Homegrown Aid , by JEFFREY D. SACHS Published: April 8, 2009 PRESIDENT OBAMA has embarked on a promising new course to fight hunger and promote economic growth and political stability in countries like Cambodia, Honduras and Malawi. These countries, and many more, have large populations of impoverished farm families. Tough climates, environmental degradation and a… Read More From the NYT: ‘Homegrown Aid’, by Jeffrey Sachs
Commentary: ‘Educate a woman, create a nation’ By Dina Habib Powell, on March 13, 2009 NEW YORK (CNN) — As we mark International Women’s Month in March, it is encouraging to see that the movement to recognize the vital role that women play in families, nations and economies has been building for more than a… Read More From CNN: ‘Educate a woman, create a nation’
Did you know that many diseases have been nearly eradicated in industrialised countries but are still endemic in developing countries? And did you know that some of these diseases are ridiculously easy to eradicate? And, for you sceptics reading this – you know who you are – did you know we have already successfully eradicated… Read More The Rule of the Final Inch: The Attainment of Perfection
Ta-ta to the age of virtue, by The Ideas Guy A Viewpoint on Humanitarian interventions First, agreeing with everything that sounds reasonable and humane makes you feel virtuous. This is a Canadian specialty. It’s a cozy feeling, especially during a long winter. I fully empathize. Which is why my head sometimes goes back and forth… Read More From the CBC: Ta-ta to the age of virtue
Documentaries can be quite depressing in that they put us in direct contact, in the safety and comfort of our own homes, with some of the worse aspect of humanity. However, they also help remind us why we should continue to help, as much as we can, to “carry forward an ever-advancing civilization”. Many people… Read More Documentary: Congo – Archives from the War
A little over a week ago, I reviewed Helen Epstein’s The Invisible Cure; I then posted part of an essay she wrote, and just because I admire her so much, I just had to post part of yet another one of her essays. AIDS and Africa’s Hidden War By: Helen Epstein One October evening in… Read More Helen Epstein’s take on Africa’s hidden war
A couple of days ago, I posted a review of a fantastic book by Helen Epstein, The Invisible Cure. I have been following Mrs. Epstein’s work and have found a great essay she wrote for the Virginia Quarterly Review. The theme of this essay was taken up in The Invisible Cure, so this post is… Read More Helen Epstein’s insight into the Underground Economy of AIDS
A couple of weeks ago, I posted a review of Stephanie Nolen’s book “28 Stories of AIDS in Africa”. Although no one posted comments on the blog (WHAT am I going to do with y’all?), I did receive a good dozen emails. Some of you had already read the book; many of you went and… Read More Review: Helen Epstein’s The Invisible Cure
Bangladeshi group BRAC awarded world’s largest humanitarian prize October 17, 2008 – 8:17 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS GENEVA – The world’s largest humanitarian prize has been given to the Bangladeshi non-profit organization BRAC for helping more than 110 million poor people with microcredit and basic services. The US$1.5-million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize goes each year… Read More Bangladeshi group BRAC awarded world’s largest humanitarian prize
Before you call 1-800-KILL-HER, do give me a chance to explain myself. If I don’t end up surprising you, then I’ll dial the number myself. I’m not saying that taxes are easy to pay; I’ll be the first to admit that seeing, right beside the money that should be going into my bank account, the… Read More The evil that are taxes… Or are they?