africa's debts canceled

[Fortnox]

I recently reveiced this email!

This is a big thank you to all 1.5 million of you who joined together as ONE to do something extraordinary.

From the 500,000 letters you sent to President Bush to Live 8 in Philadelphia to the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, you called on eight men to do more to fight global AIDS and extreme poverty, and they heard your call. In Scotland this past Friday, overcoming the shadow of a tragic day in London, President Bush joined G8 leaders in an unprecedented deal to cancel debts and double aid to Africa.

For African nations fighting poverty and corruption, this means a $25 billion increase in aid and wiping out 100% of their debts. With this funding, Africa can halve deaths from malaria, put millions of children into school, and 10 million people across the world will have access to lifesaving AIDS drugs. Behind each of these numbers is one person, one life that will be changed forever.
it really did make a difference, well done to all who put your name down.

[Madell]

Wow this is nice to hear i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif

[Turkish-S]

email from who??

[intense]

i dont believe it. You cant just believe that Bush would listen just from small mails/emails with a bunch of names and complaints written down on it. I'll believe it when i see it. (it doesnt seem "bush" to me)

[SK]

good news however it isnt enough.

[Y]

Originally posted by: intense
i dont believe it. You cant just believe that Bush would listen just from small mails/emails with a bunch of names and complaints written down on it. I'll believe it when i see it. (it doesnt seem "bush" to me)

what (http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/06/11/uk.g8.africa/)

Anyway, this is great. Now after cancelling the debts, cut aid going to tinpot dictators in the region. That will be good for everyone.

[Assertn]

Originally posted by: SK
good news however it isnt enough.

lolz....SK thinks money grows on trees

[Itachi_y2k5]

woo, im guessing live 8 worked

[Xollence]

Originally posted by: SK
good news however it isnt enough.

It's enough for now.

[Assassin]

damn, thats great news....guess the politicians finally came thru...atleast this once.

and yes, although more 'can' be done, that doesn't mean whats already done isn't a huge step in its self.

[intense]

haha i guess thats good then.... if CNN says so, then ill believe it.
Pretty confusing... so basically, the value of the dollar just went up because of this?... because the money just virtually disappeared?

[Aramis]

Politicians using power for good, that's the shit. Next they could forgive some debts to south american countries with the condition that they use more ecological methods for their farming and industry.
oh wait, they don't use such methods themselves yet either, nevermind.

[masamuneehs]

There is one problem with debt relief:

IT DOES NOTHING TO PREVENT FUTURE DEBTS FROM PILING UP!

If Niger, Botswana, Sierra Leone and other nations needed to borrow money in the past, oragree to some IMF or World Bank treaty to recieve aid, what makes you think they won't start accumulating debts that will get them right back to where they just were?

Give a man a fish and he eats for one night. Teach a man to fish and he can feed himself forever.

This kind of band-aid from big nations does help in the mean time, but it also means they're less likely to go about doing things liek provide cheaper medicine, provide major infrastructure improvement projects like irrigation, better roads, etc.

We have forgiven major debts in the past. Debt relief isn't anything new. Like I said, many nations just pile up new debts and the actual people who are struggling day to day don't get the help THEY need from the US and other G-8 countries. Half these debts and a great deal of the disparity is because of corrupt government officials rent-seeking and skeeving off the top for themselves and their cronies. These are also the people debt relief helps the most, the government officials and big businesses of the nation.

Rather than forgive all debtors, how about establishing a way to see which nations' leaders deserve the relief and which ones will just heave a sigh of relief and then put the $ they were supposed to pay in debts right into their own pockets?