Political Quotes

“pursuant to that consent, I would like to be recognized to speak to an issue which the whole world has focused on over the last several weeks and months. Within a few weeks, the Senate is likely to vote to send hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance to the nations that were devastated by the tsunami on December 26. We have seen the videotapes. We cannot forget them. Within a matter of minutes on that terrible day, whole families and villages were swept to sea. Schools, clinics, and hospitals were destroyed. Coastal cities were eliminated. What infrastructure there was in place was wiped out. We are doing the right thing to come to the assistance of the victims of this disaster, one of the 10 most devastating natural disasters in recent history, but we should not overlook the fact there are many other challenges in this world. Millions have died in the Congo and the Sudan. Hundreds of thousands are still at risk. Preventable, treatable diseases kill millions more every year. Someone dies of AIDS every 10 seconds in this world. Someone new is infected every 6 seconds. Poverty kills. Bad water, hunger, poor sanitation kills; they are the weapons of economic injustice and economic disparity. Nelson Mandela said recently: Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Overcoming poverty is not just a gesture of charity; it is an act of justice.”