Make Poverty History

it all makes perfect sense

expressed in dollars and cents.....

Hi

"If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has his foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality." Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Its our choice,
to do nothing
or to do something.

Thanks for reading my letter and your comments

Regards
Phil

How about if I buy a copy of the Guinness Book of Records?

Phil; I feel very strongly about the disparity between the West and the poor nations and I could write a lot about it (but here is not the place). What troubles me about rallies such as yours is that they are, essentially, a useless soporific. It will be attended by a lot of middle class people who will arrive in their $40,000 motor cars and stay in $200 per night hotels whilst having $100 dinners accompanied by $50 bottles of wine. They will march to The Cause, "Wise People" will speak with passion about this terrible injustice and everyone in the crowd will look appropriately concerned... and the rest of the country/world will ignore them. Then they will return home with the comfortable knowledge that they have done "their bit" to help end poverty and need do no more until the next call to march. Tomorrow most of them will be discussing whether they should buy some "T3 float" shares and upgrade their mobiles to Next G.

I don't have the answer Phil, but this isn't it.

I note the link you provided is a Christian one - correct me if I'm wrong but don't many of the Christian churches have considerable holdings of land, wealth and assets? iirc the Church of England is the largest "private" landowner in the UK and the wealth of the Roman Catholic church is enormous. The churches do a lot, I don't deny but it's hard to be pious with such wealth. Camels and needles, perhaps?

Greater equality only has a chance when The West decides to turn (at least part of) it’s back on self centred consumerism and it’s not even remotely close to that. The issue of poverty can only be significantly assisted at a government level and we just don’t care Phil! Show me the political party in Oz which would make one of it’s main campaign platforms “Abolition of poverty in the Third World” – the concept is laughable.

You seem fond of quotations Phil, here’s one for you:

--------------------------
“This generation will have to repent, not so much for the evil deeds of the wicked people, but for the appalling silence of the good people. “
Martin Luther King
--------------------------

One person I cannot omit from my rant is Bill Gates; he has, probably, done more in this area than any individual in history – good on yer Bill – do you think he reads Ex Oz? :)

Mike Harding

mike_harding@fastmail.fm

correct me if I'm wrong but don't many of the Christian churches have considerable holdings of land, wealth and assets? iirc the Church of England is the largest "private" landowner in the UK and the wealth of the Roman Catholic church is enormous. The churches do a lot, I don't deny but it's hard to be pious with such wealth. Camels and needles, perhaps?

LMAO.. an tighter than a mozzies ringhole.

Thanks for taking the time to read my letter.

To clarify things, the challenge is to make poverty history by encouraging our leaders to halve global poverty by 2015 through achieving the Millennium Development Goals adopted by the United Nations.

The upcoming activities are organised by Christians from many different churches.

Christians and institutional churches have certainly made many errors during the last 2,000 years, who hasn’t?

I know personally off many ordinary Australians, who will participate in these activities that have systematically and regularly given at least 10% of every cent they have ever earned to charities and caring and helping organizations.

Regards
Phil

bushfix

Very Cool

nothing like a bit of Roger rogerwatersonline.com/

nice

Richard.. aka Floyd

Richard,

glad you spotted it :)

I _like_ that.

Hi

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed," President Dwight D. Eisenhower

Thanks for reading my letter and your comments

Regards
Phil

"Poverty will never end" Family Truckster

Phill,

I think rallies such as these are almost an insult to the poverty stricken population. The cost of attending this meeting would come close to the cost of feeding a hungry family for a year. What's the bet that at the next election, the same people that come to canberra to this rally, will base their vote on interest rates, unemplyment, education and tax relief. Their vote will be based on accumulating their personal wealth and the wealth of their children.

You want to relieve poverty? Vote for a government that will send 10% of our doctors, teachers, farmers and tradesmen, which YOU will pay for, to these impoverished countries and give them the skills necessary for long term survival. Too hard isn't it. Or better still, take one year out of your life and go to these countires and help them out as a volunteer.

Giving money is not the answer. When I was in cambodia 3 years ago I realised that the people who run the NGO's are the new elite in these countires. They go to western owned bars where they pay $5 US for a local beer and drive brand new landcruisers.

The only thing that a rally in Canberra will achieve is make everybody there feel like they've done "their bit for poverty" when in reality nothing could be further from the truth.

R.

Phil I think everyone would like to see an end to poverty but there will always be poverty. Some because of bad decisions and some because of circumstance. We have enough problems on our hand to worry about before we think about the problems of others, like fuel prices obove $1.20 and taxes and tyre choice. Another problem is consumption. One day when energy supplies are low and the serious problems of global pollution hit home, like rising sea levels, we will face massive destruction and we may find the world has a reshuffle in the economy. We will have to learn to consume less and live different, and probably be more individually self sufficient. I cant see this happening through choice, but through lack of choice. So anyway is the point of world poverty to give the few billion odd people a life like the lucky few (us) because that cant happen, more likley is we will be forced to live more like them. Of course this is more a long term thing, short term all our living standards in theory could be changed but unlikley, the people may have the power, but we dont have the WILL.

NO they won’t, sorry but it isn’t going to happen.

There will always be rich and there will always be poor and there will always be poverty in one form or another.

Phil, you didn't state HOW 100 million people will create this change. It's a simplistic view to think that if 'we all put in a dollar that will cover it'. How would the funds be managed (or mismanaged)? Entrust it to the governments of the suffering nations?

The view that if there is a 'show of force' by the public, the government might change their policies to win the next election, but only a fool would believe that means anything. If the public really come out in force so will the police; and now they have passed the laws to suppress 'insurgents'.

Idealism should be balanced with a healthy dose of cynicism.

Poverty can't be erradicated.

Go look up the definition and you will see why.

No harm trying to improve the circumstances of individuals & communities though

Last month we had the world wide "Speak Like A Pirate Day". which probably had just as much significance as the "Stand Up Against Poverty Day" will have.

What will be the consequence of a worlds record? I mean other than an entry in the Guinness Book Of Records.

Ian

Aye, me matie, pass the rum.

dont forget that Pol Pot started with the best intentions of evening up things, but then it all went a bit pear shaped.......

Yes the main failing of any social system, be it communisn or any other, the oldest human trait - GREED.

At least communist ' ideals ' as you point out Bradley , have all the best intentions .

Imagine that , everyone equal .

The doctor that sorts out your sickness treated / paid the same as the guy that fixes your car !

Things got real 'pear' shaped in Russia but , cause all the Communists were really Caplitolists at heart ! Those farmers dont really need vehicles , while the Pollitburo freaks needed limo's and holiday homes : but they earned them.

True Communist beliefs are ok with me , That would mean everyone pulled their weight and noone was left out in the cold .

At the moment we are one of the most heavily taxed nations and you can still walk though a major city and see homeless people , how does this work ?

Glenn.

Sorry , ?

How could removing poverty create problems .

Surely if everyone could afford food and lodging the prices would go down .

Not sure if you live in a major city, or have driven though a remote Aboriginal town .

All I see the government do with my tax dollars is waste them !

If the government is meant to look after Australians why are there any people going without if they are spending our tax wisely !

I was a bit apathetic until I drove around OZ and saw the 'real' state of the nation.

Glenn.

Good on yer Glenn - stay with the anger, damned if I know if it'll get us anywhere but it's a bloody site better than apathy.

Mike Harding