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TechnoratiThe world food crisis -- the "silent tsunami" -- now threatens some 100 million people across the world. Food riots in Haiti, Egypt and Ethiopia have brought it to international attention. World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick says that 33 countries are at risk of food-related upheaval. Famine may revisit North Korea, parts of Africa and even Afghanistan, where the United States is already in trouble. The World Food Program has made an emergency appeal for additional food and aid. The danger is real and present.
This humanitarian crisis also presents the United States with both the imperative and the opportunity to lead. It is imperative because the United States, as a wealthy country and agricultural exporter, can afford to lead. It is an opportunity because leading now can help the United States revive a reputation badly scarred by Iraq, Abu Ghraib and much more.
President Bush seems finally to have realized this. He has released $250 million in emergency food aid, sending wheat from U.S. stocks. He has called on Congress to provide $770 million in additional aid next year, a combination of direct food supplies and increased aid for agricultural development. The new aid request includes about $620 million in direct food aid shipments, mainly to African nations, and $150 million for long-term projects to help farmers in developing countries.
Supplying emergency aid is both the right thing to do and will help raise the U.S. reputation abroad, as our assistance after the literal tsunami that hit Southeast Asia did a few years ago.
But the real leadership is in developing a long-term plan for food sufficiency. As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice emphasized, "Ultimately, the world must come together to forge a long-term solution to rising prices of food."
If we flood areas with free food aid, it will lower prices in the region and drive local farmers out of business. We need, even in emergency aid, to be seeking to purchase as much food as possible from farmers in the region, providing an incentive for farming. We need development plans that emphasize local food production and distribution, the food equivalent of decentralized energy independence.
President Bush seems to be headed the other way, coupling his announcement of food aid with a plea to finish the Doha Round of trade talks that would emphasize food exports, not sustainable, local production of food. But it is the global market in food that is at the root of the tragedy we face.
The current crisis is the result of a perfect storm: drought in Australia; rising demand, particularly in India and China, and ethanol subsidies to grow food for fuel in the United States and elsewhere. But beneath this is the creation of a global food market dominated by heavily subsidized export crops. With more and more small farmers forced off the land and into the cities, countries become more dependent on imported food. Then when there's a global commodities bubble, or simply a global supply shortage, the prices can soar. In the current crisis, rising oil prices, commodity speculation and dependence on imported foods all contributed to the soaring prices.
President Bush said, "The American people are generous people and compassionate people."
The challenge, however, is for the U.S. government to be not simply generous but wise, helping to forge an international strategy that can solve rather than worsen the growing challenges that face us: the food crisis, catastrophic climate change, the global financial mess. This will require new thinking, a new commitment to multilateral cooperation and a very different set of policies.
--Jesse Jackson
© Copyright 2008 Digital Chicago, Inc.
9 Comments so far
Show AllWasn't it Bush's dad that got us into Somalia to deliver food. They tried to get food to the people there, but the war lords kept stealing it. That was in 1992. More than 15 years later we face the same problem. Many of these countries as so corrupt that even if you wanted to help them, it would be like pouring water into a rusty bucket.
The media is out of control this election has shown us just how far it has gone to dumb-down the public. The recent move by ABC to remove candidates from the debates was outrageous. They are trying to determine the fate of the country and the world being mouthpiece for special interests and the government and to silence dissent.
Media censure is unheard, the FCC should rule for the public but like the EPA its teeth are continually drawn. The media has no right to exclude any politician who is running for office as happened recently with the ABC debate. The only exclusion under the rules used by ABC should apply to a candidate not sitting in public office. The license of ABC would be lifted if the rules were changed but the congress, with the exception of a few pushes for more media conglomeration supported by special interests. I hope that someone picks up on this thought. We have seen the obsession by FOX and CNN, particularly in the form of Wolf Blitzer, and the FOX rabid journalists constantly referring to the Rev. Wright controversy.
Blitzer's bias is clear. He is quick to use every possible negative he can against Obama from the Flag Pin to anything else he could get his mouth around. His support for Clinton has been clear and inappropriate, for CNN to call itself a "fair and balanced" news network. I quote Mr. Nichols: 
" The media pretense of being a fly on the wall has often been preposterous. In the real world of politics — where power brokers and manipulators proceed with the cynical axiom that perception is reality — the fly on the wall is the wall. The political press corps is not observing reality as much as redefining it while obstructing outlooks and constraining public perceptions."
As usual, few are able to see the stampede of the public sheep created by media. I support the change that Obama represents! He is intelligent and wants America once again to be looked upon as a great nation that it could still be and once was. The present "lack of experience" cry of Clinton is preposterous. Could anyone having been near the White house as long as Bush done as badly for the USA? There is experience! However, the discovery of a job approval rating for him at about 28% of the American people speaks volumes about experience. No one could have been as bad as the Bush team! There is experience!
A flight from entrenched American politics is necessary . . .it has ruined this country and made greed the single value of importance. The young people once again embrace hope as a result of the Obama campaign. The Hillary political group and entrenched politics have virtually destroyed America with its policies and exclusive power clubs. She has believed this form government is America.
Clinton recently morphed to the Obama populist message, it was called, "finding her voice" while at the beginning of her stump showing her Madeline Albright, bomb the children image. 
Can anyone truly think that change is unnecessary? I guess not since all the politicos have adopted his message including McCain? The mistakes that Obama may make as president cannot be greater than those of the past seven years. It is also necessary to give him a democratic congress to make certain that the programs that Americans want can be enacted.
Mr. Gore Vidal, has pointedly criticized mainstream media as one of the major problems, and what is wrong with the USA. The corporate media conglomerates control the message and that message is perversely distorted and panders to its advertising portfolio! Wolf Blitzer one of the glaring examples of this criticism and shows clearly those distorted ideas with his reporting, which is nothing more than partially factual opinion dictated by his bosses.
He is a person who has no right to shape public opinion far from being the "fly on the wall" he espouses to be. We must remember flies morph from maggots. He displays ignorance as a virtue for the entire world to see, an example of what is considered, by many in America to be news reporting. If Blitzer were billed as a CNN commentator, at least the public would not be hoodwinked to believe his reporting to be the truth, while it is lack of concern for accuracy, rectitude and fairness to be considered to be news rather than opinion.
READ ON THE PUNCH LINE IS COMING
The people of the USA have been so ill informed as to what a change would really do and mean to this country and the change in leadership that is necessary, they have forgotten that no one could be worse than George Bush . . . No one, not even a dogcatcher, at least the dog catcher has compassion for
Animals!
The future leaders, Obama or McCain, should discuss the problems America and the world faces. The problem of public ignorance of the issues caused by the media is serious. In the heat of elections the media panders to voter ignorance. The emphasis, as we see on nightly, so-called news, is constant repetition of candidate's miscues. The result of the media sensationalism becomes, the wrong problem and the wrong message at a crucial time in world history. The emphasis on having the politicians address a credible platform of ideas based on an American and global interaction in the world is critical.
There is not enough time left for civilization to focus on rubbish. The energy and environmental issues for example or food and health care are the problems the media should be focusing upon. But to use the Rev, Wright issue for one week, to try and hurt the candidacy of Obama is a travesty. The issues most pressing are once again avoided, those really important issues that must be put before the congress; the environment, continued funding of Iraq, energy issues, education, health care and so many others not dealt with, all impacting upon the economy, the failure of public dialog is outrageous!
The issue of this election will impact on the environment, economy and the future of the USA as no others. Still, if more than 50% of eligible voters cast their votes it will be a miracle, as a result of regressive US election laws and media obfuscation. It is compulsory for everyone to vote in Australia it should be so in the USA as well. Few of the candidates are really talking about the major points, even those who are the most erudite. The environment in association with the economy or health care and elections reform, to name some, are kept out of public dialog as a result of the nonsense punditry hours on end. The world looks at America and its "star struck reality" in wonder.
The political discussion rests on the complete lack of talking points in isolation, such as, Clinton's health package or the nonsense gasoline tax rebate and it's cost, rather than what is really at stake with energy issues, human survival. The candidates for the US presidency rarely talk about the complete interrelated package of the issues combined. Obama alludes to this deficiency in the media and public issues. When he asks for this to occur it lands on deaf ears because the media and special interests do not want this to occur.
The media reduces the public debate to its most simplistic level with pundits arguing about one inconsequential issue or another rather than the truly important issues of our time. The American people are kept from hearing and understanding the relationship of the entire package of issues, which a true leader must address and deal with for the very survival of America in the world within a global economy. The costs for the war would pay for every single need from health care to American infrastructure repair and education, as well as the alleviation of world hunger and energy research this is what is what is at stake.
The media deals with Rev. Wright and American Flag lapel pins instead.
The media keeps the public dumbed down for obvious reasons they represent the moneyed people. As a result the public becomes unable to talk about moving radically toward change and the related issues affecting their very life and the future. The issues of climate change, energy issues and the global economy not only American economy is the part of the mortgage crisis created by the "free market" system. All the other issues like people losing their homes as a result of Wall Street manipulation are tied to these fundamental problems. These is the first and major issue which affects all other issues and is completely related to the economic changes which must take place.
The media board rooms instruct their so-called journalists (news/opinion readers) to stay clear of those subjects that would attack advertising, consumption, tied together in the media collusion with special interests to maintain the consumer system killing the world. Media in collusion with government does not want the change that would result in the decline of their hundreds of millions of dollars in profits.
All environmental problems are in one way or another associated with the Western world's consumption based lifestyle led by the USA. These issues are affected by consumer advertising much of it coming from the millions spent on advertising of irrelevant product and campaign advertising. The media should be dealing with true American and global issues in this campaign affecting the very basis of the so-called American Dream, fast becoming the global nightmare. This is what the next president of the USA must address!
Jesse Jackson needs to read this book
DISASTER CAPITALISM versus (or in relation to) mouths to feed... a devil's bargain.
Jesse Jackson does not know what he is talking about. He seems unaware of the origins of poverty. He seems unaware of the damage to African agriculture by European and US subsidies. He seems unaware of the role of corruption in producing famine. He seems unaware that food is going to feed animals and cars instead of people and more so everyday. He seems unaware that Haiti has been controlled by the US for decades. He seems unaware of all the elected presidents deposed by the US because they wanted to help their people. He seems very unaware overall.
You don't ask a thief to be your leader Mr.Jackson, you ask that he stop stealing.
Good analysis. I wasn't aware that the foodstuffs are being priced in USD, and are therefore affected by the flood of dollars on the market. Just like oil. The value of the USD goes down, so it takes more to buy commodities.
The price of oil that Bush helped increase has more to do with food prices than just about any other factor. Since when does Bush care about anyone except his rich friends? He was suppose to be the Compassionate Conservative, a label he ripped off from his dad's early campaign running for representative in the state of Texas. It worked for his dad, he saw the response, so the lies continue to increase from that weasel's birth to his death.
Emergency food donations for situations like this need to be the start of a broad based comprehensive movement for assurance for LAND for small farmers, world wide, and to seed stocks that are not the private property of contracting producers to corporate monopolies like Monsanto.
In March a French journalist produced "The World According to Monsanto". It is posted in its entirety on various websites - simply do a search of the title. Everyone should know about this. Note the mushroom of profit in recent years due to millions of acres world wide being set in monoculture and related food crises.
http://www.organicconsumers.org/monlink.cfm
Why would Bush want to solve any of these "problems" ?
Although you and I may define them as "problems", Bush's neocon mindset views them as opportunities to exploit for maximum profit.
Bush could start solving these problems by firing Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the 10 Fed Governors and replacing them with leadership that would not continue to lower interest rates. The lower interest rates have been exacerbating runaway food and energy inflation.