I have been intrigued, but not well informed, of a little effort called “One” found at www.one.org. It appears, according to their web site:
“ What is ONE?
ONE is a new effort by Americans to rally Americans – ONE by ONE – to fight the emergency of global AIDS and extreme poverty. ONE is students and ministers, punk rockers and NASCAR moms, Americans of all beliefs and every walk of life, united as ONE to help make poverty history. ONE believes that allocating an additional ONE percent of the U.S. budget toward providing basic needs like health, education, clean water and food would transform the futures and hopes of an entire generation in the world’s poorest countries.” [emphasis added]
I’m a little iffy on this honestly. First, it seems a bunch of non-American celebrity types like Bono and the guy who played Legalos in Lord of the Rings are big supporters. Great, I suggest you get Ireland and where ever Legalos is from to contribute as well.
This effort reminds me of the United Nations. Aren’t there UN agencies set up for this that the U.S. funds in great proportions?
I got this from The U.S. Department of State
The United States is a generous supporter — in many cases the largest supporter — of key UN programs. In 2003, the U.S. contributed:
- 57% to the budget of the World Food Program to help feed 104 million people in 81 countries;
- 17% to the budget of the United Nations Children’s Fund to feed, vaccinate, educate, and protect children in 158 countries;
- 14% to the core budget of the United Nations Development Program to eradicate poverty and encourage democratic governance;
- 33% to the budget of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Looks like in 2003 we were feeding people in 81 countries. And funding over half of it ourselves.
I know the U.S. is mega wealthy, but I’m really surprised we want to “fight poverty”. If I have a dollar and you have a dollar and you find a penny on the street, then I am in poverty and you are rich. I don’t want people to go without food or clothes or medicine. I don’t. But I also don’t want to throw money or expect my country to throw money at corrupt governments.
When Jesus was on the planet in his Earth suit Judas observed Mary Magdalene pouring this expensive oil on his feet. It was Judas who said, [paraphrased] “We could have sold that and given that money to the poor.” Jesus’ response was, in a nutshell, “You’ll always have the poor.”
I think all these groups need help. They need help learning how to farm and dig wells and do what needs to be done to not get AIDS in a more manageable state. I’m just unsure if the American pocketbook is the answer and can take more and more without the result being something that “teaches them to fish”.
So call me Scrooge or skin flint or jerk or what have you, but know that somewhere in my heart I want these people to have food and clothes and all, but I want them to not have to rely on handouts either.
It frightens me when one of the respondents to the question “How do we stop poverty” answered:
It can be stopped when resouces are shared by all.
when there is one nation.
one religion.
one language.
one law.(let live all)
No no no!!! I don’t want one nation. I don’t want one language. The ideas this person is putting forth is called global socialism. You know where there’s one world power and it takes what you have and gives it to everyone else “for the better good”. Nope, trust me here, you don’t want that. It sounds selfish, but it’s not. We don’t want centralized power or authority over the whole globe.
What you want is someone who we can send and teach those who do not have how to do things themselves. One world = one dictatorship = not good.
Call me what you want, one world is not what we need.
Edge Of The Blade 