Tracy

>I read you link sometime ago and it has not changed my perception nor my views. From your link:

>
>However, even though the charts above do show US aid to be poor (in percentage terms) compared to the rest, the generosity of the American people is far more impressive than their government. Private aid/donation has been through charity of individual people and organizations though this of course can be weighted to certain interests and areas. Nonetheless, it is interesting to note for example, per latest estimates, Americans privately give at least $34 billion overseas—more than twice the US official foreign aid of $15 billion at that time.
>
>While Adelman admits that “there are no complete figures for international private giving” she still says that Americans are “clearly the most generous on earth in public—but especially in private—giving”.
>

Did you read a little further. It shoots big holes in the statement she makes here. The private gifts are partly form immigrants sending money back home.


>I still think that the U.S. needs to pull out from everywhere (militarily, financially). Any aid should go into a universal pot that is handled by a multinational group overseen by multiple countries. That will never happen because the government uses the aid to achieve what it considers in the best interest of this country and its citizens totally unbeknownst to its citizens.

You've got the point..

>The primary focus of our tax dollars should be the problems here in the U.S. Until those are resolved, we have no business giving to the world. Fair trade amongst countries is a better means of providing productive aid (if it can be kept out of the money grubbing hands). Once money goes to any country we have no control over how it is spent and the majority of the time the people in the beneficiary country as a whole see no benefit and know themselves that the money is going to crooks within their own country.

The situation is a bit more complicated than this. The US needs the world outside more than you think. It needs the oil of the middle east. It needs the support of NATO countries for supporting their war in Iraq and afghanistan. Hell it even needs Iran and Jordania for controlling the problems in iraq. It needs china for controlling the US debt. It needs countries to have the dollar as the international trading currency (What will happen if all oil producing countries will move to the euro ?). Financial aid is just one of the tools to make it work.

Just plain out cutting this, will have dramatic consequences. Sad, but true. However this is not to mean that I don't agree 100% with your nobel proposal.

Walter,