Things to remember in 2009: How Georges Bush finalized the transformation of the concept of foreign aid from helping countries in difficulty to just another arm of the military "operational plans".
When you see children dying in Gaza, remember that we bought some of the weapons killing them. Ignorance is not a defense anymore, never was. "Aid" is never neutral or perfectly selfless.
From Parade Magazine, of all places:
Who Gets U.S. Foreign Aid
The U.S. will give an estimated $26 billion in foreign aid in 2008—70% more than when President George W. Bush took office (the figure doesn’t include funds related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan). More than 150 countries get financial assistance from the U.S. Here are the six that received the most this year. | COUNTRY | AID | PURPOSE |
| 1. Israel | $2.4 billion | Virtually all of this money is used to buy weapons (up to 75% made in the U.S.). Beginning in 2009, the U.S. plans to give $30 billion over 10 years. |
| 2. Egypt | $1.7 billion | $1.3 billion to buy weapons; $103 million for education; $74 million for health care; $45 million to promote civic participation and human rights. |
| 3. Pakistan | $798 million | $330 million for security efforts, including military-equipment upgrades and border security; $20 million for infrastructure. |
| 4. Jordan | $688 million | $326 million to fight terrorism and promote regional stability through equipment upgrades and training; $163 million cash payment to the Jordanian government. |
| 5. Kenya | $586 million | $501 million to fight HIV/AIDS through drug treatment and abstinence education and to combat malaria; $15 million for agricultural development; $5.4 million for programs that promote government accountability. |
| 6. South Africa | $574 million | $557 million to fight TB and HIV/AIDS; $3 million for education. |
| 7. Mexico | $551 million | Click here for details. |
| 8. Colombia | $541 million | Click here for details. |
| 9. Nigeria | $491 million | Click here for details. |
| 10. Sudan | $479 million | Click here for details. |
*Source: Estimates based on figures and documents from the U.S. Department of State. Click here for more information.
— Rebecca Davis O'Brien
Nigeria?
US Offers Nigeria Military Aid to Protect Offshore Oil
by Hector Igbikiowubo
THE United States, keen to develop new sources of oil supply outside the Middle East, has offered to help Nigeria protect the flow of oil in the Gulf of Guinea and combat terrorist attacks on the oil industry, officials said. The Gulf of Guinea, stretching from Liberia in the west to Angola in the south, currently provides about 15 per cent of US oil supplies. That share is expected to grow to 25 per cent by 2015, according to a recent report commissioned for the U.S. Congress.
The Merida Initiative in two words: immigracion no!
A good place for intelligible and very well dissected info is the Global Issues web site, especially this page here.
So Hillary, what do you intend to do?
No comments:
Post a Comment