Aid does nothing to alleviate poverty compared to economic growth. The best thing rich countries can do to help the third world is free trade by slashing their tariffs. If aid must be given, it should be in the form of underwriting microfinance ventures that give out small loans to peasants - which actually could end up producing a profit despite the high risk.
It's ironic that those leftist activists who say we don't do enough to help the third world are usually the same ones who decry globalisation, when history has proven that capitalism is the answer.
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