected people how to raise themselves out of it, because most of them honestly don't have a clue. In the affected areas Live 8 and the G8 summit intend to help, you can give each person $100 and within 24 hours the local "strongmen"- whoever has the most guns- will have stolen most of it and bought more guns. The cycle continues.
Poverty will continue to exist in spite of every well-meant effort to eradicate it. Live 8 might make life a little better for them for a little while, but poverty will always exist in certain places. It sucks, for sure, but that's the way the world works.
KL (who wishes the Live 8 shows really could make a dent in the
poverty statistics)
> Every single day, 30,000 children die needlessly, of extreme poverty. On
> July 6th, we finally have the opportunity to stop that shameful statistic. 8
> world leaders, will gather in Scotland for the G8 summit, and will be
> presented with a workable plan to double aid, drop the debt and make the
> trade laws fair. If these 8 men agree, then we will become the generation
> that made poverty history. But they'll only do it if enough people tell them
> to.
> That's where Live 8 comes in. Ten concerts, 100 artists, a million
> spectators, 2 billion viewers, and 1 message... To get those 8 men, in that
> 1 room, to stop 30,000 children dying, every single day, of extreme poverty.
OK, I'm going to be a real cranky devil's advocate here. Does anyone have any statistics as to how many children were spared an early death SPECIFICALLY because of Live 8 or Live Aid or "Do They Know It's Christmas" or "We Are The World"? Where did they get that 30,000 figure from? Do they audit the death figures from each country? That sounds like a conveniently rounded number.
Obviously the event organizers want to do the right thing and their hearts are in the right place. But any sociologist can tell you that poverty and disease are not eradicated merely by throwing money at them. You have to have a plan for what to do *after* the big shows are over and the stars go back to their limousines and mansions. That's when the REAL work starts.
Much of the food relief supplies purchased with money from the earlier events wound up rotting on the docks or was stolen by corrupt governments. What safeguards are in place to prevent a repeat performance? How many of those G8 world leaders were even aware the concerts were happening? Will it affect whatever decisions they make? Somehow I don't think those guys are big pop music fans.
How much of the Live 8 money will be going for EDUCATION in the poverty- stricken areas of the world? One of the best weapons against poverty is teaching the affected people how to raise themselves out of it, because most of them honestly don't have a clue. In the affected areas Live 8 and the G8 summit intend to help, you can give each person $100 and within 24 hours the local "strongmen"- whoever has the most guns- will have stolen most of it and bought more guns. The cycle continues.
Poverty will continue to exist in spite of every well-meant effort to eradicate it. Live 8 might make life a little better for them for a little while, but poverty will always exist in certain places. It sucks, for sure, but that's the way the world works.
KL (who wishes the Live 8 shows really could make a dent in the
poverty statistics)