[desertdude]

Bang on acape that region really is the wild west, and what really gets my goat is billions specially in a time like this where everyone could use a little extra cash is going into shit heads pockets and wasted when hey are meant to help the needy and make their lives better.

Also I would agree with Andy that without dealing with Pakistan there is no solution in Afghanistan. Its just that both these countries are so corrupt and rotten to the core than it stinks.

Whats the solution ? I wish I knew.

[bootlegga]

desertdude desertdude:

Thats a pretty ballsy statement for someone comming from a province who themselves are holed up in one corner of Canada. There are more Chinese in Canada than Francophones now. So French should be removed as an offical language and Mandarin be installed ? Also move out all the francophones out of Quebec and rename it Shangbec.

That's not correct at all.

There are somewhere about 5 million Franocphones in Canada and only around 1.4 million Chinese Canadians (at least according to the last census).

http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensem ... ilter=5000

[BartSimpson]

There were some complaints that the USA was being "racist" because we're not opening our wallets to aid the muslim Pakistanis. That got squashed right away when it was poined out that total US aid (government and charity) to muslim Indonesia topped $4 billion dollars after the 2004 tsunami. The difference is that the Pakistanis were recently polled and some 60% of them are openly hostile to the USA. It's really hard to want to care about people who want you dead. http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/Po ... 20719.html

[BartSimpson]

And, of course, it all begs the question of where are all the muslims in this? Where's the outpouring of aid from the muslim countries?

[Brenda]

Afghanistan: a million
http://www.mof.gov.af/?lang=en&p=news&nid=96
India, 5 million
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/au ... -aid-india
Turkey 10 million
http://www.news.az/articles/21158
Mumbai terror attack group
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... istan.html

[Brenda]

There is a total of donations said to be over 800 million. Me thinks that's not JUST the "holy white man" paying.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Pakistan_A ... 34759.html

[BartSimpson]

Brenda Brenda:

Afghanistan: a million
http://www.mof.gov.af/?lang=en&p=news&nid=96
India, 5 million
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/au ... -aid-india
Turkey 10 million
http://www.news.az/articles/21158
Mumbai terror attack group
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... istan.html

Any news from Saudi Arabia, Iran, the UAE, or any of the other oil rich countries? (I mean that seriously and not as a tweak, btw)

[Brenda]

Couldn't find it (must admit I didn't look VERY hard ), but that doesn't mean it's not there...

[Brenda]

Saudi Arabia: 100 million
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v5/ne ... ?id=523226

UAE 5 million
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/gover ... _$5m_to_UN

[CommanderSock]

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

Yep.

We should rebuild a country that has thousands of people trying to kill our guys in Afghanistan.

How about the 'great' Islamic powers do that instead.

Pakistan is the enemy.

The biggest nightmare for the west, would be a Pakistani government collapse.

Imagine Afghanistan, with a population of 20m, and how much chaos it has caused.

Pakistan's population is 150 million! The USA, China and Russia put together won't have enough drones to kill insurgents there.

[EyeBrock]

It doesn't alter the fact that Pakistan is corrupt, oppressive and has a population that is belligerent against the west at best and openly hostile to the US and the UK as the norm.

How much of any dollar donated will actually get to those victims? I’d say none of it.

[BartSimpson]

Brenda Brenda:

Saudi Arabia: 100 million
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v5/ne ... ?id=523226

UAE 5 million
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/gover ... _$5m_to_UN

Good to see.

Thanks for finding that, Brenda,

[BartSimpson]

CommanderSock CommanderSock:

The biggest nightmare for the west, would be a Pakistani government collapse.

Not really. If the Pakistani government collapses and the Pakistani nuclear weapons fall into the hands of the Taliban India has tacitly promised to nuke Pakistan from one end to the other to prevent the Taliban from nuking India, something they've sworn to do.

That's the #1 reason the US is there is to help avert a nuclear exchange between Pakistan and India. It'll be fun to see what happens when Obama pulls out the troops next year.

[QBall]

If Pakistan has money for a nuclear weapons program then they have the money to help their own. If not then maybe they need to re-examine their priorities. Until they do they won't get a dime from me.

[andyt]

QBall QBall:

If Pakistan has money for a nuclear weapons program then they have the money to help their own. If not then maybe they need to re-examine their priorities. Until they do they won't get a dime from me.

Many Canadians sent aid to the US after Katrina.

But I don't want to give Pakistan money because it just disappears into the maws of the rich. People make the argument that if we don't help, it will strengthen the Taliban. But the west really came thru in the Pakistani earth quake, and I didn't see any appreciation on the part of Pak or any lessening of Taliban activity, supported by the army.