Conservative Compassion
$13,000 from an estimated $17 million net worth is the sum total of Bush II’s sympathy for the plight of millions in southeast Asia. Admittedly, his annual salary is only $400,000, plus room-and-board for himself and every member of his family living in the White House, so he can’t have much to throw around to help poor people: they might become dependent or something. I know, I know, “the poor you will have with you always,” but if you’re going to make a big show of your charity, you’re missing the point about not letting your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Then again, we knew that when Powell got sent in to talk up how the U.S. is the friend of Muslims everywhere. Does anyone at those White House prayer meetings actually know any Christian philosophy, or do they just make it up to suit themselves? Remember the story of the widow’s mite, then consider what individuals around the globe are doing to help.

In case you’re wondering about governmental aid donations, leaving aside overall aid budgets, The Swanker has a comparative breakdown showing the contributions of Arab nations, the U.S., Britain, and Australia, vis a vis GDP, none of the latter 3 of whom have managed even 1% so far, while the Arabs are managing at least that much. (In the credit where credit’s due column, however, Australia has increased its overall contribution to AU$1 billion, over 5 years, to Indonesia alone.)

Update: to put this in population perspective, follow the Swanker's link to No Right Turn, where per capita rates are entabulated.