[tmbchr]™

Foreign Aid



I’ve only been following the news out of Burma/Myanmar in a very tangential way. But one question I’ve derived from the whole thing is a bit more general: to what extent is “foreign aid” a cover for countries being taken over or at least indebted to one another during moments of greatest need? Maybe it’s kind of a moot point though, as you need help when you need help. But I remember reading about a Roman emperor (Nero, maybe?) who controlled the fire department in Rome. And this meant he would have them set fire to your home, and then offer to put out the fire with his service at a tremendous fee. If you declined, your home would simply burn down and then he would be the first person with an offer to buy - at a very low price, of course.







4 Reader Responses

  1. OmegaSupreme Says:
    May 12th, 2008 at 11:17 am

    Watching the news it’s as if they have to submit to our hegemony to receive any aid.

  2. Xtal Says:
    May 12th, 2008 at 3:50 pm

    See “Disaster Capitalism.”

    http://www.thenation.com/doc/20050502/klein

  3. wavetheory Says:
    May 12th, 2008 at 4:15 pm

    The Roman firefighter Crassus was notorious for offering steadily declining prices as people’s homes burned. In response to practices like this, in AD 6 Augustus established the Vigiles, a firefighting force made up of slaves, who could earn their freedom after six years of service. The Vigiles eventually became an elite corps with a social standing equal to that of the military. There is speculation that Nero ordered the Vigiles to standby during the great fire of 64 AD in order to clear ground for his great program of building. He blamed the fire on early Christians and used the disaster as an excuse to relentlessly persecute them. This information comes from the book Ancient Inventions. I highly recommend it.

  4. Big Elk Says:
    May 12th, 2008 at 7:04 pm

    Aha, Crassus! Thank you. I like having my facts straight on tidbits of historical trivia like this.



SURROUND YOURSELF WITH STRENGTH.