On 9/25/15, with the banging of General
Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft’s gavel, the United Nations embarked on a
momentous project. The representatives
of that international body dedicated themselves to a 15-year program titled
“Transforming our World.” The very first
of its seventeen goals is “End poverty in all its forms everywhere.” To implement that, along with the sixteen other
equally ambitious proposals, is a call to raise $3.5 to $5.0 trillion each year
until 2030.
The items on the to-do list, which include
reducing inequality within and among countries, end hunger, and ensure healthy
lives for all, are certainly well-intended.
To accomplish any of these feats could be described as miraculous. And the fact the United Nations possesses not
even a small fraction of the funds called for makes it all the more challenging. How will they raise the money? Can programs be coordinated within each
country? Will the dollars flow so not to
be confiscated by the bureaucracies?
Merely ending
poverty everywhere raises questions which are answered with a few
statistics. In this world some 3 billion
persons are living on no more than $912 annually. The U.S. upper limit of poverty is $24,230
per year for a family of four—or $6,058 per person. Thus, to bring each of those 3 billion out of
poverty—U.S. style—requires $5,146 additional.
$3 billion times $5,146: That amount totals $15.4 trillion. From day one, ending poverty is over budget by more than $10 trillion per year.
Where, then, does the United States fit into
this scenario? On September 28th,
President Obama appeared before the UN to offer a powerful endorsement of the
15-year program to eradicate poverty.
How many dollars will eventually be extracted from the American taxpayer
is conjectural, but as with every such noble crusade, money will flow. Whether the recipients will be the poverty-stricken
of the globe is uncertain, but if history repeats itself, most of the loot will
end up in the pockets of the world’s demagogues and tyrants. It’s a sad reality that charitable endeavors
are normally badly planned and grotesquely executed. Rarely do deserving parties share in the
largesse.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
In addition to this Straight Talk by
Al Jacobs, I’m now generating a monthly Financial
Newsletter. It normally appears the first of each month and may
be viewed on my website. Click onto http://www.onthemoneytrail.net/
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