"Send money, not food and clothes," say charities
Discussion
This article on BBC News yesterday really wound me up. Charities are saying that they want money to buy goods in the tsunami affected countries, as it's cheaper to buy them there than to ship them there.
Sounds all well and good, until you realise what they're saying. The food, medical supplies, water purification tablets and clothes are all sitting there in warehouses. They're asking US to pay for them. If people in disaster hit countries aren't going to help each other, why are we being asked to do it?
Basically, what's happening is poor people in rich countries are being asked to subsidise rich people in poor countries. By sending the money, you may be helping people, but you're also lining the pockets of profiteering scum.
They say charity starts at home. By all means send the money, but I think we should also be asking some hard questions about where the money goes.
Sounds all well and good, until you realise what they're saying. The food, medical supplies, water purification tablets and clothes are all sitting there in warehouses. They're asking US to pay for them. If people in disaster hit countries aren't going to help each other, why are we being asked to do it?
Basically, what's happening is poor people in rich countries are being asked to subsidise rich people in poor countries. By sending the money, you may be helping people, but you're also lining the pockets of profiteering scum.
They say charity starts at home. By all means send the money, but I think we should also be asking some hard questions about where the money goes.
happened to humanity and compassion for your fellow man? 
I think this thread is heading in the wrong direction. My original post was more about people who are apparently profiteering from this disaster. There seems to be people sitting on huge stockpiles of aid supplies, asking people in western countries to pay before they'll help anyone.
Witchfinder said:
There seems to be people sitting on huge stockpiles of aid supplies, asking people in western countries to pay before they'll help anyone.
There is no such thing as a "true charity"... Quite a few people will have no qualms about profiting from this event. Unfortunately.
Buffalo said:
There seems to be people sitting on huge stockpiles of aid supplies, asking people in western countries to pay before they'll help anyone.
There is no such thing as a "true charity"... Quite a few people will have no qualms about profiting from this event. Unfortunately.
I think receiving/attracting actual donations isn't much of a problem but it's the actual manpower required to distribute, coordinate, administer medicines etc. Whist the charity might receive all the materials gratis they might well need 'cash' for the rest.
Witchfinder said:
I think this thread is heading in the wrong direction. My original post was more about people who are apparently profiteering from this disaster. There seems to be people sitting on huge stockpiles of aid supplies, asking people in western countries to pay before they'll help anyone.
And the farmers who produce the food and the guys who work in the warehouses distributing the food are going to live on thin air are they?
I don't see it as profiteering. The food cost money to manufacture and the people who would have bought the food have lost everything (the warehouses weren't set up just for this disaster), therefore it is up to those parts of the world to buy the food for those who have lost everything. You can't expect people to bankrupt themselves their workforce and workforce's families!
MilnerR said:
I think this thread is heading in the wrong direction. My original post was more about people who are apparently profiteering from this disaster. There seems to be people sitting on huge stockpiles of aid supplies, asking people in western countries to pay before they'll help anyone.
And the farmers who produce the food and the guys who work in the warehouses distributing the food are going to live on thin air are they?
I don't see it as profiteering. The food cost money to manufacture and the people who would have bought the food have lost everything (the warehouses weren't set up just for this disaster), therefore it is up to those parts of the world to buy the food for those who have lost everything. You can't expect people to bankrupt themselves their workforce and workforce's families!
boy do some people have a funny attitude to this. tens of thousands of dead, similar numbers maimed and injured, 11 countries shattered by the force of the water washing away the infrastructure and making millions homeless, jobless and at risk of serious disease and some knob finds it apropriate to ask how much money indonesia would send us in the same situation. Crawl back under your rock mate, it is not low enough but it is a start.
Money is good because it costs nothing to transport and it does double the good in the sense that it buys the things that are needed thus delivering immediate help, but it also helps the other thing shattered by this kind of disaster - the economies in these poor countries whose main source of cash has been washed away. The thought of people proifiteering is unpalatable, but given the circumstances I am happy for anyone who does do be dealt with when they meet their maker as long as aid gets to starving and sick kids.
Money is good because it costs nothing to transport and it does double the good in the sense that it buys the things that are needed thus delivering immediate help, but it also helps the other thing shattered by this kind of disaster - the economies in these poor countries whose main source of cash has been washed away. The thought of people proifiteering is unpalatable, but given the circumstances I am happy for anyone who does do be dealt with when they meet their maker as long as aid gets to starving and sick kids.
I'm waiting to hear whether a charity require my free services.
There is a massive shortfall of people out there to deploy the aid.
The general theme I have noticed when trying to nominate myself is "Just throw loads of money at us", of course, they have their own staff and volunteers at the airports, but not enough people helping where it is needed.
I suppose if we send them enough money, they can make paper machier (sp?) furniture out of it.
Hopefully I will be able to help.
There is a massive shortfall of people out there to deploy the aid.
The general theme I have noticed when trying to nominate myself is "Just throw loads of money at us", of course, they have their own staff and volunteers at the airports, but not enough people helping where it is needed.
I suppose if we send them enough money, they can make paper machier (sp?) furniture out of it.
Hopefully I will be able to help.
MilnerR said:
And the farmers who produce the food and the guys who work in the warehouses distributing the food are going to live on thin air are they?
I don't see it as profiteering. The food cost money to manufacture and the people who would have bought the food have lost everything
In Indonesia or maybe Sri lanka farmers from the higher ground have donated their crops to help feed the poor bastads from around the coast , if people who have nothing can give what little they have im damn sure we can give cash .
Raify said:
If we were hit by a 30' tidal wave I wonder how much money Indonesia would send us?
They probably already send us a great deal of money, every day in debt repayments.
It was a perfectly open question but no-one actually chose to answer it.
Gordon Brown is suggesting we waive debt repayments - though all that will do is throw the burden onto UK taxpayers, as usual. So we'll all end up paying anyway.
edc said:
Love machine, if you are offering free services then there are plenty of other organisations and places that could do with your help. One of my friends is off volunteering to India.
I would have thought it would have been made a lot more obvious. Charities saying if you are an X,Y or Z, we need you. If you are willing to work for nothing contact such and such.....
With the amount of funds/organisation available to these charities, I would have expected to find this a lot more obvious.
Quote:- "justayellowbadge said:I understand that there is a movement afoot to cancel any 'third world debt' that the affected areas may be subject to. Now that sounds like a good idea to me. What, after all, is the point of pouring monies into the region if the West is still going to be checking interest statements?
Actually your quite right.
However WE, yes, WE may end up short term (like 10-15 years) losers as the fiscal payments cease and the money has to be found from within.
However balance that in the long term, away from fiscal matters, the third world actually start to move away from abject poverty and the gains are hopefully obvious, far less any seats of terrorism, democracy rampages across the globe, freedom for all etc.
Yes I know it sounds like a dream BUT........
MoJo."
from the sticky thread.....
Mojo.
Actually your quite right.
However WE, yes, WE may end up short term (like 10-15 years) losers as the fiscal payments cease and the money has to be found from within.
However balance that in the long term, away from fiscal matters, the third world actually start to move away from abject poverty and the gains are hopefully obvious, far less any seats of terrorism, democracy rampages across the globe, freedom for all etc.
Yes I know it sounds like a dream BUT........
MoJo."
from the sticky thread.....
Mojo.
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