Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site dciem.UUCP Path: utzoo!dciem!mmt From: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) Newsgroups: net.politics Subject: Re: America's role in world hunger & red spread Message-ID: <1653@dciem.UUCP> Date: Tue, 6-Aug-85 21:16:26 EDT Article-I.D.: dciem.1653 Posted: Tue Aug 6 21:16:26 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 7-Aug-85 00:25:55 EDT References: <265@SCIRTP.UUCP> Reply-To: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) Distribution: net Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada Lines: 25 Summary: >Todd Jones again (sigh) writes:> >> The push to modernize has resulted in many of these nations >> experiencing excruciating poverty, while over half of their >> foodcrops are being exported to the modernized countries. >> Surely this scenario must give third world citizens a dim >> view of capitalism and democracy. >> >OK, great, now we the bread basket are removing over half the food crop from >already impoverished nations. What are we doing with this food? Storing it >with our already over abundant crop? Our farmers must appreciate that. >If you are talking about a particular crop, sugar or coconuts for example, >you might be right, but items such as these can hardly be considered as staples. That's precisely the point Jones was presumably trying to make. The agribusinesses ensure that plenty of export crops are grown where otherwise staples might be grown. To provide us with luxuries (and themselves with a little foreign currency) these countries deny themselves adequate locally grown food supplies. Paying back debts at usurious interest rates doesn't help them, either. (Or the lenders, when they default.) -- Martin Taylor {allegra,linus,ihnp4,floyd,ubc-vision}!utzoo!dciem!mmt {uw-beaver,qucis,watmath}!utcsri!dciem!mmt