EMacy

Join Date 12/2003

Human Rights Record of the US in 2003

The Chinese' own report_

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China speaks up against the US' annual report with their own human right's report card for Uncle Sam.

China Thursday expressed its "strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition'' to the annual human rights report of the United States, which accuses China of "backsliding'' on human rights.
So China published it's own report on the US record of Human Rights over 2003.

Full text of Human Rights Record of the US in 2003
Excerpt begins:
III. On Living Conditions of US Laborers
Although the United States is the world's No. one developed nation, the US government has to date refused to ratify the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Itis apathetic to the rights and interests of ordinary workers in economic, social and cultural aspects, leading to serious problemssuch as poverty, hunger and homelessness.

The disparity between the rich and the poor keep widening in the United States. A 2003 report by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the US Congress acknowledged that the gap between the rich and the poor in the country today is wider than anytime in nearly 70 years, with the wealth of the country's richest one percent population exceeding the overall possessions of the needy, who account for 40 percent of the total population. In 2000, the rich people's wealth makes up 15.5 percent of the country's overall national income, as against 7.5 percent in 1979 (according to BBC report on Sept. 25, 2003).

A report by the US Federal Reserve also showed that between 1998 and 2001, the wealth gap between the country's richest and poorest had widened by 70 percent (see Britain's Guardian report on Jan. 24, 2003).

Certain policies of the US government, instead of helping narrowing the country's wealth gap, have aggravated the rich-poor disparity and led to an unfair distribution of wealth. According to a report by the US Environmental Working Group in 2003, the agricultural policy of the US government has ensured 70 percent ofthe government subsidies go to ranch owners, resulting in a yawning income gap between ranch owners and ordinary farmers and pushing many farmers to the verge of bankruptcy (ABC report on Oct.9, 2003).

The population living in need and hunger in the United States has been on a steady rise. According to statistics from the 2003 economic report of the US Census Bureau, the impoverished population in the United States had been increasing for two consecutive years, reaching 34.6 million, or 12.1 percent of the total population, in 2002, up 1.7 million over the previous year. The country's poverty ratio in 2002 had risen by 0.4 percentage points over the previous year. Among the impoverished population, the number of extremely needy people had risen to 14.1 million from the previous 13.4 million, and the proportion of children in need had gone up to 16.7 percent in 2002 from 16.3 percent in 2001.Since 2001, the number of needy families in the United States has been growing at 6 percent a year, and there are now 7.3 million impoverished families in the country, which means 31 million people are facing the threat of hunger. In the 25 leading metropolises of the United States, the number of people who need emergency food aid has increased by 19 percent on average, while the number of people who live on charity food coupons, or those who have to queue up for free food distributions, has surged to 22million (see Spain's El Mundo on May 19, 2003).

In October 2003, the US Department of Agriculture released a report, which showed that in 2002 there were 12 million American families worrying about their food expenditures and 3.8 million families with members who actually suffered from hunger. On December 18, 2003, an annual survey report released at the US Conference of Mayors showed that in the 25 cities surveyed, the number of people seeking emergency food aid in 2003 had increased by 17 percent on average over 2002. Moreover, 87 percent of the surveyed cities believed that the number of such people would continue to rise in 2004.

The homeless population continues to rise. According to information released by the US National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, more than 3 million people were homeless in the United States in 2002 (Homeless and Poverty in America, www.nlchp.org). Washington D.C. has the highest rate of homelessness of any city in the United States, with an estimated 20,000 people having experienced homelessness and nearly 400 families having applied for emergency shelters in 2002 (A snapshot of Homelessness in the Metropolitan, www.naeh.org). In April of 2002 alone, 38,476 people in New York spent their night in aid centers, including 16,685 children. According to a survey released by the US Conference of Mayors in December 2003, requests for emergency shelter assistance rose by an average of 13 percent in the past year; 88 percent of the cities surveyed predicted that the situation would be even worse in 2004.

Recently, the US Christian Science Monitor reminded the United States that it should regard "a home for every American" as the most rudimentary human right. Chicago Coalition for the Homeless said the government was unable to provide the basic subsistence guarantee for people, and that the local government had violated international human rights law by forcibly taking over 8,000 local residential houses in five years.
........ read-on...

(This is my point: How does America expect other countries to improve their Human Right's when " taking care of their own" seems an impossible task?
Doesn't seem hypocritical to ask other countries to do what you yourself are unwilling to do_that is provide basic human rights for all_because, we are, after all_ equal.)

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WOOHOO, if you here right now, E.Macy, would we be dancing!!! You guys keep finding the best stats and articles!!!
This is a great article!!!!!

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It is a lovely report and I would recommend people read the full version.

The section on Political Rights and Freedom and the section on Infringement upon Human Rights of Other Nations are particularly interesting from a foreigners point of view.

But lets be honest, no one cares any more about the US' annual report. No one trusts the US or it's judgement.

Paul.

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Frogboy

Join Date 03/2001

+2415

And Americans don't really care what Europeans think either. So it's an even trade.

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Thanks, thoughful people, Wise Fawn and Solitair, for commenting. I found it quite interesting, it reads more like an Amnesty Int'l report. Lots of STATS for the number lovers...
These reports do matter in terms of lending money and Fair( hahahah) Trade.

homme Frog, this-a-here-' Amerikaanse'( femme American) cares. Duality is my thing...

This American cares what real, Patriotic- Americans think as well_thats why I'm here.
Thanks for your *insight*

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Thank you for finding statistics to show what people who are old enough to compare have seen in our life time. It is unfortunate that the rich do not see that this is a threat to them also. Poor people cannot buy and people who do not buy will not build the economy.

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Very true Frogboy, but it isn't the EU annual human rights report that the Chinese are replying to

The Chinese are just saying that like many other countries they no longer care what the US says about human rights abuses as it is a major offender itself.

What would be very interesting would be for China to write a similar report on the EU so that we can see their view on Europe.

Paul.

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Draginol

Join Date 03/2001

+137

The problem some of you have with the United States stems from the fact that it's a democracy (or representative republic if you want to split hairs).

The EU basically has a problem with the idea that Americans elect people who then carry out their wishes. Take capital punishment for instance, most Americans favor it. That is why we have capital punishment.

Any law in China has little to do with what the people want. It has to do with what a tiny group of elitists want. The Americans have the system they want (or deserve) because we have elected people to carry out our wishes. The statistics shown are nothing for Americans to feel bad about. They represent the choices we have made. For example, there's a big difference between "Rich people" and "poor people". That is going to be the case in any free market society where the government stays out of the way of the people.

That's why the whole EU report and China's commenting on it is such a joke. Any American who dislikes the current system is, by definition, in the minority. If their view was the majority, then the laws would be different. You don't like capital punishment? Then vote for candidates that are against it (good luck though since no presidential candidate in the US has ever gotten elected who was against capital punishment -- even Carter). Want the Kyoto accords to be law in the US? Vote for someone who is in favor of it (but good luck, not a single senator in the US supports the Kyoto accords which is because the people of teh United States overwhelming are against it).

It's just incredibly amusing to see people rant about the way the US is, particularly Americans as if the country were some sort of dictatorship. The US is a democracy, the laws reflect the will of the people.

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What EU report?

Brad, the Annual Human Rights Report is a US report where the US critises what it sees as abuses to human rights worldwide over the previous year. The reason people no longer care about it is that the US is now guilty of so many abuses to human rights itself.

And Brad, one of the beauties of human rights is that you cannot take them away. Doesn't matter if everyone in the US agreed that Frence people were subhuman and should be killed on sight. They have human rights and a nation can be held responsible for it's actions. Look at Germany. It voted for Hitler and his abuses of human rights started well before he became a dictator. The fact that you believe it is acceptable to abuse human rights so long as the majority agree with it is very worrying.

Paul.

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Good Morning Paul and Brad Wardell and Sherye Hanson,
Thanks for commenting while I slept.
It is worrying_Paul, the illusion that Americans can simply vote for the candidate that will represent his/her wishes for a better society.Like the (S)election of Bush??? Brad Wardell, I really don't believe the President is a representation of the ideal most Americans I know aspire to or an accurate representation of what the American public wants. You say it's a Democracy then get all technical_what's that? Isn't Democracy one of your chief exports? But you say it's not a democracy. Then you describe a parliamentary system ( prop. repres.) So I am confused I thought I was raised in a democratic land.
Brad, I don't share your pessimistic view that *most Americans* are in favor of capital punishment or excessive C02 emissions. I believe there is a moral- majority of altruistic Americans who are not being represented by their government fairly or proportionately and are in favor of reducing greenhouse emissions.( if they were only allowed to know just how bad the problem is, and misinformation has become this admins. forte) And no way can you say the Majority of Americans are FOR the death penalty, that's just not true ( unless you contract gov't census takers to " adjust" the outcomes, which is how this administration works with science and facts_ trivializing SCIENCE to suit their needs)
Here I am becoming more familiar with this system of a multi party proportional representation( parliament) and will say for a country of 17 million_it *resembles* more of a democracy than the US system because of what Brad decribes_voting for the candidate or party that will carry out your desires for a better society. This system actually feels democratic_everyone who votes gets a proportion of the house and senate for their own party. The right wingers are running the show here too.

PS-yeah, this isn't an EU report against US, but yes wouldn't a similar such " report" be interesting to read and compare on the EU ( no Union is perfect_face it)
" doei"

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China actually exacerbates this themselves, by inviting American companies to set up sweatshops where their citizens get paid less than 1$ an hour and insisting on an unbalanced imports from the US. They demand we harm industry to do business with them, then lambast us for harming industry. Cute.

I'd rather be poor with the possibility of gaining wealth than in constant danger of being "re-educated". Derision from a nation where you can be jailed, tortured and even executed for your political views, your religion, etc., etc.? If Hitler rose from the grave and shook a finger at us for our economic policies, I think a bunch of people here nod in agreement. China makes Hitler look like a schoolyard bully. How many were purged in the mid 20th century? like 20-30 million?

Doesn't seem hypocritical to ask other countries to do what you yourself are unwilling to do_that is provide basic human rights for all_because, we are, after all_ equal.

Sure, let's wait until there are no more poor in the US to ask China to stop executing, torturing and starving their citizens into submission. This is the same kind of propaganda France/Germany used to justify doing billions of dollars in business with Hussein in the mid-90's. Sure, he's evil, but the US is such a big meany.

Anyone ever ask what China and its ilk do to the homeless? Like I say, I'd much rather live in a cardboard box than suffer what China calls 'social services'. You guys look for validation from waaaaay down at the bottom of the barrel.

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I don't think anyone is in disagreement about China's human rights record. It is abysmal. It has next to no regard for the rights of individuals and as such does not grant them what are regarded as basic human rights.

It does have a point though. The US is critising China's human rights record while blantantly contravening a number of human rights treaties it has signed itself. Does this make China's violations ok? No, of course not. But it does make the US report a bit of a joke.

Paul.

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Draginol

Join Date 03/2001

+137

E. Macy, I'm not really concerned with what personal delusions you suffer from. Most Americans supporting capital punishment is a matter of statistical fact. Given your extreme left wing fringe views, I imagine "most people you know" are probably of a similar mind as you are. Like I said, your posts would be right at home at Democratic Underground.

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I just saw somewhere that most "poor" people in the U.S. own at least 2 color tv's. This could mean several things. I wonder how this might compare to the poverty levels of other countries.

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Aaron Brandt : What is American Poverty?

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I would like to know....any facts that talk about poverty percentages in the U.S. always seem to neglect to define it.

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Thanks BakerStreet. I totally missed what you were saying until I stumbled onto your post. Sorry.

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Aaron: No problem.

For the poverty scale and such, look at the comments on that article. The muckrakers have posted them, lol.

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The charter on Human rights links the economic rights of individuals to the average economic state of that country. If you take 'poor' Americans and placed them in China or Mongolia or India or Russia or Somalia then they may indeed be middle class or even wealthy in that society. They are still defined as poor in the US though.

Minds far greater than ours debated these very issues back at the foundation of the UN and decided that poverty was indeed relative, but should still be eliminated by each country based on it's own economy. All members of the UN agreed with this and undertook to eliminate poverty. It's not the wealth of the poor that's the isue but the relative wealth.

Of course if Americans today disagree and feel that their poor should not be so classified then they could always try to renegotiate the treaty

Paul.

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BakerStreet - If being a muckracker is someone who tells than thruth, than muckracker, I'll be. You guys are big on labeling people, aren't you?

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the truth, dammit

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Our Mission
Founded in 1973, The Heritage Foundation is a research and educational institute - a think tank - whose mission is to formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.

The site that BakerStreet got his poverty stats from. Speaks for itself.

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WiseFawn: That is too much. The Chinese government isn't biased, but the Heritage foundation is. You commonly post from mother jones, the Sierra blub, alternet, blah. You use sources easily as biased.

E.Macy says that America has lost it's moral right to preach, and then reprints the preaching of the Chinese government.

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Bakerstreet,
of course China doesn't have any moral authority to preach. E.Macy does not suggest that it does. Read the final paragraph of the article again. The point is 'how can America expect people to take it's comments on human rights seriously when it has so many abuses itself"?

The sad truth is that China does indded have huge human right abuses as pointed out in the US report, but no one cares about what the US says on human rights issues. Have you seen anyone quote the US report yet? It's actually very informative.

paul.

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WiseFawn are you telling me that an organization that admits to being somewhat biased can't find useful information? Last I checked there is absolutely no source that isn't biased, whether they admit it or not, and therefore no statistics in the world are accurate. China wrote the initial report that you don't seem to have a problem with and I'm pretty sure they may be biased toward oh....communism.
China
The country that E. Macy got his poverty stats from. Speaks for itself.

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Draginol

Join Date 03/2001

+137

What major world power, either past or present, should the US emulate?

It's all relative. Should we follow the Roman Empire's example? Or maybe the Soviet Union's? Or Nazi Germany's? Or Napoleonic France? Or the British Empire?

People who complain that the US record on human rights isn't perfect always seem to be comparing it to some imaginary Utopian society. And even then, we wouldn't agree on what exactly is a human right. I consider gun ownership a human right for instance. I consider the government eliminating from society murderers and rapists via capital punishment a human right. Obviously someone like E. Macy would disagree.

But he'll have to excuse us if we're not convinced that his views are universal views. The US is a democracy. The rights we have are the ones we choose to grant ourselves.

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