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The Forum > Article Comments > Solving poverty > Comments

Solving poverty : Comments

By John McKinnon, published 1/11/2006

The World Trade Organisation is governed by a dictatorship of wealth.

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A very admirable article which I support 99%, one must realise in a recent report from QCOSS, the Queensland branch of ACOSS the Australian Council of Social Security, found 400,000 Queenslanders "living in poverty" through no fault of their own[ after all who whould choose this situation for themselves] so while I support aid funding for people in other nations, we should not forget our own people living in similar circumstances.

Where I live, Townsville Queensland out of a population of 160,000, we have in excess of 1,000 FAMILIES who are homeless. The Federal Government has cut funding for public housing, forcing many families into tents, or trying to live with relatives untill the situation becomes unbearable, and the poverty stricken family tries to move on to another family member, or a refuge.

Personally I find this a disgrace for a federal government with in excess of $10 billion in reserve, these people have no hope of a future, the children will probably forced into crime to exist, and the we as a society blame them. We should think about who is "really" to blame.
Posted by SHONGA, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 10:15:56 AM
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Here, here Shonga. Couldn't agree with you more. Globalisation has been a disaster for struggling families in Australia. All it's done is forced lower end jobs off shore and added to more and more povety. I believe it's high time the World's people woke up to the money grubbing and greed orientated direction of powerful groups such as the WTO and joined hands to fight this over bearing societial cancer of growth and wealth creation. Maybe then, our struggling young adults will be able to afford to put a roof over thier heads and feed their modest family. Equally hopefully, the rich, corrupt and powerful Governments in third World countries will also be brought to their knees so that aid provided from wealthier nations will find it's way to those who need it most.
Posted by Wildcat, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 12:46:22 PM
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It’s said that a half truth, like a half brick, travels further and does more damage. This piece contains many half truths, and the impression they combine to create could do some serious damage.

“Poor country exporters still face significantly higher tariffs from rich countries than those applying in the reverse direction” Not so. Average tariff levels are generally higher in poorer countries – though it can certainly be argued that the things subject to the steepest tariffs by western countries (especially agriculture) do most harm to poor countries.

“China did not liberalise their economy according to the standard ‘Washington Consensus’ formula.” - true, but they did liberalise their economy according to home-grown formulas, as did the other Asian economies that have raised living standards so rapidly in the past 20 years. Liberalisation worked, even if it was not liberalisation exactly as the IMF might advocate it.

“..the Chinese success story is limited to the eastern cities and extreme poverty still exists in many regions” – also true, but the improvement in welfare in China has been unprecedented and staggering nonetheless. Hundreds of millions of Chinese have escaped poverty in a single generation. The ILO observed that "A reduction in poverty on this scale and within such a short time is unprecedented in history" (ILO World Employment Report 2004-05, p.156).

“The economic theory of the ‘trickle down effect’ … has been discredited”. There is no such theory. This phrase is used disparagingly to (mis)represent a particular view of economics, but is not a description that economists would own. It presupposes that growth benefits the rich first and foremost, with the poor benefiting secondarily if at all. But in fact, economic growth (almost always) benefits the poor as well as the rich (see for example “Growth Is Good for the Poor" http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DEC/Resources/22015_Growth_is_Good_for_Poor.pdf)

Eliminating world poverty is a difficult and complex problem that has confounded sincere and clever people for decades. I strongly recommend William Easterly’s “The Elusive Quest for Growth” as a reality check for those who think simplistic solutions can save the world. http://www.amazon.com/Elusive-Quest-Growth-Adventures-Misadventures/dp/0262550423
Posted by Rhian, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 3:30:36 PM
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It would be nice if there were more articles like this being published in the MSM. The myth of free trade and globalisation alleviating third world poverty is exactly that, a myth.

The great 'progressive' leader Willy Clinton rammed a free trade agreement down the throats of Mexicans, the economy has grown, but guess what, the people are poorer now than they were in 1992.

People like Senator Mason repeat the myth blindly, cherry picking examples and ignoring the overwhelming concensus among most knowledgable observers, free trade = money for Western Corporations, poverty for third world inhabitants (and increasingly first world inhabitants too).
Posted by Carl, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 4:36:50 PM
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"… overwhelming consensus among most knowledgable observers…". Come off it Carl. There's no concensus on this issue, it's too complicated and messy. Or are you falling into the trap of assuming that only those observers you agree with are “knowledgeable.”

The more simplistic nostrums of both the left and the right have failed to deliver on this issue. Each can point to individual countries where their own prescriptions have worked and their opponents have failed.

I believe that the balance of evidence shows that trade and trade liberalisation, foreign investment, governance reforms and other parts of the pro-globalisation agenda have featured in pretty much every case of developing countries succeeding in reducing poverty in recent decades. And there have been success stories, albeit not as many as we’d like (China is one, though the author seems reluctant to admit the extent of its achievement). These measures might not be sufficient to reduce poverty, but it seems that they are necessary.
Posted by Rhian, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 4:52:32 PM
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Rhain,
For God's sake man take you bloodyminded business cap off, we are talking about humanity, and how to help it, not it's explotation through business. Governernment sponsored self help inititives are needed in the pooer countries, with contributions from the "rich" countries like ours, even though our present contribution rate among the 22 richest countries is third last at 19. We are not helping the poor countries enough , and we are not even helping our own citizens who are falling through the huge cracks in our system.

We need a kinder, more compassionate world, one which uses the latest technologies to alievieate global warming and climate change, to cut our own expenses and pass some of the savings on to other human beings, and our own citizens, who are far less well off than you and I. The last thing we need is a greedier more selfish world, I doubt you understand a thing I've said.People are dying of starvation, and all you can do is talk about business, if you had a conscience, you would be ashamed of yourself, as it is I am embarresed for you.
Posted by SHONGA, Wednesday, 1 November 2006 4:54:05 PM
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