Kill the poor
By Don Simpson
Philippe Diaz’s documentary (narrated by Martin Sheen) The End of Poverty? sets out to prove that worldwide poverty is by no means an accident – it was created and is being perpetuated by the western world. Diaz calls upon experts from around the globe to dutifully illustrate the connections between colonialism and the free market system of today.
In 1492 (while Columbus was sailing the ocean blue…) the Spanish and Portuguese came to the Americas; they pillaged the land of Latin America and the indigenous economies were destroyed by mining and plantation agriculture. Thus commenced a Third World economy based solely upon the export of raw materials – crippling the manufacturing industries in these areas and creating an economic structure of dependence – which has remained in existence ever since.
Even when the colonized countries achieved independence, the new governments continued to perpetuate the raw materials export-based economic system. Governments in Indonesia, Iran, Guatemala, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and many other countries have sought to break from this economic system of dependence, but the U.S. has promptly retaliated by financing political coups, assassinations, or sending in the U.S. Marines.
The political independence of Third World nations also prompted new forms of economic control maintained by the western world – the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The former colonial governments left paralyzing amounts of international debt behind, keeping their former colonies in constant financial dependence of their former masters. After the global depression of 1982, the IMF gained increased leverage over the Third World governments. Following the Washington Consensus, many governments were required by the IMF to privatize communications, transportation, education, health care, and water supply – making these services unaffordable for the poor.
The End of Poverty? features a multitude of talking heads: Nobel prize winners in economics Amartya Sen and Joseph Stiglitz; expert authors Susan George (Another World Is Possible If), Eric Toussaint (The World Bank: A Never Ending Coup d’Etat), John Perkins (Confessions of an Economic Hit Man), Chalmers Johnson (Nemesis: The Last Days of the America Republic), Brookings Institute fellow and author, William Easterly (White Man’s Burden); Bolivia’s Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera; and leaders of social movements in Bolivia, Brazil, Venezuela, Kenya and Tanzania.
The discussion, as orchestrated by Diaz, is very informative and enlightening – though very one-sided and opinionated. I do not purport to be an expert on global economics, but I am not completely convinced that this is all hard truth. I suspect that more discerning viewers may interpret some of the statements made by the interviewees as mere conspiracy theories – as a lot of the content seems to be based on opinions rather than facts. Though it’s indisputable that capitalism and the free market system does propagate selfish and greedy behavior, I would like to see more hard evidence that the western world is purposefully and maliciously suppressing the third world from developing independent economic systems.
No matter whether there is a true capitalist conspiracy behind worldwide poverty or not, it is obvious that changes must be made. Since Jello Biafra’s satirical solution offered in the Dead Kennedys’ song “Kill the Poor” (in summary: killing the poor with nuclear bombs) obviously won’t fix the cause, The End of Poverty? offers some specific policy changes that are mandatory in order to end poverty: one) cancel international debts; two) create fairer trade arrangements; three) impose taxes on wealth, not consumption of necessities; four) end privatization of natural resources; five) develop land reform to share land, or its value, among the actual producers of farm products; and six) initiate programs of de-growth in the North, to reduce wasteful consumption.
Of course the mere adoption of these policies will not end poverty in the world. The closing theme of The End of Poverty? is that the resources of the earth must be shared equitably. The audience is asked to ponder the changes our lives must undergo for us to finally take responsibility for the ongoing impoverishment of the Third World.
The release of The End of Poverty? could not have been more timely, as the United States embarks upon the celebration of the one-two punch of our most gluttonous calendar days of the year: Thanksgiving and Black Friday. As we are overindulging on Turkey (or Tofurkey) on Thanksgiving Day, we should keep in mind that: “Every 3.6 seconds another person dies of starvation and the large majority are children under the age of 5.” Then, while on our Black Friday holiday shopping rampages (being good little capitalists – trying to resuscitate the free market system by mindless spending), we should remember that: “More than one billion people in the world live on less than one dollar a day.” Happy holidays!
