The challenges facing an urban world

[dreamer]

This is where i think democracy works and where its needed.

The world is fast approaching the point where the majority of the human population will be found in urban areas. Somewhere, sometime in 2007, someone migrating from their rural home to begin a new life in a town or city will tip the global rural/urban balance, the UN estimates.

link. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5054052.stm
What happens when people in urban world find their life's are not going to change while our leading nations are "instead" fighting a war on terror.
That's where the leading nations think whats important in democracy "terror" and making slums in Iraq whats the difference so that the leading nations can make them see democracy "joke".
That's where the world leaders need to be whats going on above not making more in Iraq.Dreamer

[Kite]

I'm not exactly sure where you're going with this. Are you suggesting that our nation's leaders focus more on the homefront than fighting terrorists? If thats what you're getting at, then I agree with you 100%.

[dreamer]

Quote by: Kite I'm not exactly sure where you're going with this. Are you suggesting that our nation's leaders focus more on the homefront than fighting terrorists? If thats what you're getting at, then I agree with you 100%.

YES in one word but, their is other poverty all over the world that needs looking at..Dreamer .

[Kite]

It does need looking at, however, in the spirit of concentrating on the homefront, another country's poverty is NOT our country's problem. If we want to fix the poverty in our nation, we can't be worrying about the poverty of other nations. Although I'm sure this whole stance of the U.S. being the 'World Police' was set up with the intentions of helping others, it is hurting us now more than helping, as we look like a big bully trying to strong-arm other countries to see it our way.

[dreamer]

Quote by: Kite another country's poverty is NOT our country's problem..

I think this is detrimental not to have a good will cause like poverty, all over the world the mass off people of the world would look up to that country and would show the world hope, and not despair.

when a country is invaded then you have problems. Dreamer

[brien]

Quote by: dreamer I think this is detrimental not to have a good will cause like poverty, all over the world the mass off people of the world would look up to that country and would show the world hope, and not despair. when a country is invaded then you have problems. Dreamer

And just where has this happened?

Here is a link you may refer to:http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/lin...3.2004.00299.x

From that link:

Aid potentially can contribute to democratization in several ways: (1) through technical assistance focusing on electoral processes, the strengthening of legislatures and judiciaries as checks on executive power, and the promotion of civil society organizations, including a free press; (2) through conditionality; and (3) by improving education and increasing per capita incomes, which research shows are conducive to democratization. This study provides a multivariate analysis of the impact of aid on democratization in a large sample of recipient nations over the 1975–2000 period. Using two different democracy indexes and two different measures of aid intensity, no evidence is found that aid promotes democracy. This result is robust to alternative model specifications and estimation techniques, including the use of exogenous instruments for aid. Results are similar if the analysis is confined to the post–Cold War period (1990–2000), despite the reduced dependence of the U.S. and other donors on pro-Western authoritarian regimes among aid recipient nations.


Note that the body of the text states that "no evidence is found that aid promotes democracy"

What is detrimental to the US is that we don't solve poverty in our own country before we waste our money abroad hoping that aid will promote friendly people and governments who end up hating us anyway. The US must lead the World by example not through bribery or force.

Furthermore, it has turned into a "Big Business, in which some people are making money first, and treating aid as a secondary situation. See this link:

http://www.foreignaffairs.org/199701...reign-aid.html

[dreamer]

Quote by: brien And just where has this happened?

Your guess as good as mine :rolleyes:

Quote by: brien What is detrimental to the US is that we don't solve poverty in our own country before we waste our money abroad hoping that aid will promote friendly people and governments who end up hating us anyway. The US must lead the World by example not through bribery or force.

Agreed

Quote by: brien Furthermore, it has turned into a "Big Business, in which some people are making money first, and treating aid as a secondary situation.

Nothing different there then.

[persephone]

The US has a responsibility to help out third world countries since they are directly involved in having made or kept those countries impoverished. They decide which government they want to support in various countries, even prevent the rebellion of the populace in order to keep that government in power because they are useful for trade. The US has no problem exploiting other countries for profit, after all that is the basis of capitalism. The US wants to stay on top and with that comes certain responsibility. I mean if your gonna interefere why not go all the way, its a little late to stay out of other countries affairs after the fact, especially when you can do some good.

[underbear1]

How does any of this discussion hinge on global URBANIZATION? With the exception of poverty being more apparent in urban slums, than spread out over rural areas.

[dreamer]

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, urbanization resulted from and contributed to industrialization. New job opportunities in the cities spurred the mass movement of surplus population away from the countryside. At the same time, migrants provided cheap, plentiful labor for the emerging factories. While the proportion increased through rural to urban migration, high death rates in the cities slowed urban growth. Cities were unhealthy places because of crowded living conditions, the prevalence of contagious diseases, and the lack of sanitation. Until the mid-1800s, the number of deaths exceeded births in many large European cities. Migration accounted for as much as 90 percent of city growth during this period.

Growth of Urban Agglomerations, 1950–2015

Source: United Nations, World Urbanization Prospects, The 1999 Revision.

The chart "Growth of urban agglomerations" shows population growth in selected cities. New York and London are typical of large cities in more developed countries that arose in the 1800s and early 1900s, reached their current size mid-century, and have since experienced slow growth or decline. Cities in some less developed countries, such as Mexico City, grew very rapidly between 1950 and 1980, and are growing more slowly now. Many Asian and African cities, such as Lagos and Bombay, are experiencing very rapid growth now and are projected to continue at this pace.

Link.http://www.prb.org/Content/Navigatio...anization1.htm . I hope this helps . Dreamer