The World we live is a like a coin. It has two faces. I can even call the world as Janus Faced, not in the sense of having the ability to carry the past and marching towards the future with an aim, but in sense that it has a very beautiful face and a very ugly face. The beautiful face tells me about the riches it posses within it self. It include countries like Luxembourg, Equatorial Guinea, UAE, Norway, Ireland, United States and all the richest countries in the world, having a GDP percapita of US$ 68,800, 50,200, 49,700, 47,800, 43, 600 and 43,500 respectively. These countries said to have an average literacy rate of 97% with all the technological advancements. In a press of a button they can operate the whole world. Especially if you consider US, it still remains the most powerful nation state in the World. Even after having a civil war in the late 19th century and a great economic depression in 1930, US managed to win the world wars I and II and also put an end to the cold war in 1991 after the fall of USSR. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and rapid development in technology. As per 2005 there were 24 ocean cable systems in use; satellite earth stations - 61 Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Inter sputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2000). With the establishment of the Breton woods, they are having control over the entire world in the name of development. They want their money to flow all over the world so they provide loans to the underdeveloped countries and developing countries and thereby draw resources from those countries. If the country is not able to pay the debt back, they will guide their economic policies to make them attain development, but the hidden agenda is to make them fall into a debt trap. This is a kind of a Pawn Broker's or an Usurer's Logic. Waging war against wealthy countries is one of the hobbies of the US. If not for US but for Uncle Bush. Iraq has been shattered into pieces and Afghanistan is no more a country now. This is happening on the one side of the coin where power and money play a vital role. Let me also give you a picture of the other side of the coin also.
The other side of the coin is very ugly and rusting. The GDP percapita goes like this Malawi, Somalia, Comoros, Solomon Islands and Congo with $ 600. Burundi, East Timor and Afghanistan with $ 700. I would like to take somalia for instance to explain the rusting side of the coin. After the SIAD BARRE regime was ousted in January 1991; turmoil, factional fighting and anarchy have followed for thirteen years. In may 1991 northern clans declared somalia as republic and maintain a steady existence, although not recognised by any government. There was a little effort by the UN in the beginining of 1993 to alleviate famine, but the withdrawl in 1995 caused a great casuality and the condition is still not been restored. They have an official literacy rate of 38%. The public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; private wireless companies offer service in most major cities and charge the lowest international rates on the continent. There are clan based competitions on the resources which is making the situation even worse.
What is the response of the developed nations which enjoy all the privileges starting from Maternal benefits to Old age pension. Why do people in those countries ask for more privileges even though they have many. Ask them to live in a land like Somalia. What can you and I do about the situation. I took this caption from Ekin Cagler's video and he beautifully puts this question this way 'the other side of the coin is rusting, But all they have is hope. What are you going to do about it'?. Think over it.
Courtesy CIA World Factbook
The other side of the coin is very ugly and rusting. The GDP percapita goes like this Malawi, Somalia, Comoros, Solomon Islands and Congo with $ 600. Burundi, East Timor and Afghanistan with $ 700. I would like to take somalia for instance to explain the rusting side of the coin. After the SIAD BARRE regime was ousted in January 1991; turmoil, factional fighting and anarchy have followed for thirteen years. In may 1991 northern clans declared somalia as republic and maintain a steady existence, although not recognised by any government. There was a little effort by the UN in the beginining of 1993 to alleviate famine, but the withdrawl in 1995 caused a great casuality and the condition is still not been restored. They have an official literacy rate of 38%. The public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; private wireless companies offer service in most major cities and charge the lowest international rates on the continent. There are clan based competitions on the resources which is making the situation even worse.
What is the response of the developed nations which enjoy all the privileges starting from Maternal benefits to Old age pension. Why do people in those countries ask for more privileges even though they have many. Ask them to live in a land like Somalia. What can you and I do about the situation. I took this caption from Ekin Cagler's video and he beautifully puts this question this way 'the other side of the coin is rusting, But all they have is hope. What are you going to do about it'?. Think over it.
Courtesy CIA World Factbook
2 comments:
9 January 2008 at 07:09
Hi da brother
how nice to blog........
your article is perceptive and very clear. the dichotomies that you have drawn are incisive and contextually very relevant. it is real and people should know it ..
do weell
9 January 2008 at 07:29
No doubt, the Brettonwood institutions have raped the developing countries through their policies and loans. Water is a commodity today and the basic amenities and rights of a human being are also for only those who have the money because of them. In whatever loans they give, there is some hidden agenda of privatisation. The middle class relax with the money and media entertain them without probing into the rusty side of the coin. Governments leave governance to market forces and state machineries like police force work for the direct orders from the biggies to control those who demand their rights over the resources (this term has been morphed into 'commodities', I'm a bit back in time, still believing democracy may do magic). When rupee value rises and comes near dollar, there won't be much difference between an American and Indian middle class elite person doing the same job. At that time, these creamy middle class will be kicked up (Even after being kicked out of jobs during the crisis in IT sector, they have not seem to have realized this would happen again).
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