Where's the money been found.

[Hom3r]

I believe at the end of the day these appeals will only cost £5 to £10 a year, per person, which is nothing really.

Think that you have help someone get clean water and some food in their stomach.

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Escapee

It makes sense. But god help us if we ever got into trouble, because I would not bet any of my hard earned on Pakistan helping us out in return.

It's not about that, it's about keeping them as 'on side' as possible due to the presence of the Taliban within the country, along with the presence of nuclear weapons and the strong likelihood that various high ranking bits of Al Qaeda are there.

It's far easier to do what needs to be done if they support or at least don't obstruct it.

If we get into trouble we allegedly have the rest of Europe and NATO to assist.

So, like giving the school bully your lunch money then, no?

Originally Posted by Tuftus

So, like giving the school bully your lunch money then, no?

Look the more happy that people are living in their country of origin the more unlikely that they want to come and live in your 'hood..

Sorry Maggy, that was how it came across to me.

Not give 'em money and they won't come over here to our 'hood.

Surely you did not mean that they would come over and take our jobs, houses and women as well if we did not stump up the money?

Originally Posted by Tuftus

Sorry Maggy, that was how it came across to me.

Not give 'em money and they won't come over here to our 'hood.

Surely you did not mean that they would come over and take our jobs, houses and women as well if we did not stump up the money?

No what I'm saying is happy people tend to stay put where they are happy..

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Tuftus

So, like giving the school bully your lunch money then, no?

No nothing like that at all.

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

No nothing like that at all.

Well that told me then. Care to expand then rather than dismiss my point out of hand?

Whilst i respect you opinion, saying -

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

It's not about that, it's about keeping them as 'on side' as possible due to the presence of the Taliban within the country, along with the presence of nuclear weapons and the strong likelihood that various high ranking bits of Al Qaeda are there.

It's far easier to do what needs to be done if they support or at least don't obstruct it.

To me, sounds rather like, in my experience anyway -

If you give me your lunch money, if anyone else in the playground gives you bother, i'll sort it.

But hey, what do i know, i'm just a divvy lurker.

No it's more like if you give the smelly tramp a quid to bugger off and leave you alone.

[Ignitionnet]

Well firstly no-one asked for the 'lunch money' so that part of the analogy is incorrect.

Secondly it's not the 'bully' getting paid off. If anything we're the bully in the whole affair and want to keep them friendly to make it easier to do so. We're going into their sovereign airspace not the other way around.

Lastly it's about foreign relations not bribery. It's a 'hearts and minds' thing rather than paying someone off. Getting the people of Pakistan's support is important given the religious connections to the Taliban.

We have nothing to fear from Pakistan, they have no delivery system for nuclear weapons which could reach us in a timely fashion and they wouldn't dare anyway, their country would become a big plate of glass quite rapidly if they did so. Their co-operation simply makes it far easier to get at the Taliban hiding within Pakistan, and cementing public opinion weakens the Taliban power base and reduces the chance of those nuts getting their mitts on Pakistan's nuclear weaponry.

Receiving aid from the infidel West is important when the Taliban and AQ are preaching anti-Western hatred. Zero duress on our side - you make it sound like international extortion which it certainly isn't. It's influencing people in another country, you know, foreign relations, nothing more.

Originally Posted by Maggy J

No what I'm saying is happy people tend to stay put where they are happy..

so it's blackmail then?

Foriegn aid should proprtional to our own financial needs ,we have enough people suffering hardship in this country to look after ,many of which are expats from pakistan ,not to mention all the other immigrants we take in and fund ,so it's not like we don't already do enough .In a few weeks if there is another disaster do we stump up another 100million and then another a few weeks after that ?

Thanks, I think it was just the way your post read made it sound that way.

Originally Posted by martyh

so it's blackmail then?

Foriegn aid should proprtional to our own financial needs ,we have enough people suffering hardship in this country to look after ,many of which are expats from pakistan ,not to mention all the other immigrants we take in and fund ,so it's not like we don't already do enough .In a few weeks if there is another disaster do we stump up another 100million and then another a few weeks after that ?

Glad I'm not you then.

I may not be a Christian but I believe in that phrase of 'do unto others as you would be done by'.

Originally Posted by Maggy J

Glad I'm not you then.

I may not be a Christian but I believe in that phrase of 'do unto others as you would be done by'.

Maggie we don't have a bottomless pit of money to give away we have our own social and economic problems to deal with with less money to play with ,so something has to give and less foriegn aid is a start

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by martyh

Maggie we don't have a bottomless pit of money to give away we have our own social and economic problems to deal with with less money to play with ,so something has to give and less foriegn aid is a start

Rolling public services back to where they were in 2003 - 2005 is hardly comparable to many things our foreign aid finances.

Noteworthy also is that the foreign aid can and does yield returns of its' own - aid is a very regularly used diplomatic tool.

Nick Clegg puts it better than me.