The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel

This post has 5 comments with rating of 5/55

• 
  caesar963
  August 21st, 2020
  

  For virtually the entirety of human history, over 90% of the species was barely at subsistence level. Inequality has obviously always existed. To say it hasn’t, as usual, displays negligent reasoning malfunction. Does the 60% figure represent progress? Yeah, but not enough, of course. Major factors are still political, economic & administrative efficiency in developing countries, to ensure debt reform and foreign aid are not exploited. It’s oft been observed that, unfortunately, foreign aid is taking money from poor people in rich countries and giving it to rich people in poor countries.

  My own benighted country, which has no history of colonialism - merely of being brutally colonised - does not have nuclear weapons, a space programme, or an enormous military force. However, annually we give vast aid to several countries which notably possess all or most of these dubious “luxuries” - competing on a global scale, but blithely ignoring the direst need which exists within their borders. We give in the hopes that at least some resources will reach the poorest people. Sometimes it goes to fund wars and military adventures. In this context, to assert that political, economic, administrative - even moral - reform and efficiency are not important factors, is yet more evidence of reckless reasoning malfunction.

  The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel
• 
  bengle_moody
  August 21st, 2020
  

  The places aid ends up is almost always entirely intentional. Aid has rarely, if ever, been a tool used to help the poorest. It is routinely used to send messages, and instructions to other countries and serve the interests of the donor.

  “Here’s $4M, but you must spend it on agricultural goods manufactured in our country. Don’t need them? Doesn’t matter, buy them and leave them rusting anyway so we can create some trade.”

  The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel
• 
  caesar963
  August 21st, 2020
  

  It’s even more chaotic than that. For self-aggrandising governments within the EU, it’s become about the headline issue of hitting the % quota of gross national income allocated to foreign, developmental aid. All of this while no effective oversight or inspection regime exists at the final destination. There’s a certain recklessness as to outcome, a grim fatalism, in regard to the delivery and distribution of potentially life-saving aid. It’s the usual dead hand of the State; a desultory, box-ticking exercise. This is a prominent reason why many have lost confidence in the area. A deep cynicism obtains, while there remains a moral obligation to continue. Government to government aid is a busted flush - without root and branch reform.

  Often we seek evidence of dire conspiracy, only to find ubiquitous incompetence.

  The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel
• 
  Audi0books
  August 23rd, 2020
  

  

  Foreign aid is neither “foreign” nor “aid”. It is a mechanism to recycle surplus cash, to avoid inflation. In Britain the Tories have found even a better way of “recycling” surplus and controlling inflation: giving billions to their cronies encouraging them to transfer it all to tax-havens.
  As for inequality, yes it was always a thing but in a diverse world with every society with its own social structures, it did not make any difference in most of those societies. Money did not make the world go round in those societies. Character, community and social/familial bonds mattered more among many other things. We have imposed OUR system of values (money) on the whole world destroying local values, replacing them with OUR values. This is colonialism by another name.

  The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel
• 
  caesar963
  August 23rd, 2020
  

  “Foreign” in the sense of its not being “domestic” - for inst, foreign-focused, rather than concentrating resources at home, amongst the needy within the inner city.
  “Aid” in the sense of attempting to alleviate & eliminate diseases in developing countries - for inst, river blindness, and a whole host of what we would regard as simply cured diseases, in the Western world. Also, efforts to reduce poverty and hunger, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where the needs are most acute. Aid to support long-term development & native people’s own ability to respond to humanitarian crises.

  Most of our funding is spent on agriculture and nutrition programmes, health and HIV, education services, and on providing much-needed humanitarian assistance in emergency situations. There are many sincere, monitored schemes to contribute to the mitigation and (hopefully) eradication of suffering and human rights violations.

  A diverse world and universal love would, I sincerely believe, be preferable. So far, unfortunately, we have been unable to bring this about. Human nature - at all levels - represents a significant, real world barrier.

  The Divide: Global Inequality from Conquest to Free Markets - Jason Hickel

Add a comment (please log in before commenting)