Saturday, January 26, 2008

Bono - you do not have to become a monster to defeat a monster

"America is my country," he declared, to loud applause. And the Irish rocker, wearing a medal that had just been placed around his neck by ex-President George H.W. Bush, who chairs the Constitution Center, indeed had quite a few good things to say about this nation that he's adopted, at least philosophically. He said some of money he's successfully lobbied for here, both from Washington and from big business, is making a difference in fighting AIDS and malaria in Africa and in sending kids to school.

“Your America gave the world the Marshall Plan, the Peace Corps, JFK, MLK, the Special Olympics, Bill and Melinda Gates, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, the Bard and the Boss," in a long, almost jazz-like riff that also included Philadelphian Will Smith, Mary J, Blige, Allen Ginsberg, Edward R. Murrow and others.

BUT...

But his strongest words of the night were this warning:

Today I read in the Economist an article reporting that over 38 percent of Americans support some type of torture in exceptional circumstances. My country? No. Your country? Tell me no. Today, when I receive this great honor, I ask you, I implore you as an Irishman who has seen some of these things close up, I ask you to remember, you do not have to become a monster to defeat a monster. Your America’s better than that.
He expounded on that theme earlier in the day, when he met with some editorial writers and reporters at the offices of the Daily News and Inquirer. He was asked a question about America's standing in the world, in light of Abu Ghraib:

You lead the world in fighting HIV AIDS,, but these are dangerous times for America. Brand USA has never been in such a vulnerable state," Bono responded. He said something to the effect that the neon was fading "a little bit in the grubby storefont of some corner of the world somebody’s thrown a petrol bomb throough it."

He described a phone call that he said he'd received recently from an American four-star general and commander of European forces, Jim Jones. "Of all the surreal encounters," Bono said. He said Jones told him that U.S. security overseas needs a development component.

Bono said Jones told him:

"'I'm a Marine,' he said, 'and Marines do not mind being fired at for the right reasons, they don't mind being shot at for the right reasons -- they don't like being shot at for the wroing reasons.' We didn't discuss Abu Ghraib but that’s a part of it... ‘ What he did say was the United States had heroic men and women and they had good intentions and they weren't getting across. He said we had billions and billions in high tech equipment floating in the Mediterranean, aircraft carriers off the coast of Lebanon, and he said we’re losing the war because Hamas are building schools.
Bono said that America could improve its standing in the world by spending relatively small amounts on medicine, doctors, and schools. The good news that I picked up from the meeting is that Bono and his allies on the Africa issue are paying super close attention to the 2008 election -- in fact he acknowledged that one reason he wanted to meet with the Daily News and Inquirer is because he knows that Pennsylvania is a battleground state. I'd like to see tonight's message become part of the '08 debate -- in both parties.
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Sam Daley-Harris message

Sometimes we forget how revolutionary microcredit is.

When banks lent to the rich microcredit programmes lent to the poor.

When banks lent to men, microcredit programmes lent to women.

When banks made large loans, microcredit programmes made small ones.

When banks required collateral, microcredit loans were collateral free.

When banks required a lot of paperwork, microcredit loans were illiterate-friendly.

When clients had to come to the bank, microbankers went to the clients.

The Microcredit Summit Campaign is passionate about breaking with business as usual in international development – by making sure that the very poor aren't excluded as they often are. We are also passionate about scaling up action as evidenced in our goal to reach 100 million of the world's poorest families, especially the women of those families, with credit for self-employment and other financial and business services by the end of 2005.

Several years ago two friends of mine were speaking with a group of 40 clients at a micro-bank in South Asia. Through the translator, they asked the 40 women what impact the bank had had on the husbands of the non-borrowers; not their husbands, but the husbands of women who are not with the bank. The clients said, ‘Before we took our loans, our husbands were day-labourers, working for others whenever they could find work. When we took our loans our husbands stopped being day-labourers and worked with us – bicycle rickshaw, husking rice, growing garlic on leased land. This caused a shortage of day-labourers in this area, so the husbands of the non-borrowers who were day-laborers—their wages went up.' That was the impact of this bank on the husbands of the non-borrowers.

Imagine what might happen when 100 million of the world's poorest families are reached.

How many other families might benefit who are not among the 100 million reached? And how might that outreach empower women and their families even more if they are armed with education in reproductive health and other health information?