Why so much foreign aid ??

[mercanucaribe]

Okay, so Japan has 127,417,244 people. I'm not an Japan fanboi like all you cosplayers! The US population is 295,734,134.

Pop ratio: 2.32098988
Aid ratio: 2.37500

Yes, we give more per person, but we also have much more natural resources- Japan 11% arable vs US 19%, oil, minerals, forest, etc... PLUS the resources of many other countries that US companies operate in.

 

[Mo0o]

A good amount is probably done to achieve foreign policy goals. The US gives a lot of money but it also receives a huge amount from teh asian countries due to their purchase of stocks and bonds

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: savoyboy
Americans are some of the most generous people in the world, but U.S. government is a different story.

of course, that's just 'aid'
what about the cost of defending western europe for the past 50 years? that is a very sizeable amount but doesn't get count as 'aid'

 

[hdeck]

percentages mean more than raw numbers.

 

[realsup]

Originally posted by: UNESC0
It's called "tied foreign aid" where they have to purchase US goods with the money they recieve (often for more than if purchased on the open market, foodstuffs especially)

Oh and the US is last among the developed nations in aid to GDP percentage at 0.13% Text

Not that it is not appreciated. Definately credit is due where money is given to lower income nations (and all first world states should be doing much more) although looking at absolute numbers and patting oneself on the back is not the whole story...

Analagous - If a millionaire gave $1000 to charity does that make him more generous that the family with a $100,000 income giving $100? Or if the family gave $300, does the larger percentage make as much difference anyways? Starving nations don't care about how much in percentage comparisons to total income, they just need food and $1000 can buy more than $300.

That's why credit should be given to the US. Keep up USAID but don't think that it is leaps and bounds more "generous" than other G8 nations.

How much do the private citizens in the other G8 countrys give to charity compared to the US?

 

[CanOWorms]

Originally posted by: UNESC0
It's called "tied foreign aid" where they have to purchase US goods with the money they recieve (often for more than if purchased on the open market, foodstuffs especially)

Oh and the US is last among the developed nations in aid to GDP percentage at 0.13% Text

Not that it is not appreciated. Definately credit is due where money is given to lower income nations (and all first world states should be doing much more) although looking at absolute numbers and patting oneself on the back is not the whole story...

Analagous - If a millionaire gave $1000 to charity does that make him more generous that the family with a $100,000 income giving $100? Or if the family gave $300, does the larger percentage make as much difference anyways? Starving nations don't care about how much in percentage comparisons to total income, they just need food and $1000 can buy more than $300.

That's why credit should be given to the US. Keep up USAID but don't think that it is leaps and bounds more "generous" than other G8 nations.

You should be comparing it to the government's budget, not GDP.

Also, the US gives more aid than the developmental OECD aid that is commonly stated. Disaster/humanitarian relief, military aid/training, etc. are not always factored.