UNESCO votes to admit Palestine; U.S. cuts off funding

[ElNono]

UNESCO votes to admit Palestine; U.S. cuts off funding (http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/unesco-votes-to-admit-palestine-over-us-objections/2011/10/31/gIQAMleYZM_story.html)

[boutons_deux]

What AIPAC wants, AIPAC always gets.

[Drachen]

What AIPAC wants, AIPAC always gets.

If I remember an NPR story from a couple of weeks ago correctly, the cutoff of funds was based on a law passed in the late nineties. I can't remember the specifics of it though.

[boutons_deux]

"the cutoff of funds was based on a law passed in the late nineties"

What AIPAC wants, AIPAC always gets.

[Drachen]

"the cutoff of funds was based on a law passed in the late nineties"

What AIPAC wants, AIPAC always gets.

BTW, I don't disagree, just clarifying. Thank you for not using your usual buzzwords.

[boutons_deux]

Gfy

[Drachen]

Gfy

I was actually being genuine, as I was in the other thread yesterday.

[Winehole23]

So was boutons.

[MannyIsGod]

Lol I love boutons.

[Drachen]

So was boutons.

Well we are still within 6 weeks since my son was born, so at the moment B_D's suggestion is my only option!

[DarkReign]

The sooner the US opts out of funding any country or international organization, the better.

The hubris of being the world's Great Humanitarian is something this country can no longer afford.

[MannyIsGod]

The sooner the US opts out of funding any country or international organization, the better.

The hubris of being the world's Great Humanitarian is something this country can no longer afford.

We can easily afford it as it costs us very little. Very very little.

[MannyIsGod]

Although I more strongly oppose the line of thinking that we're the worlds Great Humanitarian.

[DarkReign]

Although I more strongly oppose the line of thinking that we're the worlds Great Humanitarian.

I do not have the numbers, but I was always under the understanding that the US' contribution to these international organizations is so substantial that without those funds, these things die.

Namely the UN.

How much does it cost the US to subsidize the UN and other nations (cough Israel)? I dont know. But if the total bill is anything nearing $50 billion, it needs to end.

[MannyIsGod]

Total foreign aid doesn't even crack 20 billion. And that includes military money to countries like Israel. We're not these amazing humanitarians that we like to think we are.

EDIT - I looked for more numbers and it does appear we approach 47 billion with about 15 billion being military assistance. I wonder if that is so inflated due to spending in Afghanistan and Iraq, though.

[boutons_deux]

US's foreign aid as %age of GDP is below several other industrial countries.

There's no country as great as America (in America's self-congratulating fantasies).

from 2005, but probably current situation:

"Today, Americans think about 20 percent of the federal budget goes toward foreign aid. When told the actual figure for U.S. foreign aid giving (about 1.6 percent of the discretionary budget), most respondents said they did not believe the number was the full amount (Program on International Policy Attitudes, 3/7/05).

It’s no wonder that most Americans think they live in an extremely generous nation: Media reports often quote government officials pointing out that their country is the largest overall aid donor, and the biggest donor of humanitarian aid. But what reporters too often fail to explain is how big the U.S. economy is—more than twice the size of Japan’s, the second largest, and about as big as economies number 3–10 combined. Considered as a portion of the nation’s economy, or of its federal expenditures, the U.S. is actually among the smallest donors of international aid among the world’s developed countries."

http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=2676

[DarkReign]

Thats actually pretty weak on the US' part.

[Drachen]

I do not have the numbers, but I was always under the understanding that the US' contribution to these international organizations is so substantial that without those funds, these things die.

Namely the UN.

How much does it cost the US to subsidize the UN and other nations (cough Israel)? I dont know. But if the total bill is anything nearing $50 billion, it needs to end.

This is generally true, but this doesn't mean that we are throwing a lot of money (proportionately) into these orgs.

Also, if I remember that NPR report correctly, this org that we just stopped funding is one that we haven't been a part of for very long. I think that we were a part, dropped out, then got back in several years ago.

[ElNono]

As far as the Unesco is concerned, the US used to provide about 20% of their budget. Then again, the US already walked away from the Unesco back in '84 and it had no problem surviving.

The laws involved in the funding cutoff were passed by Bush daddy and Clinton back in the 90's. The Bush law was specifically targeting Palestine, while the Clinton law used a more broad language, but applied basically the same.

[Wild Cobra]

Found this story from a different source before I went to work yesterday, surprised nobody brought it up yet. Here is the CNN version:

Israel to speed up settlement construction in Jerusalem, West Bank (http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/01/world/meast/israel-settlements/)

[boutons_deux]

Israel will continue building settlements in Jerusalem and West Bank, and continue genocide of the Palestinians, without any motivation like the UNESCO vote.

[Drachen]

Found this story from a different source before I went to work yesterday, surprised nobody brought it up yet. Here is the CNN version:

Israel to speed up settlement construction in Jerusalem, West Bank (http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/01/world/meast/israel-settlements/)

Not news, that's why. All of us already knew that the Israelis were using the settlements as weapons, and that each second that the settlements are there represents a continuing salvo against the palestinians.