1st World Comfort versus 3rd World Suffering

Wait. US guy protesting about US laws in the US? Give me a break.

ren wrote: Wait. US guy protesting about US laws in the US? Give me a break.

If there's a point I don't see it...

since i live somewhere i have to like everything they do? on the contrary, i am more aware of our missteps worldwide than you are, i imagine. i helped perpetrate some of them. further, you must have missed the part about my mother being from bolivia, and i neglected to mention i was a dual citizen until i was 18.

The point is that Alabama hardly qualifies as third world.

i wasnt talking about alabama, tho parts sure as crap do.

Hmm Ok. So let me ask differently then. You mentionned having bolivian roots, and apparently once had bolivian citizenship. You also apparently claim to care about the third world. Bolivia is a very poor country. What have you done for it? Do you live there? Do you employ people there? Have you looked into exploiting natural resources to finance public infrastructure?

I think the US is doing perhaps the best out of everyone, afterall we saw what happened at Occupy Tiananmen in 1989. We all could be doing a lot more, me included, even typing about it makes me feel terribly hypocritical, but I guess awareness is a step in the correct direction.

ren wrote: The point is that Alabama hardly qualifies as third world.

Alabama, and many parts of the U.S. certainly do share comparable living conditions ... Please do not fall into the PIB trap when determining well-being, Ren.

http://www.stiglitz-sen-fitoussi.fr/documents/rapport_francais.pdf

ren wrote: Hmm Ok. So let me ask differently then. You mentionned having bolivian roots, and apparently once had bolivian citizenship. You also apparently claim to care about the third world. Bolivia is a very poor country. What have you done for it? Do you live there? Do you employ people there? Have you looked into exploiting natural resources to finance public infrastructure?

what have i done for it...quite a bit less than i would have liked thus far. on a micro level, i, along with my parents and possibly my sister have sent tens of thousands of dollars to relatives there over the years. we all know this is but a stopgap measure, giving a man a fish as it were.

on a larger scale, i can tell you firsthand how the cocaine trade has ravaged the country. i have the facial scars to prove it from an incident foolishly jogging in the jungle near santa cruz one afternoon. it is fueled almost entirely by american demand for the product, and viciously protected and fought over by the cartels. if our country legalized its drug trade, overnight the cartels would be out of business. there would be less open warfare in bolivia (and mexico to a larger sense), product could be openly regulated and taxed. treatment programs could be instituted at a fraction of the cost of this ongoing, wildly destructive 'war on drugs'.

no, i dont live there now. i would like to one day. the only and entire reason i live in this podunk town, the only reason i returned in 2009 was my son here. i was more than content to remain there, but the court case for custody seemed to be finally moving forward. so home i went.

do i employ people there? i dont even employ people here. perhaps you missed it, but the US, and in particular my poor state, is hurting for jobs, especially high paying ones that would allow one to eventually start a business and employ others. i have no intention of becoming an international magnate of sorts. i will leave that to you.

natural resources there have been exploited already. again, i am not an industrialist. that is really not my area of expertise. i will stick with what i know.

what have i done for it...quite a bit less than i would have liked thus far. on a micro level, i, along with my parents and possibly my sister have sent tens of thousands of dollars to relatives there over the years. we all know this is but a stopgap measure, giving a man a fish as it were.

Yet with all that money you could have started a fisheries company that could run on its own without need for further investment. Now, not only there is no fish at the market, but on top of that the only fisherman in town left a few years ago, emigrated somewhere for a better pay.

on a larger scale, i can tell you firsthand how the cocaine trade has ravaged the country. i have the facial scars to prove it from an incident foolishly jogging in the jungle near santa cruz one afternoon. it is fueled almost entirely by american demand for the product, and viciously protected and fought over by the cartels. if our country legalized its drug trade, overnight the cartels would be out of business. there would be less open warfare in bolivia (and mexico to a larger sense), product could be openly regulated and taxed. treatment programs could be instituted at a fraction of the cost of this ongoing, wildly destructive 'war on drugs'.

True. legalization would also present a major blow to human trafficking and illegal arms trading. Legal arms trading is nastier but you know what tescos's say: every little helps.

do i employ people there? i dont even employ people here.

This has to be the *Yuckyist* argument I've ever heard. If you'd tried you'd know why I'm saying this.

perhaps you missed it, but the US, and in particular my poor state, is hurting for jobs, especially high paying ones that would allow one to eventually start a business and employ others.

Guess what, in poor countries you do not need a lot of money to start a business. hungry pople are willing to work and don't ask about pension contributions... And if you're not greedy the authorities won't take over your stuff.

i have no intention of becoming an international magnate of sorts. i will leave that to you.

I think you'll find most people in the world either own or are employed by a small business. It was my understanding bolivia is in need of private investors, and lots of private investors are just like one big one.