0.14% of GNP Is Stingy, Even Among Richest Nations

[DrFunkenstein]

WASHINGTON - President Bush defended American generosity Wednesday, even as his administration figures out how to pay for more help beyond the $35 million it has already promised to tsunami victims in Asia.

In his first remarks since the weekend disaster that so far has killed more than 76,000, Bush — like some in his administration previously — took umbrage at a U.N. official's suggestion that the world's richest nations were "stingy," and indicated much more is expected to be spent to help the victims.

"Well, I felt like the person who made that statement was very misguided and ill-informed," Bush said from his Texas ranch. "We're a very generous, kindhearted nation, and, you know, what you're beginning to see is a typical response from America."

Bush noted that the United States provided $2.4 billion "in food, in cash, in humanitarian relief to cover the disasters for last year. ... That's 40 percent of all the relief aid given in the world last year."

Measured another way, as a percentage of gross national product, the OECD's figures on development aid show that as of April, none of the world's richest countries donated even 1 percent of its gross national product. Norway was highest, at 0.92 percent; the United States was last, at 0.14 percent.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=542&e=8&u=/ap/20041229/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/stingy_americans

[Warpy]

1. yeah, and the cheap son of a bitch

had to be shamed into that much.

Gawd, the man just hates human beings, doesn't he?

[Degeezer]

3. Wait wait wait

It is OUR MONEY we are talking about here, not W's

[PurityOfEssence]

7. No, no, no; he thinks OUR money is his

Never underestimate the selfishness of the privileged right. He used this country to settle a family score with Hussein and help his friends access more oil. He truly thinks like Louis XIV: "L'Etat, c'est moi", although by competence, he's much more like Louis XVI.

At every turn, he loots the treasury to give favors to himself and friends. Think like a pimp and you'll understand this fuck. As his brother-in-law is fond of saying: "I only want my fair share, which is all of it."

[bones_7672]

2. Well then, what are YOU PERSONALLY GONNA DO ABOUT IT???

[DrFunkenstein]

4. Actually, Just Posting This Was A Big Step For Me

After several months of dropping out entirely from the political process, this is a ray of hope, albeit an exhausted one.

As far as monetary support, if that's what you are implying, I'll donate as soon as I can afford curtains on my windows. Rent and food come first.

[illflem]

6. If you think the chimp is being cheap

just donate money yourself and deduct it from your taxes. Either way the government (all of us) pays. Advantage to donating to a private cause is that government bureaucracy and red tape won't eat half the money before it leaves the US boarders.

[Truman01]

5. 1% of the GDP??

I'm all for helping, but I think that is ridiculous.

http://www.worldbank.org/data/databytopic/GDP.pdf

This is a list of GDP's of the world's economies. We have a GDP of 10.8 Trillion dollars and you want to give $100 billion to relief efforts around the world?

Granted we could stop wasting money in Iraq and such but I think that money is still better spent at home.

I know I'm probably one of the few capitalists here (gasp), and before you try to blast me I am sure my charitable contributions are considerable by any of your standards, but I'm not prepared to give 100 billion away to other Countries just because we have a wealthy country.


TC

[Massacure]

8. A lot of nations pledged to put .70% of their GDP on aid.

However a lot of them are liars. The U.S. is the biggest liar of them all.

Edited for spelling.

[FormerDittoHead]

9. Not really - it's like $100,000 for every WHITE person affected...

I really love how the news reports this story,

"THREE AMERICANS!"

"Supermodel SAFE!"

[ReelBigSpikey]

10. Moral Values

This is Bush's idea of moral values:

Cost of Inauguration: 40 million
Cost of Tsunami Aid Package: 35 million

Parties are way more important than saving lives, especially Asian lives. What would Jesus Do? I'm betting he would cancel the party and donate the money. Just a guess though...

[banana republican]

11. XIANS SHOULD GIE 10% OF GDP N/T