The Conscience of the West and Global Warming

Copenhagen - We owe the Third World nothing

By Dick Field
Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Years ago I was reluctant to contribute to the foreign mission box in my church because I felt we had no business interfering in the social-religious structure of backward and undeveloped countries in Africa and the world. I was about 12-years old at time.

It was a time when Mussolini, the Italian dictator, was bombing the ill-armed Ethiopians with mustard gas and Haile Selassie the Ethiopian King was addressing the League of Nations pleading for western help. That, I understood was horrible and the western powers should have helped. The King went home empty handed.

The United States failed to back the League of Nations and the Europeans were desperately trying to placate Hitler in an attempt to prevent another world war. The lesson was not lost on Mussolini, Hitler or the Fascist General Franco of Spain.

China, a very poor and backward country was divided into warring factions and was under attack by the Empire of Japan. It was traditional for Canadian mothers to say to their children; “Clean up your plate love – think of the poor starving Chinese children!â€