Hunger: Below the Fold

There has been a disappearance of the prominent news items of recent history, such as the War (on terror, on Iraq, for democracy, depending on the excuse of the moment), and world hunger. It was only 2005, you will recall, that found the world's nations agreeing to take a role in ending starvation on that continent, in the Gleneagles agreement.

The big achievement announced this morning is that the recalcitrant occupier of the U.S. White House has finally gone along with the enlightened nations in agreeing to work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. We should all live so long. The once ambitious goal of ending hunger seems to have disappeared in our present economic crisis.

In 2005, at the Gleneagles Summit, and as part of its own share of responsibility for achieving the Millennium Development Goals, G8 committed to scaling up its official development assistance by $50billion by the year 2010. Although even that amount when fully met is still not enough to facilitate the full achievement of MDGs.

The Gleneagles commitment was the most ambitious of the financial commitments ever made towards the fight against poverty by G8.
The Gleneagles was supposed to be the least minimal "achievable promise". As we come to Toyako, climate change and the current food crisis haveadded new burdens on the poor. G8 leaders should therefore be speaking of scaling up aid. But, the above is doubtful if even the existing promises are unlikely to be met.

In the past 6 months, the G8 countries used over $1trillion for bailing out the collapsing banks in their countries. By taking such simple example, it is clear that the problem with the Gleneagles commitment has never been a lack of cash but rather is a lack of political will, says Takumo Yamada, 2008 Japan G8 Summit NGO Forum/Oxfam Japan.

The environmental achievement that will be touted as if it were a great leap forward is more than 7 years late. It will be put off for now, so that the executive branch can continue to violate its oath of office to serve the public. This is a sad and tragic scam, and should always be pointed up as no more than a scam.

Our shameful role in allowing food and fuel to be subject to financial speculation may be offset. The Congress has begun rolling back financial institutions to offshore regulation, choosing as loose standards as it can find -a dodge allowed by the Enron protectors now active in McCain's campaign. Responsible action such as India's, suspending speculation in basic foods such as chick peas, may well spread as nations find their people don't have enough to eat. There is the possibility that improved agricultural aid could come out of the efforts of the world's beneficent institutions.

We can be sure that the right wing will screech its hate spiels about 'socialist' intentions in combating worldwide hunger. We will need a very large contingent of rational and enlightened activists in our government to forge ahead, making livable conditions for all of us.

It is encouraging to hear voices for sanity, like Katha Pollitt this past Sunday on CSpan's InDepth, to the effect that we have the means, and need the will, to end poverty. She points out that in some European nations there is a beginning toward this potential. We can and should begin with hunger.