Underscoring a point in yesterday’s column:

I cannot tell you how spot on you were with this piece! I was raised in Kenya many years ago and have been back often, taking people on safari and visiting family and friends. I have a cousin who lives and farms on the shores of Lake Naivasha. The group I had on safari, a couple of years ago, stayed at the farm and one of the group said to my cousin “If there was one thing that you would say to the US, what would that be?” His reply was “stop dumping all your subsidized crops in Kenya, we are perfectly able to feed ourselves if you would leave us alone!”. AMEN.
How do you get stupid politicians to listen to people who know?!

Helping people is fine. Helping because it makes you feel big is selfish but, still serves a purpose. Helping people because you profit from it and pretending you really care is...well...it’s liberalism...or progism...or whatever word is hip this week.

Check this out

http://jaypgreene.com/2008/05/06/arabian-gulf-money-and-us-universities

Seems like American universities are getting mountains of cash from repressive, jew hating Islamic countries.

And it coincides with the rise of jew hating and Israel divestment goose stepping on these same campi!

Whooda thunkit.

Looks like todays noble intellectuals are the ‘30’s German industrialists. Give ‘em a handful of blood money and they’ll gladly look the other way.

The opium won’t make your car run better but it will make you not care too much if you ever get there.

Getting them addicted on crack is an idea as enticing as it is utterly ridiculous.

Instead of the Peace Corps send over the Crack Whore.  Peace Corps / Crack Whore, your choice.

At last, a decent cheesesteak in Karbul.
All those San Diego State kids could sign up for the Crack Whore Corps to win over the liver and spleen of the Taliban. Forget their hearts and minds. We have their livers. (far more important if you ask me)

I have no problems with Scott’s ideas for solar lanterns and bicycle water pumps. Good stuff. Just because food aid might be a bad idea does not make all forms of charity and assistance automatically equally bad. Far from it.

The U.S. is also correct to continue to hold out hope it can help in Myanmmar aka Burma.  It would be beyond all concept and scale of foolishness however to believe that just because we wait in the wings with bags of powdered milk the corrupt governments will suddenly decide our government is decent and responsible.

Scott makes a good point. It would be a great vote buying scheme if the fed subsidized American made crack and other drugs for import into Afganistan. Their “economy” would collapse and they’d be utterly dependent on the whims of paternalistic social crusaders. And imagine the cash that would flow into the pockets of cash needy urban gov’ts here in the US! (Pretty much the same but, in the form of a federal check and not cash in a brown paper bag.)

Has anybody tried to put crack in their gas tank yet? How about a car that runs on opium? We could called them “opies”.

I want a car than runs on hope.

Speaking of crops…

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050708O.shtml

The Associated Press: “The Marines of Bravo Company’s 1st Platoon sleep beside a grove of poppies. Troops in the 2nd Platoon playfully swat at the heavy opium bulbs while walking through the fields. Afghan laborers scraping the plant’s gooey resin smile and wave. The Taliban, whose fighters are exchanging daily fire with the Marines in Garmser, derives up to $100 million a year from the poppy harvest by taxing farmers and charging safe passage fees—money that will buy weapons for use against US, NATO and Afghan troops. Yet the Marines are not destroying the plants. In fact, they are reassuring villagers the poppies won’t be touched. American commanders say the Marines would only alienate people and drive them to take up arms if they eliminated the impoverished Afghans’ only source of income.”

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=52394

The Power of the Sun: Solar Lanterns Transform Lives in Malawi, Africa

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/01/a_bicycle_that.php

A Bicycle That Creates Clean Air AND Clean Water!

http://www.solarovens.org/international.html

Cooking Fuel is in Short Supply

I’m not convinced this is a Democrat vs. Republican issue.

Lots of bad policy, like food aid, is bipartisan, and deeply ingrained into our political culture.

I doubt if it has much to do with them liking us either. Do-gooders just want to “fix” the world, come what may. At least I admit ardent do-gooders tend to be of the more liberal stripe. Rank and file do-gooders can be very conservative, like our president as only one example.

We “should” be asking that question though. We should be concerned if we get any payback for our generosity. That type of thinking is old fashioned conservatism from before the neocon era.

How dare this character insult the best efforts of the DNC to “do good” anywhere in the World whether they want it or not. The Hell with these people. To prove them wrong and show our clintonese motivation and obamasama execution, we will triple our shipments to them. They will like us!!

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