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[Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>]

This act continues to degrade our former beneficent stature with the rest 
of the world. The Bush administration is not "unable to honor" promises; it 
is simply and crassly unwilling. We got ours, to hell with you. Merry 
Christmas to all of you who deserve one.

U.S. Cutting Food Aid Aimed at Self-Sufficiency
By ELIZABETH BECKER

Published: December 22, 2004

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 - In one of the first signs of the effects of the ever 
tightening federal budget, in the past two months the Bush administration 
has reduced its contributions to global food aid programs aimed at helping 
millions of people climb out of poverty.
With the budget deficit growing and President Bush promising to reduce 
spending, the administration has told representatives of several charities 
that it was unable to honor some earlier promises and would have money to 
pay for food only in emergency crises like that in Darfur, in western 
Sudan. The cutbacks, estimated by some charities at up to $100 million, 
come at a time when the number of hungry in the world is rising for the 
first time in years and all food programs are being stretched.
As a result, Save the Children, Catholic Relief Services and other 
charities have suspended or eliminated programs that were intended to help 
the poor feed themselves through improvements in farming, education and health.
"We have between five and seven million people who have been affected by 
these cuts," said Lisa Kuennen, a food aid expert at Catholic Relief 
Services. "We had approval for all of these programs, often a year in 
advance. We hired staff, signed agreements with governments and with local 
partners, and now we have had to delay everything."

More at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/22/politics/22aid.html?8br