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Димитър Христев

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Is humanitarianism really helping out the poor people?

The word humanitarianism in my country brings the thoughts of "let's be humane and donate 1 euro for the poor people from Africa,or for that dying from cancer boy etc. Half of that money probably will be spend or stolen by someone but giving that 1 euro is going to make me feel better until the next campaign ". Are we really changing lives by giving that 1 euro?Isn't better to help one feed himself instead of feeding him with charity?

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    Gisela McKay 30+

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    Sep 12 2011: I'd say "it depends".

    If people will die before you can teach them how to grow appropriate crops, certainly it is right to give them food.

    The problem comes when the immediate crisis is over and no one bothers to do the follow up with the teaching, and then the cycle begins anew.
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      Simone Lackerbauer 100+

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      HostTED TranslatorAssociate
      Sep 12 2011: I strongly agree that just donating money without creating knowledge about how to use it won't help. The key really is "empowerment for self-help": don't give people money, give them land and crops and show them how to grow them. I am also a big fan of micro-credits where people can come up with business ideas and will receive financial support to realize them. Does anyone know an organization for micro-credits one could support with a few dollars?

      I would also enjoy to support a godchild, as personal contact always fosters empathy... and there, you also know what your money is used for. In many cases, supporting one child even helps the whole neighborhood.
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      Димитър Христев

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      Sep 12 2011: I don't think that those people need more farmers. Planting crops and harvesting them is something as old as the pyramids... even older. What they need are educated man and women to lead the way and create democracy.
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        Simone Lackerbauer 100+

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        HostTED TranslatorAssociate
        Sep 12 2011: You are right, a country needs educated men and women to lead it. Moreover, I don't think we want to say that the natives should be farmers and that clever people from industrialized countries should come and take care of the leading business. But still, how would this country be able to feed its children without a decent number of farmers and people who know how to treat the land to make it fertile?

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