h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There are a number of obstacles we need to overcome to do something positive about the rampant spread of AIDS in Africa.

The first problem is education. Millions of Africans know very little about the HIV virus and how it is spread. Even in South Africa there is currently a controversy. Some people say that HIV does not cause AIDS, but poverty and miserable living conditions do. While it is true that these factors contribute to the spread of AIDS and to AIDS deaths, this theory detracts from people's awareness that AIDS is transferred from person to person by unprotected sexual intercourse. If the people living in poverty and squalor were told how AIDS is spread, and if they took protective measures, they would still be poor, but at least they won't die of AIDS. If they survive we can at least then try to do something about their poverty; if they die, we cannot.

So people must be taught about safe sex and other protective measures, they must be taught about the HIV virus and the way it is transmitted from person to person. There is an incredible amount of ignorance about that over here. The more people KNOW about AIDS, the safer they will be. They must know that the virus lives in the blood and body fluids, they must know that they can get it from unprotected sex with people infected with it, they must know that they can also get it from blood transfusions and dirty syringes (although these two cause only a small percentage of deaths). They must also know that a person can be HIV positive without showing any symptoms. Many people still believe that if their partner looks clean and healthy, he/she does not carry the HIV virus. Or they believe that only really promiscuous people have it, and that their partner is not a slut/sex maniac and therefore don't carry the virus. They must know that clean, healthy-looking, not particularly promiscuous people can nevertheless be HIV positive.

Of course in other countries there might be an idea that only gays can carry AIDS, which is quite untrue. Down here it is an almost totally heterosexual disease, and it is quite possible that in Europe and America its relative incidence among heterosexuals will increase, perhaps as a direct result of people's ignorance. So whether you're gay or straight, always take care.

People must also know that AIDS cannot be cured. Down here there are incredible superstitions about AIDS cures. One such superstition is that an AIDS sufferer can be cured by having sex with a virgin. Not only is it not a cure, it leads to a possible spread of the virus to someone who was free from it before. A less harmful belief is that AIDS can be cured by traditional healers. Not to be prejudiced here, I give credit to the skill and knowledge of traditional healers, but I don't think they can. AIDS at the present time is incurable, people must be aware of that or they will not take proper safety measures. Of course, after getting it you ought to try every possible remedy, but if you are still HIV negative don't be careless because you imagined that you might easily be cured of AIDS if you caught it.

So we must educate, and fast. Everybody can help. This piece I write now is a way to communicate, to educate. It will not reach many Africans, but it will increase awareness in other countries. Africa is very dependent on other countries right now, because we don't have the means to do very much on our own. We will do as much as we can, but all help would be extremely welcome.

Second problem: condoms. Where do you suddenly get thousands of millions of condoms, and even if you can get them, how can you distribute them to the people of Africa? Are there cheaper, more effective ways of preventing the disease? Well, there's celibacy and fidelity; the biggest problem is MULTIPLE sex partners. The more people you have intercourse with, the more likely it is that one of them will be HIV positive. So there are campaigns to urge people to stay faithful to one partner, or to abstain. But simultaneously there are campaigns to encourage people to have more sex and to be more promiscuous - hollywood movies and TV series. And the people of Africa are influenced by that. How many times do you see in a movie that people put on condoms before having sex, or refrain from intercourse if they don't have protection?

Third problem: medication. There are medications that act against the spread of AIDS, there are medications that can perhaps give people immunity against AIDS, there are medications to combat the symptoms of the disease, but, again, where do you suddenly find the amounts needed over here, and how do you get them to the people? This is where help from other countries is most sorely needed. If only we can get some aid in the form of cheaper medicines, it will really help save many lives. And I want to point out that many of the people who die from AIDS do not die because of sexual irresponsibility on their side. There are babies who get it from their mothers. There are women and children who have been raped. There are wives who get it from their secretly unfaithful husbands. And many more. So don't come with a high and mighty morality saying people die because they're careless and it's their responsibility, not yours. Please, try to make a difference to this epidemic, in any way possible!

You wrote in your intro, "I believe in human potential: we seem to carry within us the seeds of unimaginable greatness. But it will just stay seeds unless we give it soil, water, nourish it so that it can grow," which is the exact sentiment a guest lecturer from Senegal spoke about a few weeks back in one of my graduate studies classes. It is imperfect institutions that have failed us, and one of the most imperfect is healthcare. Even in my country (USA), which is supposed to be "the most power nation on earth" (so say the news reports about the bombing of the Navy warship), has an incredible record for making healthcare one of the lowest priorities.

Lots of the talk in the presidential race here is about prescription drug plans and healthcare. It is all very, very important, but I keep thinking how selfish it is for this nation to be thinking is such an isolated manner. Our healthcare issues are immense, but then you look to Africa and you see the same problem that plague us here, mega-maniacal pharmaceutical companies putting profit way and above *anything* else. The AIDS crisis in African countries is, of course, not *caused* by those companies, but their greed is making it impossible to slow the fire.

I often think that if Americans looked at the issues we face by looking at similar issues outside our borders, perhaps they would see the linkage and maybe finally learn that the way to conquer the issues is by joining forces with the voices who don't get heard here. I wish the presidential debates had voices from the South directing attention to the connection we as humans all have to some issues. Though, the realist voice forever biting my ear will say that can never happen. Foreign policy is not spoken of in this country unless there is a direct threat to our "vital national interests" and those interests are always dictated by people who depend on imperfect institutions.

Too true, Americans are an insular people, largely because it was this kind of thinking was absolutely vital to our early survival... avoiding entangling alliances and becoming involved in the wars of Europe would have killed off our fragile nation in its cradle. The country experienced puberty in the World Wars and emerged as a full-grown giant in the prime of its life... and doesn't know what to do about it. Still, when people are dying of AIDS here, it is hard to convince people to help strangers far away. It shows a lack of priorities.

Even still, in a political climate like that, aid doesn't work, but only helps the corrupt government stay in power, so there's really nothing anyone can do about the poverty at the moment. Everything I've ever read about foreigners mucking about in the economies of others only proves it. Even well intended, they end up doing something stupid, like trying to grow peanuts in Tanzania, a country that doesn't want peanuts, a crop that is already abundantly available, and doesn't grow well in Tanzania besides (Yes, that really happened... credit the English on that one, not that US forays into this field have generated anything better than Manuel Noriega and Saddam Hussein).

I think the solution for the AIDS medical thing, though, is to work through charities that will purchase the medicine for Africa, and it can be shipped to the hospitals. I'm sure someone in the government over there will manage to profit enormously off of this, because that's the way things always work out, but it'll help. You just have to figure out a way to get people outside Africa to care about this. Good luck.

As for the gay and AIDS connection, here in the US, we're quite aware of the nature of the disease. It was billed as the gay epidemic because that was where most of the cases were appearing initially, but that is mainly due to the nature of homosexual sex between men, which makes it so easy to pass from one to another. Next most at risk are women having sex with men. Women have a much more difficult time passing it to a man or a woman.

Hi, Zmrzlina, Hi, Colonel. How can First-world countries help Third-world countries in a meaningful way? I don't know for sure. It is true that some ways of trying to help will not work, and in fact will often make the problems worse. What Westerners often fail to realise is that the situations are MILLIONS of times more complicated than they have been told. The problem is, people want to be told something complicated in a simple manner, and they want the solution for a problem to be simple also. They try to take the easy way out, and that does not work.

Solving the problems here will be a HUGELY complicated endeavour. Nothing else is conceivable. It will have to involve a great amount of communication between Africa and the rest of the world. And, by the way, I speak of Africa because I live here, but we will ALSO have to solve the problems in ALL other countries, including America and Britain! Some people might say: you are off your rocker, we can never solve all these problems. Well, we hafta! What else can I say? Must we just sit and watch civilisation fall to pieces, and say, well hey, it was fun while it lasted! Because the problems ain't small ones. People in first world countries are often complacent, they have comfortable lifestyles, they think things will go on like that forever. They haven't been in an insanely destructive war, they have never experienced mass famine or severe ecological disasters. Well let me tell them: do you think the problems we have over here are never going to come over there? What barriers can you erect to keep them out? Do you think the USA or Europe can exist safely in isolation, while the rest of the world turns into a pit of pestilence - do you think the pestilence will not spread to your squeaky-clean, bright and shiny world?

The only way we can solve the WORLD's problems is if people in EVERY country started to realise that they don't exist in isolation, that the problems of people in other countries are their problems, too. Forget about foreign aid; if you want to change the world, change the ways that people think. Do it in the US, do it in Britain, do it in China, in Russia, in Japan and Australia, in South America, in India, in Southeast Asia, in Africa. Make people see the big picture. Let people talk; let people start thinking of people in other countries as being people like themselves. Let people understand that the only goals that matter are all-inclusive goals; let them be interested only in solutions where all sides win. Anything less than that is shortsighted, inefficient, destructive, suicidally futile.

How to help Africa? In any way possible. By not giving up on us. If you try foreign aid and that doesn't work, try something else. Establish lines of communication with Africa, inside Africa. Tell people about what's going on here. Talk to the people here, tell us about yourself, your country. The sooner we can find out more about each other, the sooner we can start caring more about each other. People must be told that what is going on here affects them. There are dictators here, that is true. There are corrupt governments and officials here, that is true. But if there were better lines of communication, problems would be spotted faster and would be easier to tackle. The UN could have prevented the genocide in Rwanda. I mean, they have sattelites watching the ground day and night; do you think a slaughter of a million people just happens? No, it is planned, and there are preparations. If somebody was watching and paying attention, those preparations would have been spotted. The whole thing could have been stopped before it started. In the same manner, if you watch the every move of an official who's been entrusted to a large sum of money, he won't be able to spirit it away. Pay attention at all times! Information! Education! Awareness! Know what the hell is going on! Evil can only flourish in the darkness.

How do you stop the wars? How do you stop the epidemics? How do you stop the crises? Find out the reasons for them, and take away those reasons. Don't address the effects - change the causes. Act pro-active, not reactive. Learn to think in new ways. That is the only way out.

I want to respond specifically to what you said about interfering in other countries' internal affairs, Colonel. There are many different ways to be involved with another country. In Africa, getting involved in someone else's war is the worst thing that you can possibly do. You just turn the conflict into a much bigger one, because when you step in for one side the other side will go find someone to step in for them, and before you know it you have mess ten times worse than it started out.

But what causes these conflicts in the first place? Disputes over land, disputes over resources, disputes over power. While a dispute is still at the level of a verbal argument, there is hope of settling it before it turns violent. That means talking, talking and more talking; trying to persuade the one side to see things from the other side's point of view, trying to balance the equation, trying to find a mutually acceptable solution. The thing is, America's tactic is much a strong-arm one. Choose one of the sides and impose force on the other. But if you refrained from choosing sides, if you were equally concerned about the problems of each side, and if you were willing on your part to be ACTIVELY involved in improving the situation of the one or the other or both sides, you can help the disputes towards what I call the "win-win" solution. Because I believe in all cases a solution can be found that substantially improves the situation of both sides. But such a solution calls for tact, sensitivity, fair judgement, and creativity. Those qualities have been noticeably lacking in American foreign policy so far, at least that is my impression from this side.

Once again it comes down to a change of mind-set. Africans themselves have to change their mind-set. They also have to start thinking "bigger", beyond their own petty concerns. There are already signs of change; many Africans are used to thinking of Africa as a whole, not divided up into lots of countries with different and conflicting interests. But they can go even farther if they open their eyes and take note of the rest of the world.

How do you change people's mindset? Do you force them? Do you threaten them? Do you brainwash them? Well, we have one extremely effective brain-washing device - the TV set; but in this case it will not work. TV teaches passivity; what we need is activity. No, if you want to change people's mindsets, first of all you must realise that the change is up to them, not up to you. But having realised this, you can still try. How? By communication. This is not a simple activity. You must use your head. First of all you must know what you are talking about. Second you must know the person you are talking to. Third you must know yourself. Those three aspects are equal in importance. If you take communication seriously enough, and if you apply it effectively, you can change the world. By slowly, oh so slowly, talking to someone in earnest about important things, you will start to influence that person. But you will also be influenced by that person. If it only goes one way, it is not communication, it is worthless. It has to be interactive. Both sides have to play a part. But by the mere act of communicating with someone, you are forcing that person to interact, to open up, to be involved with you, to be responsible. Confront people with communication; let yourself be heard. And, in turn, hear them out, listen to what they say, and learn.

Africans talking to Americans or Europeans will force them to open their eyes and take note of what's happening here. Americans and Europeans talking to Africans will force us to notice you, as well. This process must increase a thousandfold first before we can really start doing anything really effective about our mutual problems.

And while we're at it, what do you do about poverty? Donate huge sums of money? Start up special projects? Like you said, the money goes into the pocket of one guy and his toadies, while the special project fails miserably because it is entirely inappropriate under the specialised conditions that exist here. So, what do you do?

The old Chinese saying about giving a man a fish against teaching him to fish applies here. What we need more than anything else is know-how. If the West can only help us with one thing, it ought to be education. How to do that? Millions of ways. The Internet certainly makes everything much easier than ever before. But consider the state of education as it is over here right now. Most children just aren't educated at all. They don't have schools to go to, their parents don't have the time or the ability to teach them anything, so they just play around all day on the garbage heaps, and one day they are grown up, they are kicked out of their homes, and they don't have any skills, can't get a job, don't even know where to look. What a difference just a small school with a handful of teachers can make. If Africa is to have any degree of prosperity, its people will have to be taught the ways of the modern world: how does business work, how does politics work, how do you run an industry, how do you manufacture things; they need to know about ecology - ecological disasters being one of the great African problems - and science, the humanities, psychology, sociology, history, languages, arts - anything and everything.

Educate! Teach! Share know-how! Those are projects that will bear fruit. How? Let governments, as a form of aid, make available jobs as teachers in Africa or other third-World countries, and pay people handsomely to go and do those jobs. And PREPARE them, for heaven's sake! They have to know they're in for a rough ride. And check up on them! Make sure they're not merely taking an extended tropical holiday. If you want to start a project, build a school and equip it with computers. Also equip it with guards to make sure the computers aren't stolen. Involve the governments, involve the communities. Protect your interests while also serving the surrounding society. There are ways. African's aren't genetically stupid. We can learn. But we can't learn if we have no material to learn. You want to give aid? How about textbooks?

What will you be doing if you give third-world countries this kind of aid? Well, provided it is USED (and here you must be aggressive, like a mother forcing her kid to take medicine) it can help a great deal. If Africans just have more know-how, we can use the resources of our continent infinitely more efficiently. If we do that, the people can become more prosperous,; trade between Africa and other countries can increase and both sides can profit much more from it. Also, we can protect and make the most of what must be the most beautiful and interesting environments anywhere on earth. If Africa is a safer, more stable place, tourism to Africa will increase - and again both sides will benefit. There are many Americans and Europeans who I'm sure would love to visit Africa but are intimidated by the political and social instability. I mean, the way it is now, even I am afraid to visit neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe or Mozambique - though I would absolutely LOVE it and would take the first possible opportunity of going there, provided it is safe. And people from other countries can really learn a lot from a visit here, see many breathtaking sights, experience many exciting adventures. So if things go better here, the world as a whole will be a better place.

Oh yeah, and education will also do a lot to halt the AIDS crisis.

1) US strong-armed policies:

The US has avoided that sort of thing in the whole Arab-Israeli conflict. What has all that talking resolved? Not one thing. The US does tend to stand up for the Israelis, but that is because the entire Arab world is united against them, so the US tries to keep them from being overwhelmed. The idea of US involvement keeps all those Islamic countries from invading. But in the political discussions, the US has always tried to act as a mediator, to help the people come to a compromise that everyone can live with. There can be no compromise. The Israelis believe it is their god-given right to have their own nation there. The Arabs make a valid point as well... it was theirs already, so why did it have to be taken away from them and given to European refugees? There can be no common ground.

The same sort of thing occurs in Africa. Uncompromising people ascend to the leadership of each side of a conflict. As a result, no compromise is possible. So outside interference comes to nothing. So what can change it? Any meaningful change has to come from the inside. You need to find your own Mohandas Gandhi, and begin your own peaceful movement that refuses to participate in further violence. You need to educate your own people about the necessity of a good education. Put in place incentives that will draw educators from the First World. Where do you find the ability to do this sort of thing? Government. Before you can even begin to address the rest of your problems, you need a stable government. A (relatively) uncorrupt government. And nobody can give you a government... you'd only resent it. I'll say again.. any meaningful change must come from inside. That's how Japan and Sweden produced their miraculous turnarounds, and it's the only model that has been demonstrated to work.

2) Educators from abroad

Well, it *is* a good idea, but I don't think you really want US help in this endeavor, considering we can't even educate ourselves. 60% of fourth-graders can't read and write at the appropriate grade level. Test scores continue to plummet, and curriculum continues to be dumbed-down in order to get more kids to graduate, which desn't seem to be helping. This is a trend we've been on for the last 15-20 years. I'm sure our educators would be glad to help, but, before we can, we need to figure out how to fix our own antiquated system.

Ah, Colonel Sellers, always the skeptic! At least you care enough to respond, and that I appreciate deeply!

About the Arab-Israely conflict: I for one am still holding out hope. Not being involved in the conflict in any direct way, I am still praying, for whatever THAT might be worth, that it comes to some sort of peaceful settlement. Or at least, that the violence and destruction would be minimal. In any case, the USA is still trying the "talking" angle, and I do believe they have to keep on trying it. A war there, now, can be a catastrophe with global repercussions. Consider: the USA can jump in on the side of Israel, but the entire rest of the Arab world will jump in on the other side. Even inside the USA there will be conflict as there are many muslims over there. Here in SA anti-Israel feelings predominate. We have strong bonds with the PLO, with Arafat, with Ghaddaffi and Libya. So a war in Israel could turn our countries into overt enemies. And that I don't want at all.

No, I really hope that things will not go that far. I always believe in talking rather than fighting.

You bring in the religion angle, and that is a good point. I do think that any effort to resolve the conflict should also focus on religion, try to moderate extreme views. You cannot easily change the religion of people, but you can manage to talk sense into them. People can change their views; everybody has some spark of empathy, sensitivity, consideration, responsibility and rationality. Just focus on that spark - kindle it into a flame.

Another thing is trying to instill a new mindset into people - the "global" mindset I have been going on about. I mean, at some point even the Israelis and the Arabs need to reconsider their narrow views. What does it matter anyway who has the biggest right to a particular piece of land if that piece of land is blasted and bombarded and scorched so that nobody and nothing can have any kind of meaningful existence there? It's a truly outmoded, petty kind of thinking. We CAN encourage people to be less provincial in their outlook, to think beyond the narrow limits of race, religion, nationality, petty politics. That is the angle I'm trying. Will it work? I assure you of one thing: not instantly. But if I, and say a hundred thousand other writers, keep on hammering on the same points, keep on repeating the important message in thousands of different variations, and keep on doing it for the next ten, fifty, a hundred years, then maybe we can change the minds of enough people to have an effect.

Change in Africa indeed does have to come from the inside. But what happens on the inside also depends upon what happens on the outside. Countries are not isolated from each other, like people are not isolated from each other. Countries ought to be involved with each other, like people ought to be involved with each other. Mindsets need to change. Why do I spend a lot of my time talking to people from Europe and America? Because I care about what happens in those countries, I realise that - whether they want to or not - they strongly influence what happens here, and I want that influence to be positive. I also want the influence to be mutual. I think Africa has a lot to GIVE other countries. We don't want to just take. What I want to do is to combat ignorance. I want to learn more about people in other countries, and I want them to learn more about us. I want the whole "us" and "them" idea to fade out - there should just be "us". People everywhere are basically the same, we all belong to each other.

The change will come from the inside, but it will also necessarily involve people on the outside. The way that countries interact should be similar to the way people interact. It is wrong to try and manipulate another person, to patronise a person. The right way to interact with another person is to consider that person as an equal, and to merely care about that person. Then, you can help the person when he/she asks for help, or refuse to help if it honestly is not in your power; you can give advice when advice is asked, but the other person is under no obligation to follow it; you can make a suggestion, and the other person can decide what to do with that. Most of all, you can do all sorts of different things together, get to know each other, start understanding each other, find out what is the best way to work together. Involvement, interaction, mutual commitment, but without unnecessary strings attached. That I believe is the approach countries should use towards each other as well. In fact, the relations between countries depend on the relations between the PEOPLE of those countries. Greater intimacy between people across borders is now possible thanks to especially the internet.

While I currently focus a lot on Europe and America, for reasons of language, I also care very much about what happens in Central and South America, in Asia and Australia. I'll try and find out more about those countries and to be involved with them in some way too.

Is the educational situation in the US really that bad? I know very little of it. Do you have any opinions about what the problem(s) might be?

I said something about religion? Oh, the Gandhi thing... methinks you take me out of context. What I meant was that there needs to be a charismatic leader, someone who refuses to let the violence escalate (as opposed to Arafat calling for a "day of rage"... smooth move) but peacefully ogranizes the rest of the people who are tired of the status quo and are ready for a change. That kind of movement is unstoppable, because it inspires the majority who want peace, and it gies the opposition no room to capture the moral high ground. When Israeli police are seized and killed, and Israelis counter by shooting buildings with attack helicopters, then nobody is right, but everyone feels a righteous rage on both sides. Gandhi did it and it worked, and so did Martin Luther King Jr. Sure, MLK took a bullet, but his movement survived him.

As for the education system in the US, I blame the same thing that destryoed the USSR. Lack of competition. The educators have gotten so lazy that they have forgotten how to raise the standards of their equipment, techniques, etc. But more than them, I blame the kids. There is a culture in school where it is considered anathema to be intelligent. Someone with good grades is a "teacher's pet" or a "geek." As teenagers, they have a stronger need to belong to society than to prepare for the future. So why did I do so well? I've nevr cared what anyone else thought of me... but then, through our other correspondences, I'm sure you already discerned that.

No, no, no! When I referred to religion, I meant where you said that the Israelis consider their claim to that piece of land to come with the authority of God. And of course, the Arabs are Muslims, and they have pretty authoritarian religious views themselves. THATS's why I said we have to urge both sides to moderate their views.

As for charismatic, peaceful leaders, maybe we'll have some of those soon. Let's hope so. Anyways, so far the anticipated war in Israel has not yet burst out, so let's keep hoping!

So why are American kids like that? It's not the same in other countries, or in other times. My generation was pretty respectful. When I was in school there was not such a thing as peer pressure. I got good grades, and I associated with the other "model" kids, but also with the kids who weren't super-achievers. There weren't really "clubs"; there was a group of fairly anti-social kids, but I was friends with them as well, and so were many of the other "achievers". Nobody ever discouraged anybody from trying to get good grades. We were individuals, eccentricities were tolerated. Even the teachers were laid-back; I was just about allowed to get away with murder. Nowadays there seems to be more peer pressure in S.A. schools, at least that is the impression I get. I wonder if TV does not have something to do with it. There is a great emphasis on conformity and being "cool" and this might come from advertising (in other words, 100% of all transmissions); also, schoolkids on TV are never shown studying; instead they are doing all kinds of silly, stupid or crazy stuff. And modern children are practically raised by the TV set. Maybe now that kids are being raised by the internet things will change again. I still believe the first and most important educational duty lies with the parents. In fact, I wonder if we shouldn't have an education system that focuses on teaching the parents rather than the children?!

Oh my goodness. See what I get for leaving a post for a few days! Well...I am going to try to respond to all of the above, but in little bits. No way can I write long posts like you two at the end of the day! And I am responding as if I have not read the next post. Okay..so much for disclaimers!

Colonel Sellers...you said that caring about people in far away places over those in your own neighborhood "shows a lack of priorities." Since when does a human life become more important because it is local? I just can't subscribe to the priority arguement. If it is important on a local level, it is as important on a global.

I also don't totally buy the corrupt government idea. I don't buy it because it is not just money that is needed to find a cure for AIDS. It is education. However, the US has a long history of supporting corrupt government when it suits our "vital national interests," as you have pointed out. When we go in and muck about in the economies of other states, we are pretty sure to add to trouble. That is why I can't understand the IMF sending in Western economists to structure loans for developing states. Good grief...these states have their own economists who know a hell of a lot more about their state's needs than people who lived in the ivied buildings of Harvard.

And I think the US is quite aware of the nature of AIDS and who is at risk, though there are still way too many who still label it a "gay disease." And many who say they get what they deserve. I think we still have a long way to go in educating people here, too.

The Unmentionable Marauding Pillowcase...I don't think people are as complacent now as they once were. I do think people are becoming more aware, but not quick enough. One of the classic political theorists, Hedley Bull says, "The fact that international society provides some element of order in international politics should not be taken as justifying an attitude of complacency." That was in 1977...nearly a quarter century ago. And we are still only moving in baby steps. I hope the Internet will help move us along quicker.

And perhaps we have become more isolationist here, but sometimes I wonder if it is more that we get exasperated. I am not thinking about the government, which is only concerned about preserving power, but the American people. You sit here and listen to the rants about McDonald's in Paris, American television in England, Coke in China and you just want to say "So don't go, watch, drink it and stop blaming us!" And then we just turn away and go grab a bit from McDonalds, watch the latest sitcom and have our Coke. Okay...I realize that is *not* what you meant TUMP...but I am trying to make a point that sometimes being constantly told you are lazy, ignorant, uncaring...sometimes it just turns people off completely. And I understand you are not saying any of this...but it is a view that I read and hear all the time.

Hmmm...responded to two posts. And now I have to go write something about liberalism and "the clash of civilizations." Yuck. I will be back....

I recently wrote a paper on AIDS in Africa, specifically the UN's declaration that it is the greatest security threat.

If you'd like to read it I could email it to you...

Pillow: I think the biggest reason that kids are screwing up is because of lack of guidance from their parents. They need guidance from somewhere, and they turn to the only people who seem to care... their friends at school, who are just as ignorant as they are. Meanwhile, the government is screwing up educatiion for the same reason governments screw up everything... lack of competition. I hate the idea of school vouchers (which will send my tax dollars to fund a child's religious indoctrination under the guise of private education), but I am willing to support them for the shock it will send our educators. They need incentives to reform, improve, and stay fresh. It's the same reason why socialism is such an abysmal failure.

Zmrzlina: How did I know you'd find your way into an argument about international involvement? Here's what I meant about "lack of priorities," and I was not applying it to myself, but summarizing a widely-held belief... helping people far away takes more resources. You have to organize your relief efforts, fly over volunteers and supplies, navigate unfamiliar territories and hostile bureaucracies. Take all those resources, and focus them on internal problems... now you have volunteers that are already near the trouble spots, supplies can be carried by trucks or private vehicles, friends of friends located in the right places in the local government, etc. Are there not people dying of AIDS right here in the US who cannot afford proper care? Are there not starving and homeless right in our own backyard? And how can we turn our backs on those people, whom we pass every day on the way to get a coke at McDonald's and yet pour our resources into helping people thousands of miles away?

Rob: I'll check on the other post you sent me just after this. If I want to get in touch, I'll give you my email adress on your user page.

Colonel: you must remember, there are many ways to help. I believe you must work in your own country but also keep in mind the world beyond. The kind of efforts I am most interested in are the ones that do not need the mobilisation of large resources: I mean communication, interest, awareness, information, knowledge. Africa has vast resources. We only need to know how to use them right. The western involvement we need most is a sharing of know-how. That does not take huge efforts and expenses.

Also, Western governments are indeed involved in this continent, but often in harmful ways. How about just stopping to hurt, damage and exploit us? If the trade deals are just more sensible, if the companies based over here are only less exploitative, things will be much better. We ask for consideration, not a hand-out. Again I will say: you can learn from us, too. America is TOO competitive, too materialistic, and its competitiveness and materialism hurt its own citizens as well. America will learn how to better solve its internal problems if it is involved in a more co-operative and less authoritarian way with other countries. Influence goes both ways. There is not a conflict between solving internal problems and helping other countries. Oper your mind, open your view, see new possibilities!

Consider your last paragraph, Colonel. Why are the people turning their backs on the people that they pass every day? Because they are completely preoccupied with their OWN problems. It is the same problem, just on a different scale! Just like individual humans must see the other humans around them, be aware of their problems, and not just concentrate on themselves, so countries too must see the countries around them, be aware of their problems, not just concentrate on their internal affairs. We are all in this together. We are not divided - we must stop believing that we are. What affects the one, affects the many. We cannot ignore or neglect ANYTHING. There are not different, conflicting solutions, there is just one solution, that will work on all different levels: we must replace our selfish, tribal, envious outlook with one of love, goodwill and tolerance that extends globally.

Consider AIDS. If the disease flourishes too rampantly in Africa, it might happen that it mutates into a form that can be transmitted through the air. And then all of mankind is in deep s**t. Halting the spread of this disease, wherever it may be, is everybody's problem!

Pillow...you took the words right out of my mouth. I was also going to say that the reason some people walk by those they see in their own neighborhoods has little bearing on how they think about people in other countries. I will be back shortly. Got to catch up on a few threads

But...parting thought. I wrote last spring that the Green Party adage "Think Globally, Act Locally," need to be turned on its head. I think we need to think locally and act globally. The problems on our street corners are the same everywhere, worse (much worse) in some places, and better in others. Look around and see what it is that bothers you about society, then look at the global picture. I don't know...just a thought I keep coming back to...