G8 pledges $50 billion to Africa
 

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe....ap/index.html

Blair: 'It is a beginning, not an end'

Friday, July 8, 2005; Posted: 8:42 a.m. EDT (12:42 GMT)


GLENEAGLES, Scotland (AP) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Friday hailed the G8's $50 billion package for Africa and other agreements as "a beginning, not the end" of a new era in aid to the world's poorest nations.

Blair spoke at the end of this week's G8 summit in Scotland, a meeting overshadowed by Thursday's London terror attacks but which ended with defiant talk and pledges to address both poverty and climate change.

Terrorism "will not obscure what we came here to achieve. The purpose of terror is not only to kill, it is to put despair into people's hearts," Blair said.

"All of this does not change the world tomorrow. It is a beginning, not an end."

snip

Organizers of the Live-8 concerts and anti-poverty campaigners Bob Geldof and Bono arrived at the Gleneagles country club Friday for talks with French President Jacques Chirac.

The G8 leaders were expected to pledge to double aid to Africa by 2012, but leave out the numerical goal of increasing aid from the current $25 billion to $50 billion.

This is great... IF the money really goes to improving the lives of Africans and not to lining the pockets of corrupt dictators.

Amazing. I hope it really happens.

So do I. Let's hope that Bono, Geldof and others keep the pressure on.

Indeed! BTW, VH1 is showing the Live 8 concert(s) again all day today, commercial free!

I just put it on. I caught Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb. How brilliant was this performance? God, as good as ever. I worship Gilmour.
Let's hope I didn't miss U2.

MTV/VH1 took a lot of flak for their coverage last week, so maybe this is their way of trying to make up for it.

I just saw U2's performance and was in tears the whole time. They do that to me anyway, but this was a phenomenal performance. They were so into it, not just cause they always have energy, but because they were playing with heart - for a greater good. It reminded me of Live Aid, which is a good thing.
Beautiful Day was amazing. Their best performance of it that I've ever seen - better than SNL and The Grammys. I've seen them do Blackbird at the end four times but this was unusually good.
I love them.

I think that's the best post I've ever read on the Ledge.....

:blob2: :thumbsup: :blob1: :thumbsup: