• arrow74@lemm.ee
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        6 days ago

        But let’s pretend for a moment that they’re right. Is building political capital in developing nations by helping feed their people, provide medicine, and develop their cities a bad thing?

        Like dollar per dollar you get a country with a positive view of your nation for very little cost. Even if we wanted to ignore the obvious moral imperatives and just the general goodness of feeding the hungry, it’s good foreign policy

        Even when the right makes up a boogieman they’re still wrong

        • Machinist@lemmy.world
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          6 days ago

          Yeah, that’s what blows my mind about this. From a purely business greed perspective, cutting all the USAID food and medical is a dumb move that reduces your power.

          Al Capone was famous for his charity.

          I was also amazed when they shut down Voice of America. That’s the main open propaganda arm of the US military and the Federal government targeted largely at foreign citizens. It was priceless in influencing foreign populations.

          is it really Russian influence or are they truly that fucking stupid? I can’t decide.

        • krolden@lemmy.ml
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          6 days ago

          Because when they dont want to privatize their power grid we will just threaten to cut off aid

      • madcat@lemm.ee
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        6 days ago

        This is a right wing talking point.

        No, that’s a fact. It was mainly used for bribery of foreign politicians and officials.

    • lividweasel@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      Yeah, fuck USAID for using that money to [checks notes] rebuild in disaster areas, increase the yield of crops in impoverished regions, and distribute vaccines…