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Historically, the United States has been the country with deep pockets when it comes to aid for other countries facing disaster. In addition to what our government coffers provide, other privately funded US groups give billions of dollars in relief, but we're behind in our efforts. Senator Obama is sponsoring a bill that will cut global poverty in half by the year 2015.

On the surface, this sounds like a great humanitarian effort and one that we subscribed to in the year 2000. Five countries are meeting the goal of paying .07 percent of their Gross National Income, but the United States is coming up short. Keep in mind this bill does not reflect the total global aid for disasters that we've provided since the year 2000 but applies only to the UN declaration.

The UN is charged with administration of the global poverty program, and the rumor from some reports is that they plan to "force" the countries, that are behind in the schedule, to pay up on their promises. The recent UN scandal involvement in the Oil for Food program (2003) left a bad taste in the mouth of many Americans and the word "force" doesn't cleanse our palates.

Some of us see the UN as not trust worthy, and we can't help but question the final destination of the funds, but there is more to the UN mandate than global poverty and while I cannot address it in this article, I invite you to read it.

S. 2433: Global Poverty Act of 2007

The background for the senate bill can be found in the United Nations Millennium Declaration, General Assembly Resolution 55/2 (2000). http://www2.ohchr.org/english/ law/millennium.htm

The estimated cost for this bill is $845 billion dollars based on the US Gross National Income (over and above what the US already gives in aid) The funds are requested to cover the next seven years in order to meet the UN mandate.

Some critics believe the bill could result in an imposition of a global tax on the US and place the US in a submissive position to the UN in terms of US foreign aid.

Most of us will agree that helping others is a humane act and the right thing to do. What we may also agree upon is that we have poverty and needs right here in the US that are not being addressed. However, since our country agreed to this global poverty program, there is little we can do about our own rising costs and added burden on the citizens of the United States, except to bring it to the attention of all concerned.

Although our commitment to reducing global poverty is a done-deal, with or without the

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