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Act Now!
Vancouver — Prime Minister Paul Martin was booed at a sold-out rock show by thousands who have sided with U2's Bono, a rock star who won't let Canada beg off the fight to end poverty.
Bono has been speaking out against the embattled leader for breaking a promise to raise Canada's spending on foreign aid. But at his first Canadian show of the Vertigo tour in Vancouver on Thursday, he asked the crowds not to give up on Mr. Martin yet.
“I think we're going to figure this thing out. I think he's a great leader for Canada and that he can do what we want him to do, to lead the world out of despair and poverty, this year.”
Bono, a long-time crusader for the relief of Third World debt, challenged Mr. Martin to deliver on a promise to raise Canada's spending on foreign aid to 0.7 per cent of the gross domestic product by 2015.
He flashed a phone number on the jumbo screens above the stage asking people to call the Prime Minister and give him the strength to write the cheque he now says Canada can't afford.
I love it!
Bono has been speaking out against the embattled leader for breaking a promise to raise Canada's spending on foreign aid. But at his first Canadian show of the Vertigo tour in Vancouver on Thursday, he asked the crowds not to give up on Mr. Martin yet.
“I think we're going to figure this thing out. I think he's a great leader for Canada and that he can do what we want him to do, to lead the world out of despair and poverty, this year.”
Bono, a long-time crusader for the relief of Third World debt, challenged Mr. Martin to deliver on a promise to raise Canada's spending on foreign aid to 0.7 per cent of the gross domestic product by 2015.
He flashed a phone number on the jumbo screens above the stage asking people to call the Prime Minister and give him the strength to write the cheque he now says Canada can't afford.
I love it!
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Smarminess is a small price to pay. It helps that I looooove U2.
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So do you have tickets for any of their shows?
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How about if he files his income tax forms (for income earned while in Canada) and sends the same amount to UNICEF that he does to Revenue Canada?
Maybe it's because I'm a Republican, but I'm quite capable of going into my own pocket to help the poor without having the government or some rock star telling me to do it.
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Additionally, you (yes *you* specifically) have very little ability to have a significant impact on the truly poor. You can give $1 to some homeless guy, you can even write a cheque for $1000 to WorldVisionJesusLovesThePoorIfTheyLoveJesus, but only governments can actually marshal resources in the billions of dollars to restructure an entire country's social state. So there's room for both approaches.
As for the rock star, Bono is actually touring many countries, advocating for specific recommended UN targets. He had previously met with Paul Martin, who promised him that Canada would join this campaign.
Now he's just trying to embarrass Martin into following through. Hopefully he'll be successful.
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Giving money to a government that didn't have the means to prevent catastrophe can be useless and in some cases even detrimental. Corrupt leaders, or even benign bureaucracies, use up a lot of money that could be better spent.
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Of course, wealthier countries could arguably have a responsibility to provide a certain level of assistance to prevent other countries from becoming embittered at their hopelessness and lashing out.