Why DONT Americans want to help those who are suffering in developing countries??

Question

I found that many people answered Clay Aiken's question about helping children, but what about helping w/ chidren. I just thought why American dont want to help w/ people in developing countries??
My only thought 4 asking the question is because AMERICA IS 1 THE RICHEST PLACE IN THE WORLD!!!!

Thanks for answering and please be honest!

Answer 1

we need to take care of our own. these places dont care about us and would stab us in the heart if they could so why should we.we need to worry about ourselves you dont see anybody helping our kids.let other counrty pick up the slack why should it always be us.everyone else thinks they are better than us well let them take care of the rest of the world.

Answer 2

The age-old euphism - Charity begins at home - seems to have faded into disuse.
The USA has enough problems of its own without taking-on any more of those of the rest of the world.
That is-any more than we already have done in the past and are currently doing. A case in point: Our overlong national 'winking' at the millions of outlaw 'visitors' through our porous borders.
But to be realistic I don't suppose this will change so long as politicians' greed for votes prevails.
Help people in developing countries? When we need to invest billions of dollars and thousands of American lives to bring a foreign country into the twenty first century it makes one wonder
why anyone could ask such a question.
Maybe the rest of the world wants us to bankrupt ourselves. Is that it?

Answer 3

America does help, it's just not all government funded/sponsered. I think a better question would be, why doesn't every country help the less fortunate?

It's amazing, a major disaster occurs anywhere in the world and America is pretty much there withing 24 hours helping. Yet when we have a major hurricane no one offers to help us. Go figure.

America isn't the richest place in the world. Luxembourg and Norway top the list. So where are they on the "helping the less developed county" chart? Maybe you should go ask them for money.

Answer 4

Alot of americans care and want to help people in developing countries. You shouldn't generalize and say that we don't.

With that being said, we can't take care of the worlds problems. We do have problems of our own. We do what we can, when we can, and that's all anyone can do. Don't you think it should be the responsibility of that particular country to take care of themselves?? I mean, why do we have to fix everyone else's problems..just because we're the "richest country in the world" doesn't mean we are automatically the world's savior.

If I had tons of money, I'd surely want to help everyone I could. But to be honest, I'd start at home first.

America gets crapped on for everything we do. We help, but we don't help enough. We help, but don't get thanked. People still have this view of America as this horrible industrialized country that doesn't care about anyone but themselves. I think that's a terrible way to think. There are plenty of people here who have compassion for all people, all over the world. Stop pushing this stereotype.

Answer 5

Some American citizens are very generous. I can't tell you how many times, I have sponsored a benefit, or held a benefit to help the less fortunate. I also went to Romania last summer with Habitat for Humanity and met quite a few people from America that are very generous as well.

You shouldn't generalize such a question, because not all Americans are greedy a$$holes.

Answer 6

Mania,

I think that most Americans do want to help on some level. Don't believe all the gloom and doom stories you hear.

Everybody paying income taxes helps indirectly through U.S. Govt. grants, gifts, and UN contributions. Everything beyond that is gravy. We're already looking at a pot of gold that amounts to many, many billions every year. Way beyond anything any other country provides.

Actually going cross border is beyond the finances of most people or, they've obligations keeping them at home (like jobs or kids). In a lot of places it's just a stupid idea for Americans to visit at present. Going overseas is the domain of people in their 20's, without careers or kids. It's also a world for folks like Clay who get huge paychecks and work part time.

Regarding cash donations, let's keep in mind that a lot of that money is wasted! Many of these 3rd world countries are horribly corrupt and it's been going on for generations. The "people" never see that gift, it ends up in the ruling families' hands, squandered in some bureaucracy, spent on PACs, or used to generate more donations (most of that pays solicitors paychecks and overhead costs).

Enough. Back to work. Gotta make some money to feed my kids and help a client generate capitol for an "Open Space" land preservation acquisition.

Answer 7

Oh please. There is so much poverty and the elderly needing help in our country. This is the only country that doesn't take care of their elderly. They should be getting free health care and medication like the other developed countries. You can't help them over there. It's always been that way and always will. What ever we do to help their greedy government takes away. Our school systems are so screwed up. If all of the rich pulled together and changed our outdated school systems there would be a huge difference here and then we could all save the world together.

Answer 8

It seems that saying "Americans" is a little over-generalized. There are many Americans that care greatly about the welfare of those less-fortunate. However, I do agree that more people could take notice of the fact that not everyone in the world is blessed like we here in the United States are. We should be very grateful for what we have and we should be glad to share it.

Answer 9

The U.S. is the epicenter of the "Me-First" attitude. That attitude has now spread all over the world, but it's at it's worse right here in the good ole U.S.of A.

What's a "Me-First" attitude? It's believing that you are so wonderful and special that you deserve more than anybody else, that you should never use less, take less, or heaven forbid - breed less, for the good of the world.

We got a lot of changing to do, before it's too late. Our selfish attitude is not just going to hurt the developing countries, it's going to destroy the whole planet.

Answer 10

we as American citizens we do, I'm not talking government, but we struggle as well, i see those ads on TV about the hungry children in other countries and think I'd like to help but that 20 dollars i have will feed my own children, i feel selfish at times for this, but knowing i do the right thing for whats mine, if i had a million dollars or heck even 10 extra dollars a month I'd send it, but unfortunately i am not a millionaire or have the extra 10

Answer 11

There are a lot of people suffering right here in America. Why aren't these people being helped. When is the BUSH in the White House going to rebuild New Orleans, I ask you??? No, instead he is now asking for ONE BILLION dollars for the infrastructure in Iraq! How insulting to Americans is that???!!!