Mr Bush said "terrible want" still exists in Latin America Posted on 03/11/2007 7:38:16 PM PDT by NRA2BFree
Mr Bush said "terrible want" still exists in Latin America
US President George W Bush has unveiled a social aid programme to alleviate the plight of the region's poor, two days before a tour of Latin America.
Millions of dollars will be spent on education, housing and health care.
In a speech, Mr Bush described poverty in the region as "a scandal" that had caused some people to question the value of democracy.
The Bush administration has been criticised by opposition Democrats for neglecting Latin America.
Correspondents say Washington is adjusting to the election of increasing numbers of left-wing administrations in Latin America, including some that are openly critical of the US.
'Terrible want'
Speaking at the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Mr Bush vowed to boost aid to Latin America, saying "helping our neighbours build a better and productive life" was a US priority.
In an age of growing prosperity and abundance [the terrible want] is a scandal and it is a challenge
US President George W Bush
The region has "made great strides toward freedom and prosperity but despite the advances tens of millions in our hemisphere remain stuck in poverty," he said.
Despite the progress Mr Bush said "terrible want" still existed, adding that nearly one in four people in the region live on less than $2 a day.
"Many children never finish grade school, many mothers never see a doctor. In an age of growing prosperity and abundance, it's a scandal and it's a challenge," he said.
The president said the US initiatives include an additional $75m for Latin Americans to learn English in their countries or in the United States, $385m dollars for housing, and funding for medical assistance via military teams.
Mr Bush will start his trip in Brazil on Thursday. His week-long tour will also take in Uruguay, Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico.
Sending aid for programs in Latin America is nothing new.
Everyone here is acting like that's outrageous.
It's our backyard. We like to influence things there.
I don't know what's going wrong with this forum. I'm thinking the illegal immigration problem here has poisoned the minds of posters to where they can't they logically about anything south of Arizona.
So we're funding the good guys to help stop the spread of Chavez-ism?
Makes sense.
What we are doing at this point is paying out 'protection money' so the continent's dictators will not attack us.
This could be said right here in the good ole USA. And people think the No Child Left Behind is working, Geez.
Better to spend it in Latin America than in the Middle East, which is where most of our hard-earned tax dollars are going to - and not for military efforts, but for aid to those stupid Muslim money-pits. Latin America would be a much better investment.
And after all that, they'll still hate us.
Bush is working on his legacy now, he doesn't want to be known as the most hated man in the world. He probably thinks money can buy love, it only buys more contempt and I'm getting tired of funding all of the contempt the world has for us.
Do you mean militarily?? I doubt that can happen.
>>>Too pi$$ed to post
Let's hope his munificence stays in the M's not the B's.
(millions, not billions)
O guess that he has not heard of the adage, "If you try to please everyone, no one will like it."
What can you say? Presidente Arbusto has hardly made a correct decision since the Alito nomination (and he had to be pushed into that too). El presidente, time to retire to Crawford and let us see what President Cheney can do.
I'd rather use the Money to build a fence!!!!
And some on this site want us to support a guy even further to the left than Bush? Never again. Two times of holding my nose hasn't gotten me much.
Yep, You're right about that.
Most of it to end up in the deep pockets of the continent's dictators, of course. ....while the "plight of the region's poor" remains unchanged.
Unfortunately, you're right about that too. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer.
The Prez's eye remains steady on that "integration" ball -- Unwaivering focus.
In the meantime, he's destroying America with his global agenda!
Not necessarily "attack" in military sense, but a freeze out in both a political and business sense.
How about 3 or 4 Cuba's staring back at us? Or 4 or 5 Venezuelas looking at us?
"Our good friends the Chinese have agreed to invest in "X" instead of the imperialistic Yanquis we all know they only want to stealour natural resources.."
To allow that to happen without so much as an effort or dollars makes no sense.
This sucks BTW, we have to deal with Fanatical Islam, Communism "lite" to our south, and China all at once.
I wish it ween't so, but it is what it is.
I am not a proponent of Free Health care or of Government health care. But why would we send millions to Latin America while we have kids here who cannot afford a Doctor.
And that's the problem. It accomplishes nothing but to make corrupt people richer while their poor continue to suffer. (war on poverty, education, drugs?)
"Everyone here is acting like that's outrageous'. Flushing my tax payer dollars down the toilet is "outrageous"
The only kind of aid we should be sending to Latin America is for contraception, sterilization, and abortion. The "poverty" in South America is the direct result of breeding like feral cats, just like in Africa. People don't care one iota that the children they already have are starving -- they just go ahead and have more anyway. And then we're confronted with the extortionist alternatives: send lots of money, or we'll breed terrorists and teeming masses of illegal immigrants to swarm over your border. Trouble is, every penny you give them just goes to make more babies. We've been sending money for decades, and the "poverty" never gets any better, it's quantity just multiplies.
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