Why Live8 can make a difference
Welcome to the 21st Century, a century of wars. One year into the new millennium the war on terrorism began, but now the enemy has changed once more: a war on poverty and injustice has begun. This is where you and I are not perhaps on the frontline but in a strong line of artillery, providing essential support from the rear.
The roots of today's poverty lie in a time when Britain ruled most of the world and European empires controlled by the likes of Britain, France and Portugal did the most damage. It is now down to us to repair the damage – the rape, pillaging and occupation - that our forefathers wreaked upon the continent of Africa over two centuries. Today we are in the unique position of being able to influence the actions of the eight most powerful politicians in the world, the leaders of the G8.
In today's Africa a child dies every three seconds as the direct result of poverty. The problem is not restricted to economics, as many believe, but the politics that guide the economics. Dictatorships, poorly represented and repressed minorities and majorities in many of these nations have led to a situation where basic rights like the right education are not even the issue: it goes right down to the core of human dignity itself, the right to life.
Today was the day that war was officially declared through Live8, the largest rock festival in history. 85% of the world - 5.5 billion people - had the capability to watch or listen to the concerts, whether through radio, television, mobile phone or internet video steaming.
No matter how impressive the technology or the event, we can't save the world in one day - but we can sure as hell start. As Rage Against the Machine once said:
'It has to start somewhere
It has to start sometime
What better place than here
What better time than now'
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