For your consideration: Hunger and Torture
In all the fuss over forums and compassion and bitterness and guns, a few newsworthy items emerged that I haven’t really had time to give their proper weight. I’m going to post them here for you to read and consider. All feedback is welcome.
Hunger, Here and Abroad
Bill Moyers’ moving show on hunger and poverty. When I listened, it shocked me (truly it did) to hear the stories of people in our own country going hungry, food kitchens with bare cupboards, and schools feeding kids junk because they cannot get milk or cheese at a decent price. This is happening right here, and it’s happening to more and more people every day.
But it’s not just happening in the US. From today’s’ Washington Post:
World Bank Chief Calls for Immediate Action on Deepening Global Food Crisis
Robert B. Zoellick said the international community has to “put our money where our mouth is” now to help hungry people. Zoellick spoke as the bank and its sister institution, the International Monetary Fund, ended two days of meetings in Washington.
He called on governments to rapidly carry out commitments to provide the U.N. World Food Program with $500 million in emergency aid by May 1. Prices have only risen further since the program issued that appeal, so it is urgent that governments step up, he said.
Zoellick said that the fall of the government in Haiti over the weekend after a wave of deadly rioting and looting over food prices underscores the importance of quick international action.
Did you know about the fall of the government in Haiti? I didn’t, and I had the news on all weekend. I can, however, parse the word “bitter” to death.
From the BBC: World Bank echoes food cost alarm
The rapid rise in food prices could push 100 million people in poor countries deeper into poverty, World Bank head, Robert Zoellick, has said.
His warning follows that from the leader of the International Monetary Fund, who said hundreds of thousands of people were at risk of starvation.
Mr Zoellick proposed an action plan to boost long-run agricultural production.
There have been food riots recently in a number of countries, including Haiti, the Philippines and Egypt.
“Based on a rough analysis, we estimate that a doubling of food prices over the last three years could potentially push 100 million people in low-income countries deeper into poverty,” Mr Zoellick said.
This sounds like a huge crisis to me — what about you?
And more on torture, via Kathy at At-Largely, the story of a 47-year old man, or more accurately, the torture of a 47-year old man, resulting in death:
This is the reality of current US interrogation techniques–they sometimes result in death. Then they are considered torture. Hung by your wrists for an extended period, gagged, and beaten so harshly that you have almost 30 rib fractures and a broken sternum, but still alive? No major organ failure? Not torture, according to John Yoo and our administration has stated it concurs.
Don’t you think we can do better than this?
Technorati Tags: hunger, starvation, torture, human rights, ACLU, BBC