Forgiving your Debtors

Debt affects all aspects of life by inhibiting the growth of economies. America has sold free market capitalism to the world through its example of economic disparity. Market Globalism now runs rampant on developing countries by structuring an uneven playing field by keeping money in the pockets of the few. This has left the least developed nations of the world struggling to survive in a world dominated by big business/country.

Countries, such as, the United States, Great Britain, France, and China, all of which have vast resources that surpass those of smaller nations––leave least developed countries to struggle in the face of poverty, corruption, and a low Gross Domestic Product.

According to the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, "In 2004, LDCs saw the fastest annual growth rate (6%) in four decades." Yet, " Almost 50% of the population in LDCs lives on less than $1 a day."

Many in America could not dream of living on less than a dollar a day. Most Americans spend 5 times as much on their morning coffee; unfortunately, economic stability is not the only drawback facing prosperity for individuals living in LDCs; health is also a major concern. The UN Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries recognizes the following health concerns facing these nations:

Health
• Maternal mortality in the LDCs remains the highest
(890 deaths per 100,000 live births) in the world.
• Under five mortality rate is 160 deaths per 1,000
live births compared to 86 in the rest of the world.
• 2.1 million new TB cases were reported in 2004,
mainly as a result of HIV/AIDS.
• Rate of new HIV/AIDS cases (3.2%) in LDCs
remains the highest in the world.

Malaria
• Reduction in malaria prevalence in 15 LDCs but
deterioration in 13 among 30 LDCs with trend data.

Water
• Only 58 % of the population in LDCs has access
to improved water.

If people in these countries have been forced to survive on such a pittance, imagine what they could accomplish if their debts were retired. Perhaps, the growth these LDCs are enjoying could be invested back into their country thereby raising the standard of living many fail to meet.

Since many Americans have never lived in such squalor, most cannot fathom the impact of such conditions. As Americans, we are raised with the knowledge of the inalienable rights afforded to us by our Constitution. Presented with such knowledge, we do not choose when to follow and when to ignore such principles, yet many err in judgment simply by choosing ignorance.

It is America's duty, as a superpower, to lead the way by ensuring the same basic tenets we advocate for fellow Americans are engendered in nations of lesser means. When we put a price tag on human life, as we do when we allow famine to ravage developing nations––we are implicitly stating that their lives are worth less than ours; furthermore, we are encouraging the greed of big business and the power elite to see these LDCs as a means to an end.

As Americans, we can do better than that. Any one of us would balk in the face of someone threatening our own Civil Liberties. Yet our economy seems to thrive on a laissez-faire system of allowing least developed countries to fend for themselves––this standard, which is akin to hanging out in a lion's den with a pork chop strung around our necks, is not the kind of example we need to show the global community.

We cannot have it both ways. If we are going to purport equality for all, it cannot end where one country touches another. We need to set the example that all countries deserve equality by moving to retire the debts of those living in least developed countries. This would help those living in such countries to attain a higher standard of living by interjecting prosperity thus opening them up to give back to the global community by breaking out from beneath the burdens of crushing debt. Countries that are free from economic constraints are countries that invest in education, have sustainable markets, and live long happy-healthy lives for generations to come.

Spreading equality for all...

Until next time,

Ian