Food for Thought

The ONE Campaign has created a lot of interest in the flow of money to developing countries -- in particular, Africa. The Shape of Days offers insight into the amount of foreign aid funds America is already sending, though by "America," he doesn't necessarily mean "the federal government."

While the persons and organizations behind ONE have their hearts in the right place, they need a new approach. Instead of urging citizens to urge their governments to spend more money, ONE should urge citizens to open their own wallets.

"But some concerned citizens can't afford to donate while the U.S. Government can," an observer might say. The U.S. Government is in a budget deficit and won't be out of it for some time. The voices behind ONE keep reminding citizens how stingy the eight richest governments are with foreign aid. Perhaps if each celebrity involved in ONE pledged to donate a significant percentage of his or her income to foreign aid, they could both set an example and pick up whatever slack they observe. Putting one's money where one's mouth is still counts for something, especially when one commands a personal budget surplus.

I won't begin to mire this post with remarks about how limousine liberals want Big (and Generous) Government at the same time complaining about conservatives who engage in deficit spending and apparently don't give enough foreign aid. Somehow I can't help but think ONE is just a well-packaged means of pointing more fingers at the Bush Administration. The Culture Wars continue... this time at the expense of developing nations.