Tuesday, December 28, 2004
What Have You Done for me Lately???
From the never look a gift horse in the mouth department and The Washington Times: U.N. official slams U.S. as 'stingy' over aid
But even the stingy U.S. is more charitable than other countries:
Americans and their government are the most charitable in the world, yet obviously this is not enough for some. Again from The Washington Times
From the never look a gift horse in the mouth department and The Washington Times: U.N. official slams U.S. as 'stingy' over aid
The Bush administration yesterday pledged $15 million to Asian nations hit by a tsunami that has killed more than 22,500 people, although the United Nations' humanitarian-aid chief called the donation "stingy."
"The United States, at the president's direction, will be a leading partner in one of the most significant relief, rescue and recovery challenges that the world has ever known," said White House deputy press secretary Trent Duffy.
But U.N. Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland suggested that the United States and other Western nations were being "stingy" with relief funds, saying there would be more available if taxes were raised.
But even the stingy U.S. is more charitable than other countries:
Offers of aid have poured in from around the world in the past two days, with the European Union's executive arm releasing $4 million in emergency aid and pledging an additional $27 million. Canada and several European nations — including Spain, Germany, Ireland and Belgium — each pledged about $1 million yesterday.And Secretary of State Colin Powell says more is on the way:
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell hinted that the $15 million U.S. offer was only the first installment of a larger aid package to those countries devastated by 30-foot waves triggered by a massive underwater earthquake.
"We also have to see this not just as a one-time thing," he said. "Some 20-plus thousand lives have been lost in a few moments, but the lingering effects will be there for years.
"The damage that was caused, the rebuilding of schools and other facilities will take time," he added. "So you need a quick infusion to stabilize the situation, take care of those who have been injured, get immediate relief supplies in, and then you begin planning for the longer haul."
Americans and their government are the most charitable in the world, yet obviously this is not enough for some. Again from The Washington Times
The same reliance on private forces and individual initiative is evident in American patterns of giving, which also deviate markedly from the rest of the world.If you wish to participate in that "extraordinary" giving for the tsunami victims here is a good place to start. I'm sure those organizations won't complain about your contribution being "stingy". With billions of dollars wasted by the UN Oil-for-Food program, the UN is no position to tell others how to spend their money. The gall of some people. |
The U.S. government ranked 22nd among the world's developed nations in 2003 in foreign aid on a per-capita basis, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, offering one-sixth the amount of aid per citizen offered by Norway.
But private philanthropy in America is one of the most powerful and effective aid programs on earth, concludes a new study by researchers at the Institute for Jewish and Community Research.
American private charities are set to spend more than $200 billion this year, and more than half of U.S. adults will work on volunteer projects, putting in an estimated 20 billion hours in donated time.
One study by the Washington-based Philanthropy Roundtable found that the average American household contributes seven times as much to charity as its German counterpart, and Americans are six times more likely than Germans to do volunteer work.
"In short," researchers Alexander Karp, Gary A. Tobin and Aryeh Weinberg write in the journal Philanthropy, "American philanthropy is extraordinary by any world standard and the reason is that America herself is exceptional."
