this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2025
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does us foreign aid actually have a positive effect? im actually curious, cuz surely some of the money they slush around has to end up helping some people who need it but at the same time i look at shit like what they did after that earthquake in Haiti a while back and im back to wondering if it helps anyone at all.
In Japan, the Yakuza are often first on the scene to provide support after a natural disaster. This does help the community recover. However, they obviously aren't doing it for moral reasons, they do it because it makes sure the community "owes them" and they gain information about the community and how best to exploit it. Additionally, people who have gone "missing" in the natural disasters are often easy targets for human traffickers.
USAID is basically the international version of this. Technically there is aid involved, but it is almost entirely self-serving.
I wouldn't be surprised if some foreign aid genuinely helps some people, but I doubt that it's more than a drop in the ocean.