In which John Green discusses the three myths at the center of Bill and Melinda Gates's 2013 annual letter: 1. Poor countries are NOT doomed to remain poor. 2. Foreign aid is NOT a waste of money. (In fact, health aid at least is an astonishingly good investment.) 3. Saving children's lives does NOT lead to overpopulation. (In fact, decreasing infant mortality has consistently slowed population growth all over the world.) The Gates Foundation Letter: annualletter.gatesfoundation.org/ Are Poor Countries Doomed?
Some foreign aid is a waste of money. In particular, money that goes to foreign government that is expected to trickle down. Money is best given directly to people in need, not governments.
Mr. Beat's Social Studies Channel And some Social security is a waste of money, and some free healthcare is a waste of money and... are you seeing a pattern? As long as the overall effect is a net positive, it's worth it.
***** Mm, they have a point, tho. I personally am much more likely to support NGOs, International private nonprofits like KIVA (join the Nerdfighter team!) or organizations based in the area where the problem is being addressed (like Malala Yousafzi's girl's education fund) than giving it to aid departments in a country whose politics I know little about.
Lucy M Yeah, but there is only so much that KIVA can do. KIVA (for example) is worthless in countries that can't accept your payment. And for other types of aid to work you do need to have a presence in that country, whether through NGOs or nonprofits, so sometimes all that you're left with is the Country to Country foreign aid. I'm not arguing against any of the other options (I like KIVA and Docs without borders), but there is a use for Foreign Aid.
***** Curse you John Green!!! May your life become a Bergmanian existential crisis. Either that or an Abba song come to life. The latter may be more enjoyable.
***** John? If Norway is better (slightly) then why do you like Swedish rap more? (I'm assuming you like it more because you mention it more often. Feel free to correct me!)
This has nothing to do with the video, but I had an amazing idea and I want to document it before I forget what it is. I want to invent a cheeseburger called Schrodinger's Burger. At chef's choice, when you order the burger at a restaurant, the patty may or may not be filled with cheese, and you won't know until you take a bite. Yes. This is good.
Completely irrelevant, yet brilliant. I like it. It'd be better if there were something else you could stuff the patty with that would be good other than cheese, though. For balance sake.
Hmm...the bun may or may not have little bits of jalapeno in it. But that might make some people scared to try it because of the heat. Any other suggestions?
I’m trying to find the conceptual flaw, but really I just want to eat it......... Oh wait..... instead of cheese/no cheese the burger could have cat meat/not cat meat. I know it’s disgusting. I apologise to my feline friends.
John Morgan John's not actually trying to learn Portuguese, you know. He's not practicing anything, he just attempted (and failed, of course) to say something in a language he doesn't know, which is something everyone should avoid doing. For quite obvious reasons. If he were actually trying to learn Portuguese, though, it would be a different story. Anyway, my comment wasn’t supposed to be taken seriously.
I'm Brazillian and I remember in the 7th grade my geography teacher saying to the entire class ''We will never grow our economy, no underdeveloped has ever become developed''. I thought to myself then what I still believe now: You never know what will happen in the future. Things might just work out. And by the way I'm loving the videos you guys are making to show people there is still hope in humanity. And I know it's not a lie told by many to ignore that actual problems. I think that if more people had faith in what we can accomplish more work would be done in order to make this world better. But a lot of people tend to think ''It's never going to work so why bother?'' Those are the ones we need to change. And I do whatever I can to help them realise that, so I'm glad to see that you guys are doing that too.
That's so weird, just yesterday I saw an entire shelf of your books in a really small bookstore in Brazil and I thought, wow, that's cool, I "know" him. Nice points, I wish more people inside of the poor countries themselves could see this because to be honest overall most people just think that the only solution is to leave the country.
Keyword: invest. That statement seems to be more in favor of a republican than a democrat view. The Republican party is built on principles like free market to allow people to gain wealth for themselves. The Democratic party is instead focused on solving people's problems for them. Any in-depth analysis will have to conclude that free market is better for the general welfare of the people than any socialist tactics, it's a mathematical certainty. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."
We live in a age of abundance where we could easily feed the entire world. One day we will overcome our greed and create the paradise all humans deserve.
Ultra, I like the way you think. In a perfect world where no one hates someone else. No one is driven by material want rather than need. Unfortunately mankind is a race of social independents. We live in families, we have cliques in school, clubs, and teams but we will always think like ourselves. The closest a nation or culture has ever been to being hateless would be Nazi Germany. Where getting rid of the source of hate produces no more hate. Our differences will control the way we think about each other. These differences has lead to this modern earth being awesome. The Ramen noodles you ate, the curry you made, the dog you have, the phone you have; would not have been created if it were not for our differences. Mankind will never have someone not be hateful. Hate leads to progress for some but decline for others. I dream of a utopia where greed and hate no longer exist but we need to face the truth that those two horrible words are what drive us to push the limits.
Freighttrainfour We outgrew many things we once needed in the infancy of our species. One can argue we needed slavery, subjugation of indigenous peoples, and genocide to get where we are now. That may well be the case; we may have needed those things and we may have benefitted from them. We may benefit from greed and hateful competition today. But eventually, we will outgrow those things as well. We have to if we ever wish to see the full potential of humanity. The easiest way to start that path is through ending abject poverty in the world. The cost is so very little, and the effort required by us all is so very miniscule.
the only unfortunate thing is that Brazil has an uneven growth between economy and social development, and that most of our public and private services (essential and non-essential) are consider not only way below average, but some of the worst services in the world
***** And we sincerely apologize for our excellent healthcare, wealth from national oil industry, and education system, as well as (TIL) 3% foreign aid investment.
***** Not everything. I am a Swede living in Norway, and I can report that they are terrible at building good roads and producing good food products. Except for milk chocolate. They are really good at making delicious milk chocolate.
***** Oh man! I got a reply from John! NOW I can tell everyone you're my acquaintance. Unlike your Twitter shenanigans, this is the real deal! You can even ask my buddy Hank. He will, hopefully, confirm it.
I'm from Chile. When I was born, we lived under a dictatorship, many of our roads were made of dirt, 40% of our population lived in poverty, and our concerns were disease and poverty. Fast forward a 1/4 of a century, and we're in the OECD, and our concerns are if terciary education should be free and the shortcommings of our healthcare systems. Oh, and over here, everyone I know who has read The fault in our Stars has done so in english. And none of them were aware of this channel.
Spins my head that people say Hank & John talk too fast. Their style is a relief to me! If my teachers had gotten to the point like they do - I may have learned something in school!
Brazil?! xDD John, I'm from India. I purchased a paperback version of your book (still need to finish Dostoyevsky before I read that, although I purchased your book because the back-page synopsis made me cry. I repeat; A TWO-SENTENCE SYNOPSIS MADE ME CRY!). I thought I was the ONLY one in the entirety of my state (not necessarily the whole country) who followed VLogbrothers / SciShow and plan to read your books, but nope: Just the other day I met a high-school student (also Indian, obviously), and guess what I found? EVERYONE in her class has read TFIOS. EVERYONE!
Thanks for quoting Brazil in your video as a growing country.We know we still have lots of problems! Lots indeed! But we're trying to be a better place to live: our children are going to school, our medicine system is improving and young people are more aware about their power in politics. About your book, I don't know how much do you follow the brazilians booktubers/readers, but when A culpa é das estrelas (you said it almost right! Good try!) came to Brazil everybody was waiting for it!!! And yes, we love it!! (But we are a little bit disappointed about the movie poster....Anyway). In fact we love many of your books. You don't have idea how much people love Looking for Alaska here! See you! ps.: Sorry about the english mistakes
3% yeah! I'm a norwegian, but sadly I have read A LOT about how the money gets used in poor countries. Most of the money goes to dictators, instead of putting money into small fair trade businesses.
This is incorrect, and I want to point out why because it's a common error we all make sometimes that's easy to fix. You said "Most of the money goes to dictators" when you should have said "Some of the money goes to dictators." It's a minor exaggeration, most likely subconscious, to heighten the emotional impact of your argument, something we all do on a regular basis. I'm not picking on you, your post was just a good opportunity to point out something I see frequently, and that I want people to be more conscious of. Peace!
I really like your video John. I came here just to say that I'm brazilian and no, we don't live in the middle of rain forest with monkeys. Ok, we're not the richest country in the world and we have a lot of problems. But we are growing. I'm not sure if we're going in the right way, we have corruption, drugs, police, health and habitation problems. In despite that more kids are going to school and more people are having a better life. Yes, we complain and- I think- we'll always do that. But, even know all those problems, I'm proud of my country and proud of my people. We're are not perfect but, who are ? I'm thankful for your video because you're trying to show the reality of my country and other "poor countries". I'd like to say that we have airports, cars, school, universities and a lot of nice things. We're not just soccer and carnival. We have a lot of big cities, not only Rio de Janeiro. I live near a city called São Paulo - google it- and that's one of the most industrialized cities in the country. We have a lot of arts and museums. And we speak portuguese, not spanish. Please "rich people" when you come to Brazil don't come thinking only on favelas. We are amazing and have much more things than that. Thanks to trying to change the mind of some people John. I'd like to say that I LOVE your books. I've already read almost all of then - excluding will & will. They're amazing and you have a lot of fans here. The fault on our stars is a best-seller. Sorry for my probable mistakes. Thank you.
Your English is much better than my Portuguese so no need to apologize! Sarah (my wife) was just at Inhotim for a couple weeks, and she felt it was probably the best contemporary art space in the world. Brazil is full of diversity! -John
I know this video is about so much more than this, but: yeah, Brazil REALLY loves you, John!! And I can't get enough of your optimistic and generous approach to things. You're exceptionally awesome
John, you are awesome! And so is your book TFiOS (and all the others!). You absolutely deserve the amount of loving fans you have here in Brazil and all over the world. Looking forward to your future projects! :)
Unusual lighting today. John really stood out from the background and seemed really clear... or maybe the clearness is in my head since I've been watching the old 240p Brotherhood 2.0 videos lately.
It is wonderful that Brazilians have bought so many copies of your book (which I thoroughly enjoyed by the way), but there are between 2-3 times as many people in Brazil than in Britain or Germany, so to use this as a comparison for a healthy book publication landscape is a little unfair. If this is based on percentage population rather than total sales then I take this all back. Either way, good video as ever :)
I emailed and starred for myself the BOOM quote "we make the future sustainable when we invest in the poor, not when we insist upon their suffering" thank you melinda for saying so and thank you john for spreading it
The Gates Foundation is totally fab. Their headquarters are in Seattle, close to where I live, and I've been meaning to visit them for a while now. They do a lot of good in the world.
I just finished reading Mountains beyond Mountains, the book about Paul Farmer, a doctor who has devoted his life to providing top-quality healthcare in Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with medical work in places like Peru and Russia on the side. Truly inspirational. It'll be interesting to see what the world looks like in 20 years
The nerdfighter community has worked with Farmer's organization Partners in Health many times, including a project in which we raised over $250,000 with the Harry Potter Alliance to send medical supplies to Haiti after the earthquake there. We love PIH! -John
"It is not fair that Bill Gates gets to be both a billionaire AND a good writer!" It is not fair that John Green gets to be both an awesome person AND a good writer.
Thank you very much for making this video, John, and also thank you for linking to the Gates' letter. It was both informative and uplifting, which is a great combination.
Yay, Bill and Melinda! I've been involved in charity events for these two and their work with End Polio now before, and this year I'm even running an event that hopes to raise AUD$10,000 for the cause. :) Thanks for spotlighting such a great organisation outside of P4A season!
I'm really loving all of the positivity in your recent videos! This all feels very relevant, I've been reading about this issues surrounding the third world and how we can help in preparation for a trip to Malawi in June. There is so much to be celebrated with regards to what's been achieved, and we don't celebrate it enough! Thank you John!
Yes Botswana! I spent a year there recently (small vid on my channel) and it truly is a wonderful country. So peaceful, so kind and such a story of hope!
I'm brazilian and I feel really honored. People here don't really have the habit of reading and your novel The Fault in Out Stars (it was super cute you trying to say it in Portuguese btw) encourages people to read. I think all brazilians thank you for that
My friend Antoan from SuperNguyenChannel hates it when people think of Vietnam as very poor. They are one of the fastest growing countries and has the 10th largest military of any country. It is also becoming more industrialised and tourism is growing
Vietnam has the 10th largest military? What is up with all these East Asian countries having massive militaries when that entire area already has a bunch of flashpoints.
I'm from Brazil but I currently live in Suriname, a country that even brazilians don't know much about (and we're neighbors). Since I got here, I have seen a lot of people, some of them never even finished high school, who speak seven languages, nine languages, and even more. Almost everywhere you go in Paramaribo (Suriname's capital), people can speak good english (way better than mine). I think that's very impressive. This is harder to find in Brazil, but we're working on it. We have a lot of problems, yes, but we also have people trying to make it better, as we all saw last year. Poor countries are definitely not doomed. ps: "a colpa é das estreias"
I was just listening when John tried to say "A culpa e' das estrelas" then I had to rewind and watch to really get what heck of book he's talking about... lol, nice try! Awesome book by the way, I got one myself, wonderful work!
Yeahhh! Kick it John! You rock! I do development studies, and am so glad you are saying this. There are so many messed up ideas about poverty out there. Sure it's not simple. But people need to let go of defensive negativity & open up to the possibility that the world is not completely screwed!
In my geography class in Canada I was given many reasons as to why foreing aid can often be a bad thing. 1. The money we give to these coutries is often used for war 2. We usually give money to not so poor countries so that they can pay us back 3. The country might become dependant on us. 4. The money will often be wasted on bad pojects/priorities
b2a1c3d4 Probably depends on the kind of aid. In the letter and video they were talking more about health aid, to reduce infant mortality, which leads to lower fertility rates since people don't make 8 kids to make sure one survives. Development aid, for roads, power plants, resource extraction, etc could be quite different in their impacts than health aid.
In regards to Africa, there is still a sense of stigma for businesses investing there--especially the "unstable" regions in central Africa (too much risk). The perception of an unstable Africa has def. been one of those barriers towards 'development'. Also, I'm little critical of the causes and ends of development...like 19th Europeans who carved out Africa for colonial projects, today China and America are continuing the trend of development (often with the premise of aid). To make an oversimplified and sweeping claim here on youtube, I'd like to say that aid often masks some of the structural economic problems that could potentially be changed to create lasting and sustainable improvements to poor countries. But all this said, the Gates Foundation does some good work and a lower infant mortality rate is great news.
We already have. Look at the US army, TSA, people on 'disability', the war on drugs, ect. If you put together bullshit jobs, the unemployed, the government supported and the retired (trust funds, investment income, rich spouses, ect) you'll find they're really aren't many people that both work and meaningfully contribute to society.
Work will probably always have more value than non-work for most people, I think. I think most people like working, even if they don't like their current jobs. But if people were freed from the obligation to work, I still think they would do work-like things. Anyway, we are a long way from that! -John
FlashGameReviews I think that's just a difference in standards. Everyone I know who is either unemployed or retired volunteer their time to local libraries, food shelters, clothing banks, etc. I also think that everyone should have a job and that giving your time freely to an organization that needs help should be rewarded. Many people, at least the ones I know, would rather be doing something productive than nothing at all. It's the people who take the opposite approach that hurts.
After getting hooked on crash course world history, I first discovered that you were a novelist when I happened upon one of your novels in my university library. I'm excited to read it!
The formula is rather simple. Investment from rich countries goes into poor countries. The poor countries educate their people better. Educated people make more educated and positive life choices. Therefore, they make more money, provide more innovation, produce less children, get sick less often and educate those around them to do the same. If we all work together, we can turn this trickle into a snowball. If we can snowball this, we can fix poverty on a scale unheard of since the dawn of human civilisation. The method is clear, the solution is easy, all we need to do now is to give the people the tools they need to do the right thing.
Thank you for bringing some light through your videos, it's really easy to forget about all the awesome things that happen around oneself when the news are only bad and worse each day. DFTBA!
Japan used to be "poor", but then through intelligent social, economic, and political policies it quickly began to compete with already extremely rich countries.
Japan was a global power before WWII. And much of its' positive changes are a result of American and Allied Occupation after the war. It didn't get there alone. However, socially, they are still relatively backwards, most notable in how the nation still wreaks of xenophobia.
When? Before the "opening" of Japan by Perry? Japan was one of the first non-Western nations to industrialize. They were a relatively powerful and rich nation for over a hundred years. This can be seen by their victory over a European power (albeit not the most powerful nation Europe had ever produced) in the Russo-Japanese War. I guess it may have become "poor" after WWII, but the US and the whole "adopt, adapt, adept" strategy quickly rebuilt the nation (so that 1) It wouldn't be communist, 2) To make sure they would not become antagonistic again, 3) To become economic partners, 4) To maintain military bases etc). I don't think Japan can really complain of being a poor country. Unequal? Maybe (I wouldn't know). But poor? Probably not.
A better example would be Vietnam. They were a very poor country, but have started to turn things around. Still lots to be done but it's getting better.
If your argument is Japan industrialized and succeeded because of the United States, that shouldn't be a negative point. John himself said the 'wealthier' countries should help weaker ones to see improvement in the world.
Japan did not need help from the US before WWII, they industrialized mostly on their own. They were highly nationalistic and xenophobic, so Japan did not open itself up to trade easily (except for to the dutch in Nagasaki). Japan adopted good policies, and they industrialized using their own resources in an effort to not end up like China, Vietnam, India, or Africa. Unfortunately for Japan the west did not enjoy their expansion into China, Korea, etc. before and during WWII.
Thank you so much for talking about good news in this and another video shortly before this one. I'd been getting very depressed due to recent evening news, which even if it is frequently depressing, and often inane, I still think is important to watch.
Yay!!! Why no party poppers? This progress deserves party poppers! Also, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation may have the best mission statement, but the Foundation to Decrease World Suck has the best name.
Guys, I'm both Norwegian and American, how come only ~4% of my duel citizen taxes are going to people who don't get to experience the awesomeness of either of my countries?
Nothing is preventing you from donating more. I'd prefer to donate on my own accord and to entities of my choice rather than relying on government administered foreign aid.
mazdaspeed miata I never said that I don't donate. Mostly I donate my time but I also keep philanthropy a a budgeted in expenditure. My point wasn't that I don't or cant help more on my own, rather, that I feel what I pay in isn't used properly... namely by the American side... who still can't get healthcare right and then gets mad at me because it thinks Norwegian healthcare isn't good enough. Mostly because of the 6 month rule, but I digress. I'm rambling aren't I?
I was in my media studies class this week when I noticed that "The Fault in Our Stars" was being recommended... in a fashion magazine. My first reaction was "Rwar, this magazine degrades the beauty and quality of the book! I am a giant squid of anger" but after cooling down a bit I realized... Personal development is a lot like money. Just because you don't have a lot of it shouldn't mean you don't get the right to increase your share of it. So good on you, Grazia, for recommending a wonderful book, and good on you John for being loved in every corner of the magazine industry. DFTBA
I felt obligated to research (pft, I mean google) the UK's foreign aid spending and it turns out we made it a target to increase that spending to 0.7% of GNI (we also achieved that last year). That sounds pretty poor to me, I am disappointed!
To make matters worse there was quite a lot of negative feedback about the increase, about how foreign aid spending was going up while other spending was being decreased, and how all this money was being sent abroad, and the usual kind of England-First rhetorical nonsense we've seen far too much of recently. But the Government did it anyway. Which gives me some hope that they're not all evil...
Yes unfortunately the prominence of UKIP these days, as an alternative to the 'big three', is bringing about ridiculous negativity around these issues. Thankfully they aren't in power though, I can only imagine what would happen to foreign aid spending if UKIP were in government!
I was totally expecting a reunion video today. And then I was disappointed and wasted the first run through of this video looking for Hank. When I watched it again I realized this was so much more interesting. Thanks John!
I am brazilian and read your book! I am so glad with the thank you and see the world is getting better with the poor. Funfact: in christmas, all I saw in the bookstores was "A culpa é das estrelas" to sell and evebody was buying it and want more books from the author John Green. Congrats!
Bill is one of the few "1%" that actually made his own money and give back the money he made to not just the people that give him the money but to people that actually need it. And for those reasons he is awesome.
its true, i have NEVER seen a "internet thing" (idek) become so popular in Brazil! Like every single girl in school was reading this book a while back! And its freaking awesome, everytime I see the book pop up I just giggle because its so awesome! You butchering the portuguese was adorable please do it again!
Before watching this video, I really believed that as child deaths decreased, population growth would increase. That didn't mean I thought we should kill all the children or let them die from TB or polio. It just messed with my views on abortion. So thanks for introducing this to me. I guess I need to do a little more research
It's great to see that developing countries are, well, developing, but there's another myth I've been told since I was a kid and I'm not sure if it's true: "There aren't nearly enough resources on Earth for everyone to live like a developed country"
that's kind of true, depending on how you define a developed country. the GDP per capita of the entire world was 10,170.68 USD in 2012, so if you shared out all of the world's wealth equally, everyone would recieve $10170.68. so everyone's wealth would be somewhere between the average for mexico and the average for turkey. most people living in developed countries would be significantly poorer. Of course, this assumes redistributing the wealth doesn't cost anything and that it has no effect on the world's economy. With that said, some countries have gone from being developing countries to developed countries. Hong Kong and Singapore were both classed as developing countries until 1997.
Invective Yes, because the economy is not a zero-sum game. If poor countries get richer, they'll GDPs will increase, leading to a larger global GDP per capita.
I don't have the time to get deep into it right now, but I may come back after lunch... basically, although resources are finite, the population will most likely stabilise between 11 and 15 billion, and recycling vs new methods of extraction vs as of yet unseen scientific discoveries, make it unlikely that we will reach a crisis point where we cannot all live well. Just one brief illustration: 1 billion people are deemed overweight or obese. 1 billion people are starving. That is showing there is no shortage of food, just failed distribution.
Ok, I have a mo, so if you are interested here's the argument in brief: Technology will overcome most resource based obstacles: Water: Desalinasitation, water harvesting, grey water use, cleaning and preservation will easily cover our needs globally as we develop, bearing in mind the earth is well over 2/3 water or something like that. Food: EU crop yields average 6* more than the US due to intensification methods that are not necessarily needed in the US because the land is larger. However, the US produces 1/3 global grain... with the intensification methods, they could provide 2* the global grain consumption on the same land. Also a lot of land is being lost to bio-ethanol subsidies which drive up food prices and will be redundant in the coming decades, freeing up lots of land. Energy: There will be more and more innovative ways that will see off oil in time, but currently if you're worried about oil, then consider that the wells that we have closed are still 60% full... it's just that extraction methods 50 years ago only had 40% efficiency. Now new methods like fracking can reopen closed wells and ensure energy security for DECADES while we look for new sources. Wood: We can grow trees Metals: Recycling is becoming more and more effective and efficient. Most of the metal not in construction is now in rubbish heaps... as a result sometime we will be able to recycle these materials very efficiently and rotate waste, which when the population stabilises will be more than enough to provide the worlds technology. This is of course disregarding the environment, however, technology tends to become more efficient and cleaner over time, as does development and nature can naturally heal once we've got over oil, though it will take a couple of hundred years, it will have little impact on human development.
Garrett Robinson Dude, I'm form 2015, I need to tell you some things. 1.) Say out of West Africa 2.) Tell someone to start worrying about ISIS 3.) The Pats win the Superbowl- so bet a bunch of money on them 4.) At some point this year there will be race riots and an anti-vaccine movement, basically we revert to the 1960's with Tumblr 4.) Tell someone to start worrying about Ted Cruz- he takes over NASA
I know this video is 5 years old, but I’m so glad that this video exists. My life feels like it’s falling all to shit (it may not be, but it feels that way all the time), but hearing that bad things were happening less 5 years ago than they had in the previous 100 years or so made me feel much better and I’m so happy. I’m also a lil drunk, but imma keep living and that’s been a hard decision today so good on you nerdfighteria:)
Thank you Mr Green!! The Australian government is promising foreign aid cuts which is very upsetting. I'm going to send Bill and Melinda's article to my local member.
Basically this new government of ours, by cutting funding where it matters, is suck itself. Though not to say the Labor reign was too fantastic either.
***** University feels much like a 3-year-long one of those 'vacations', so I know the feeling well! Although I don't even have a nice leaf-print sofa to collapse into between work things.
Stopping by to say that I was assigned your book to read in my college course. I forget the name of the course at the moment but it has something to do with adolescent literature. Can't wait to read it!
In which John Green discusses the three myths at the center of Bill and Melinda Gates's 2013 annual letter: 1. Poor countries are NOT doomed to remain poor. 2. Foreign aid is NOT a waste of money. (In fact, health aid at least is an astonishingly good investment.) 3. Saving children's lives does NOT lead to overpopulation. (In fact, decreasing infant mortality has consistently slowed population growth all over the world.)
The Gates Foundation Letter: annualletter.gatesfoundation.org/
Are Poor Countries Doomed?
Some foreign aid is a waste of money. In particular, money that goes to foreign government that is expected to trickle down. Money is best given directly to people in need, not governments.
Mr. Beat's Social Studies Channel And some Social security is a waste of money, and some free healthcare is a waste of money and... are you seeing a pattern?
As long as the overall effect is a net positive, it's worth it.
***** Mm, they have a point, tho. I personally am much more likely to support NGOs, International private nonprofits like KIVA (join the Nerdfighter team!) or organizations based in the area where the problem is being addressed (like Malala Yousafzi's girl's education fund) than giving it to aid departments in a country whose politics I know little about.
Lucy M Yeah, but there is only so much that KIVA can do. KIVA (for example) is worthless in countries that can't accept your payment. And for other types of aid to work you do need to have a presence in that country, whether through NGOs or nonprofits, so sometimes all that you're left with is the Country to Country foreign aid. I'm not arguing against any of the other options (I like KIVA and Docs without borders), but there is a use for Foreign Aid.
The tea party want to eliminate that one percent the US government is currently investing in the world.
I'm from Norway... I feel like John has now basically acknowledged my existence by mentioning a nice fact about Norway. Take that Sweden!
Suck it, Sweden!
I love you both, actually, but let's face it: Norway is slightly better. -John
*****
Curse you John Green!!! May your life become a Bergmanian existential crisis. Either that or an Abba song come to life. The latter may be more enjoyable.
*****
John? If Norway is better (slightly) then why do you like Swedish rap more? (I'm assuming you like it more because you mention it more often. Feel free to correct me!)
***** What about Denmark, Finland, and Iceland?
+vlogbrothers And we like Hank slightly more
This has nothing to do with the video, but I had an amazing idea and I want to document it before I forget what it is. I want to invent a cheeseburger called Schrodinger's Burger. At chef's choice, when you order the burger at a restaurant, the patty may or may not be filled with cheese, and you won't know until you take a bite. Yes. This is good.
Completely irrelevant, yet brilliant. I like it. It'd be better if there were something else you could stuff the patty with that would be good other than cheese, though. For balance sake.
Hmm...the bun may or may not have little bits of jalapeno in it. But that might make some people scared to try it because of the heat. Any other suggestions?
I’m trying to find the conceptual flaw, but really I just want to eat it.........
Oh wait..... instead of cheese/no cheese the burger could have cat meat/not cat meat.
I know it’s disgusting. I apologise to my feline friends.
I am Brazillian.
Please never, ever say the title of any of your books in Portuguese again.
I never thought it could be this hard for someone to pronounce "estrelas"...
Oh, poor man. It's not his fault. I would love to see he trying to speak portuguese more often.
how else to learn than practice?
John Morgan
John's not actually trying to learn Portuguese, you know. He's not practicing anything, he just attempted (and failed, of course) to say something in a language he doesn't know, which is something everyone should avoid doing. For quite obvious reasons.
If he were actually trying to learn Portuguese, though, it would be a different story.
Anyway, my comment wasn’t supposed to be taken seriously.
***** I disagree with you but you think what you wish.
He probably isn't trying to learn all the languages his book is printed in.
K bye nonserious.
I'm Brazillian and I remember in the 7th grade my geography teacher saying to the entire class ''We will never grow our economy, no underdeveloped has ever become developed''. I thought to myself then what I still believe now: You never know what will happen in the future. Things might just work out. And by the way I'm loving the videos you guys are making to show people there is still hope in humanity. And I know it's not a lie told by many to ignore that actual problems. I think that if more people had faith in what we can accomplish more work would be done in order to make this world better. But a lot of people tend to think ''It's never going to work so why bother?'' Those are the ones we need to change. And I do whatever I can to help them realise that, so I'm glad to see that you guys are doing that too.
That's so weird, just yesterday I saw an entire shelf of your books in a really small bookstore in Brazil and I thought, wow, that's cool, I "know" him.
Nice points, I wish more people inside of the poor countries themselves could see this because to be honest overall most people just think that the only solution is to leave the country.
And yet people are trying to cut food stamp programs because they "cost too much" while thinking tax breaks for corporations are just fine.
EXACTLY
Free market capitalism has never been evidence based or rational. It’s always been ideology.
Getting mentioned in a tweet from Bill Gates: Done
In before 301+ and I have nothing of value to say. This is the saddest day of my life.
Saaaame. Except for the saddest day stuff.
“We make the future sustainable when we invest in the poor, not when we insist on their suffering.”
Take THAT GOP
Keyword: invest.
That statement seems to be more in favor of a republican than a democrat view.
The Republican party is built on principles like free market to allow people to gain wealth for themselves. The Democratic party is instead focused on solving people's problems for them. Any in-depth analysis will have to conclude that free market is better for the general welfare of the people than any socialist tactics, it's a mathematical certainty. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."
We live in a age of abundance where we could easily feed the entire world. One day we will overcome our greed and create the paradise all humans deserve.
On the same day that we decide to adequately feed, educate and provide health care for our own young, poor and elderly. Next week, right?
Timothy Dingman Aren't our young, poor and elderly apart of the same world as the other humans?
Timothy Dingman "The World" includes all of us. This "us before them" mentality is part of the attitude we need to overcome.
Ultra, I like the way you think. In a perfect world where no one hates someone else. No one is driven by material want rather than need. Unfortunately mankind is a race of social independents. We live in families, we have cliques in school, clubs, and teams but we will always think like ourselves. The closest a nation or culture has ever been to being hateless would be Nazi Germany. Where getting rid of the source of hate produces no more hate.
Our differences will control the way we think about each other. These differences has lead to this modern earth being awesome. The Ramen noodles you ate, the curry you made, the dog you have, the phone you have; would not have been created if it were not for our differences. Mankind will never have someone not be hateful. Hate leads to progress for some but decline for others.
I dream of a utopia where greed and hate no longer exist but we need to face the truth that those two horrible words are what drive us to push the limits.
Freighttrainfour We outgrew many things we once needed in the infancy of our species. One can argue we needed slavery, subjugation of indigenous peoples, and genocide to get where we are now. That may well be the case; we may have needed those things and we may have benefitted from them. We may benefit from greed and hateful competition today. But eventually, we will outgrow those things as well. We have to if we ever wish to see the full potential of humanity. The easiest way to start that path is through ending abject poverty in the world. The cost is so very little, and the effort required by us all is so very miniscule.
the only unfortunate thing is that Brazil has an uneven growth between economy and social development, and that most of our public and private services (essential and non-essential) are consider not only way below average, but some of the worst services in the world
John mentioned Norway again in this video.
I love you, John
It's because you guys are so good at everything. -John
***** And we sincerely apologize for our excellent healthcare, wealth from national oil industry, and education system, as well as (TIL) 3% foreign aid investment.
RKH1502 Well It's about time!
*****
Not everything. I am a Swede living in Norway, and I can report that they are terrible at building good roads and producing good food products. Except for milk chocolate. They are really good at making delicious milk chocolate.
LiquoriceLover Yeah, we are kinda sucky at some stuff. Then again, your Swedish chocolate tastes like plastic.
I gave A Culpa É Das Estrelas to my mom on her birthday. She loved it. Thanks
Thank YOU. -John
*****
Oh man! I got a reply from John! NOW I can tell everyone you're my acquaintance. Unlike your Twitter shenanigans, this is the real deal! You can even ask my buddy Hank. He will, hopefully, confirm it.
I'm from Chile. When I was born, we lived under a dictatorship, many of our roads were made of dirt, 40% of our population lived in poverty, and our concerns were disease and poverty. Fast forward a 1/4 of a century, and we're in the OECD, and our concerns are if terciary education should be free and the shortcommings of our healthcare systems.
Oh, and over here, everyone I know who has read The fault in our Stars has done so in english. And none of them were aware of this channel.
My brothers lives in Chile!
Wow, cool!
Spins my head that people say Hank & John talk too fast. Their style is a relief to me! If my teachers had gotten to the point like they do - I may have learned something in school!
It's sold, like, a Brazilian copies!
A+++ -John
As a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, and long time Vlogbrothers fan, this makes me so. Damn. Happy. Bravo John and Hank Green!
Awesome as always!
John Green: Brightening my Day since 2011
I'm fangirling because you thank Brazil. You're welcome John
Brazil?! xDD John, I'm from India. I purchased a paperback version of your book (still need to finish Dostoyevsky before I read that, although I purchased your book because the back-page synopsis made me cry. I repeat; A TWO-SENTENCE SYNOPSIS MADE ME CRY!). I thought I was the ONLY one in the entirety of my state (not necessarily the whole country) who followed VLogbrothers / SciShow and plan to read your books, but nope: Just the other day I met a high-school student (also Indian, obviously), and guess what I found?
EVERYONE in her class has read TFIOS. EVERYONE!
there is a facebook page called indian and pakistani nerdfighters in case you are interested :)
The world needs more of your positivity
Thanks for quoting Brazil in your video as a growing country.We know we still have lots of problems! Lots indeed! But we're trying to be a better place to live: our children are going to school, our medicine system is improving and young people are more aware about their power in politics.
About your book, I don't know how much do you follow the brazilians booktubers/readers, but when A culpa é das estrelas (you said it almost right! Good try!) came to Brazil everybody was waiting for it!!! And yes, we love it!! (But we are a little bit disappointed about the movie poster....Anyway). In fact we love many of your books. You don't have idea how much people love Looking for Alaska here!
See you!
ps.: Sorry about the english mistakes
3% yeah! I'm a norwegian, but sadly I have read A LOT about how the money gets used in poor countries. Most of the money goes to dictators, instead of putting money into small fair trade businesses.
This is incorrect, and I want to point out why because it's a common error we all make sometimes that's easy to fix. You said "Most of the money goes to dictators" when you should have said "Some of the money goes to dictators." It's a minor exaggeration, most likely subconscious, to heighten the emotional impact of your argument, something we all do on a regular basis.
I'm not picking on you, your post was just a good opportunity to point out something I see frequently, and that I want people to be more conscious of. Peace!
YOU SPEAKING PORTUGUESE MADE MY YEAR! THANK YOU!
I AM SO GOOD AT IT! -John
YOU REALLY ARE!!!
I really like your video John.
I came here just to say that I'm brazilian and no, we don't live in the middle of rain forest with monkeys.
Ok, we're not the richest country in the world and we have a lot of problems. But we are growing. I'm not sure if we're going in the right way, we have corruption, drugs, police, health and habitation problems. In despite that more kids are going to school and more people are having a better life. Yes, we complain and- I think- we'll always do that.
But, even know all those problems, I'm proud of my country and proud of my people. We're are not perfect but, who are ?
I'm thankful for your video because you're trying to show the reality of my country and other "poor countries".
I'd like to say that we have airports, cars, school, universities and a lot of nice things. We're not just soccer and carnival. We have a lot of big cities, not only Rio de Janeiro. I live near a city called São Paulo - google it- and that's one of the most industrialized cities in the country. We have a lot of arts and museums. And we speak portuguese, not spanish.
Please "rich people" when you come to Brazil don't come thinking only on favelas. We are amazing and have much more things than that.
Thanks to trying to change the mind of some people John.
I'd like to say that I LOVE your books. I've already read almost all of then - excluding will & will. They're amazing and you have a lot of fans here. The fault on our stars is a best-seller.
Sorry for my probable mistakes.
Thank you.
Your English is much better than my Portuguese so no need to apologize! Sarah (my wife) was just at Inhotim for a couple weeks, and she felt it was probably the best contemporary art space in the world. Brazil is full of diversity! -John
I know this video is about so much more than this, but: yeah, Brazil REALLY loves you, John!! And I can't get enough of your optimistic and generous approach to things. You're exceptionally awesome
You're welcome John! Brazil loves You! You're awesome!!
I love Brazil back! -John
John, you are awesome! And so is your book TFiOS (and all the others!). You absolutely deserve the amount of loving fans you have here in Brazil and all over the world. Looking forward to your future projects! :)
Thanks for making people more informed.
i bet at least one of the people who liked your comment also did so because of your profile picture. i know i sure did :D
Oh, thank you. He is pretty cute.
John is so right about it being worth your time to read the letter. I read it and it was really touching. Excellent video!
John some of your books have made their way into my school.
Unusual lighting today. John really stood out from the background and seemed really clear... or maybe the clearness is in my head since I've been watching the old 240p Brotherhood 2.0 videos lately.
It is wonderful that Brazilians have bought so many copies of your book (which I thoroughly enjoyed by the way), but there are between 2-3 times as many people in Brazil than in Britain or Germany, so to use this as a comparison for a healthy book publication landscape is a little unfair. If this is based on percentage population rather than total sales then I take this all back. Either way, good video as ever :)
I emailed and starred for myself the BOOM quote "we make the future sustainable when we invest in the poor, not when we insist upon their suffering" thank you melinda for saying so and thank you john for spreading it
Great video. Some very interesting stats!
The Gates Foundation is totally fab. Their headquarters are in Seattle, close to where I live, and I've been meaning to visit them for a while now. They do a lot of good in the world.
I just finished reading Mountains beyond Mountains, the book about Paul Farmer, a doctor who has devoted his life to providing top-quality healthcare in Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with medical work in places like Peru and Russia on the side. Truly inspirational. It'll be interesting to see what the world looks like in 20 years
The nerdfighter community has worked with Farmer's organization Partners in Health many times, including a project in which we raised over $250,000 with the Harry Potter Alliance to send medical supplies to Haiti after the earthquake there. We love PIH! -John
***** Awesome :D glad to know that nerds everywhere are helping to change the world.
greetings from Brazil. You are the best thing in youtube, John.
"It is not fair that Bill Gates gets to be both a billionaire AND a good writer!"
It is not fair that John Green gets to be both an awesome person AND a good writer.
Thank you very much for making this video, John, and also thank you for linking to the Gates' letter. It was both informative and uplifting, which is a great combination.
Yay, Bill and Melinda! I've been involved in charity events for these two and their work with End Polio now before, and this year I'm even running an event that hopes to raise AUD$10,000 for the cause. :) Thanks for spotlighting such a great organisation outside of P4A season!
Omg they are actually responding to comments, other youtubers never do that, you guys are awesome
I'm really loving all of the positivity in your recent videos! This all feels very relevant, I've been reading about this issues surrounding the third world and how we can help in preparation for a trip to Malawi in June. There is so much to be celebrated with regards to what's been achieved, and we don't celebrate it enough! Thank you John!
Yes Botswana! I spent a year there recently (small vid on my channel) and it truly is a wonderful country. So peaceful, so kind and such a story of hope!
This video was greatly inspiring and optimistic as always, John! My evening just got slightly better.
Ahh, this is what I did my project for awesome video on! Lovely to hear you discussing this very important subject =)
Great video John! Very informative, and entertaining. Thank you for helping decrease so much World Suck! Keep up the great work and DFTBA!
I'm brazilian and I feel really honored. People here don't really have the habit of reading and your novel The Fault in Out Stars (it was super cute you trying to say it in Portuguese btw) encourages people to read. I think all brazilians thank you for that
As always - Awesome stuff!
Your Portuguese is just... Simply amazing.
My friend Antoan from SuperNguyenChannel hates it when people think of Vietnam as very poor. They are one of the fastest growing countries and has the 10th largest military of any country. It is also becoming more industrialised and tourism is growing
Vietnam has the 10th largest military?
What is up with all these East Asian countries having massive militaries when that entire area already has a bunch of flashpoints.
ivan2294 I think you answered your own question.
Steven DallaVicenza ...Good point
John, as a brazilian, you just concour my heart. Please, have kids! World is in need of people like you!
the vlogbrothers always upload videos I like
I'm from Brazil but I currently live in Suriname, a country that even brazilians don't know much about (and we're neighbors). Since I got here, I have seen a lot of people, some of them never even finished high school, who speak seven languages, nine languages, and even more. Almost everywhere you go in Paramaribo (Suriname's capital), people can speak good english (way better than mine). I think that's very impressive. This is harder to find in Brazil, but we're working on it. We have a lot of problems, yes, but we also have people trying to make it better, as we all saw last year. Poor countries are definitely not doomed.
ps: "a colpa é das estreias"
Brazil gives a thanks for you.
Watching from Uganda! And on behalf of everyone here, I'd like to say thanks, John!
I was just listening when John tried to say "A culpa e' das estrelas" then I had to rewind and watch to really get what heck of book he's talking about... lol, nice try! Awesome book by the way, I got one myself, wonderful work!
I look forward to Tuesdays and Fridays for precisely this- you and Hank are geniuses!
The Brazil love you John.
I really like your videos and channel. And it was nice to see you trying to speak Portuguese haha
I will work on my pronunciation. -John
***** your pronunciation is entertaining. Leave it!
***** Your pronunciation was cool John.
Yeahhh! Kick it John! You rock! I do development studies, and am so glad you are saying this. There are so many messed up ideas about poverty out there. Sure it's not simple. But people need to let go of defensive negativity & open up to the possibility that the world is not completely screwed!
In my geography class in Canada I was given many reasons as to why foreing aid can often be a bad thing.
1. The money we give to these coutries is often used for war
2. We usually give money to not so poor countries so that they can pay us back
3. The country might become dependant on us.
4. The money will often be wasted on bad pojects/priorities
Could you do me a favor and cite sources where these events occur? Because that just doesn't sound true at all.
b2a1c3d4 His geography class. At least it's more reliable than Urban Dictionary.
2074red2074 Not necessarily no. In school I was taught that the tongue has segregated regions that each taste unique flavors.
Among other things.
b2a1c3d4 Probably depends on the kind of aid. In the letter and video they were talking more about health aid, to reduce infant mortality, which leads to lower fertility rates since people don't make 8 kids to make sure one survives.
Development aid, for roads, power plants, resource extraction, etc could be quite different in their impacts than health aid.
b2a1c3d4 The Congo for one.
In regards to Africa, there is still a sense of stigma for businesses investing there--especially the "unstable" regions in central Africa (too much risk). The perception of an unstable Africa has def. been one of those barriers towards 'development'. Also, I'm little critical of the causes and ends of development...like 19th Europeans who carved out Africa for colonial projects, today China and America are continuing the trend of development (often with the premise of aid). To make an oversimplified and sweeping claim here on youtube, I'd like to say that aid often masks some of the structural economic problems that could potentially be changed to create lasting and sustainable improvements to poor countries. But all this said, the Gates Foundation does some good work and a lower infant mortality rate is great news.
I wonder if we'll reach a point where the number of people required to support the world is so low that the majority of people don't work.
We already have. Look at the US army, TSA, people on 'disability', the war on drugs, ect. If you put together bullshit jobs, the unemployed, the government supported and the retired (trust funds, investment income, rich spouses, ect) you'll find they're really aren't many people that both work and meaningfully contribute to society.
Work will probably always have more value than non-work for most people, I think. I think most people like working, even if they don't like their current jobs. But if people were freed from the obligation to work, I still think they would do work-like things. Anyway, we are a long way from that! -John
***** I LOVE YOU
***** Venus Project!
FlashGameReviews
I think that's just a difference in standards. Everyone I know who is either unemployed or retired volunteer their time to local libraries, food shelters, clothing banks, etc. I also think that everyone should have a job and that giving your time freely to an organization that needs help should be rewarded. Many people, at least the ones I know, would rather be doing something productive than nothing at all. It's the people who take the opposite approach that hurts.
After getting hooked on crash course world history, I first discovered that you were a novelist when I happened upon one of your novels in my university library. I'm excited to read it!
The formula is rather simple. Investment from rich countries goes into poor countries. The poor countries educate their people better. Educated people make more educated and positive life choices. Therefore, they make more money, provide more innovation, produce less children, get sick less often and educate those around them to do the same. If we all work together, we can turn this trickle into a snowball. If we can snowball this, we can fix poverty on a scale unheard of since the dawn of human civilisation. The method is clear, the solution is easy, all we need to do now is to give the people the tools they need to do the right thing.
Thank you for bringing some light through your videos, it's really easy to forget about all the awesome things that happen around oneself when the news are only bad and worse each day. DFTBA!
Japan used to be "poor", but then through intelligent social, economic, and political policies it quickly began to compete with already extremely rich countries.
Japan was a global power before WWII. And much of its' positive changes are a result of American and Allied Occupation after the war. It didn't get there alone. However, socially, they are still relatively backwards, most notable in how the nation still wreaks of xenophobia.
When? Before the "opening" of Japan by Perry? Japan was one of the first non-Western nations to industrialize. They were a relatively powerful and rich nation for over a hundred years. This can be seen by their victory over a European power (albeit not the most powerful nation Europe had ever produced) in the Russo-Japanese War.
I guess it may have become "poor" after WWII, but the US and the whole "adopt, adapt, adept" strategy quickly rebuilt the nation (so that 1) It wouldn't be communist, 2) To make sure they would not become antagonistic again, 3) To become economic partners, 4) To maintain military bases etc).
I don't think Japan can really complain of being a poor country. Unequal? Maybe (I wouldn't know). But poor? Probably not.
A better example would be Vietnam. They were a very poor country, but have started to turn things around. Still lots to be done but it's getting better.
If your argument is Japan industrialized and succeeded because of the United States, that shouldn't be a negative point. John himself said the 'wealthier' countries should help weaker ones to see improvement in the world.
Japan did not need help from the US before WWII, they industrialized mostly on their own. They were highly nationalistic and xenophobic, so Japan did not open itself up to trade easily (except for to the dutch in Nagasaki). Japan adopted good policies, and they industrialized using their own resources in an effort to not end up like China, Vietnam, India, or Africa. Unfortunately for Japan the west did not enjoy their expansion into China, Korea, etc. before and during WWII.
Thank you so much for talking about good news in this and another video shortly before this one. I'd been getting very depressed due to recent evening news, which even if it is frequently depressing, and often inane, I still think is important to watch.
Yay!!! Why no party poppers? This progress deserves party poppers!
Also, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation may have the best mission statement, but the Foundation to Decrease World Suck has the best name.
john brasilians hère don't read as much so it's nice to hear that that many over brasilians bought your book as well
Guys, I'm both Norwegian and American, how come only ~4% of my duel citizen taxes are going to people who don't get to experience the awesomeness of either of my countries?
Nothing is preventing you from donating more. I'd prefer to donate on my own accord and to entities of my choice rather than relying on government administered foreign aid.
mazdaspeed miata I never said that I don't donate. Mostly I donate my time but I also keep philanthropy a a budgeted in expenditure.
My point wasn't that I don't or cant help more on my own, rather, that I feel what I pay in isn't used properly... namely by the American side... who still can't get healthcare right and then gets mad at me because it thinks Norwegian healthcare isn't good enough. Mostly because of the 6 month rule, but I digress.
I'm rambling aren't I?
I was in my media studies class this week when I noticed that "The Fault in Our Stars" was being recommended... in a fashion magazine. My first reaction was "Rwar, this magazine degrades the beauty and quality of the book! I am a giant squid of anger" but after cooling down a bit I realized... Personal development is a lot like money. Just because you don't have a lot of it shouldn't mean you don't get the right to increase your share of it. So good on you, Grazia, for recommending a wonderful book, and good on you John for being loved in every corner of the magazine industry. DFTBA
"It is not fair Bill Gates gets to be a millionaire *and* a good writer".
Fucking hell I know that feeling.
Your optimism is catchy. Sometimes I need a world doesn't suck video.
I felt obligated to research (pft, I mean google) the UK's foreign aid spending and it turns out we made it a target to increase that spending to 0.7% of GNI (we also achieved that last year). That sounds pretty poor to me, I am disappointed!
To make matters worse there was quite a lot of negative feedback about the increase, about how foreign aid spending was going up while other spending was being decreased, and how all this money was being sent abroad, and the usual kind of England-First rhetorical nonsense we've seen far too much of recently.
But the Government did it anyway. Which gives me some hope that they're not all evil...
Yes unfortunately the prominence of UKIP these days, as an alternative to the 'big three', is bringing about ridiculous negativity around these issues. Thankfully they aren't in power though, I can only imagine what would happen to foreign aid spending if UKIP were in government!
I was totally expecting a reunion video today. And then I was disappointed and wasted the first run through of this video looking for Hank. When I watched it again I realized this was so much more interesting. Thanks John!
Your reunion video wish will be fulfilled in the fullness of time. -John
I figured. Patience is a virtue and all that :) Thanks and tell Bill and Melinda thanks as well, since you're such good friends.
OMG HE MENTIONED NORWAY
We're famous now :D
I am brazilian and read your book! I am so glad with the thank you and see the world is getting better with the poor.
Funfact: in christmas, all I saw in the bookstores was "A culpa é das estrelas" to sell and evebody was buying it and want more books from the author John Green. Congrats!
Bill is one of the few "1%" that actually made his own money and give back the money he made to not just the people that give him the money but to people that actually need it. And for those reasons he is awesome.
John, I am incredibly inspired by your dedication to educating others about issues like these. We need more people like you!
all the best
...where ARE you?
Totally did not process the background change until this comment. And I agree, WHERE O.o
I am inside of an easter egg. (I am on vacation.) -John
***** You vacation in easter eggs.
Now THAT is living.
***** "I am on vacation," John says as he works during his "vacation".
its true, i have NEVER seen a "internet thing" (idek) become so popular in Brazil! Like every single girl in school was reading this book a while back! And its freaking awesome, everytime I see the book pop up I just giggle because its so awesome!
You butchering the portuguese was adorable please do it again!
Before watching this video, I really believed that as child deaths decreased, population growth would increase. That didn't mean I thought we should kill all the children or let them die from TB or polio. It just messed with my views on abortion. So thanks for introducing this to me. I guess I need to do a little more research
I have so many emotions (positive ones) when I watch your videos but in short, you're my favorite person. Thank you for fighting the suck.
I mean J.K. Rowling is a good writer and a billionaire. :p
but shes a billionaire because she's a good writer...sooo
She gives most of it to charity so she's a multimillionaire. She would be in the billion if she kept more of it.
True dat!
thegingergamer
and a Billionaire.
Well I'd say, she is a good story-teller, not a very good writer. But yes I agree with Noreen Efron
Such optimism recently in all the Vlogbrothers videos is making me happy dance! :D
It's great to see that developing countries are, well, developing, but there's another myth I've been told since I was a kid and I'm not sure if it's true: "There aren't nearly enough resources on Earth for everyone to live like a developed country"
that's kind of true, depending on how you define a developed country. the GDP per capita of the entire world was 10,170.68 USD in 2012, so if you shared out all of the world's wealth equally, everyone would recieve $10170.68. so everyone's wealth would be somewhere between the average for mexico and the average for turkey. most people living in developed countries would be significantly poorer. Of course, this assumes redistributing the wealth doesn't cost anything and that it has no effect on the world's economy.
With that said, some countries have gone from being developing countries to developed countries. Hong Kong and Singapore were both classed as developing countries until 1997.
Niall W
Let's be happy then that the assumption you speak of is untrue!
Invective
Yes, because the economy is not a zero-sum game. If poor countries get richer, they'll GDPs will increase, leading to a larger global GDP per capita.
I don't have the time to get deep into it right now, but I may come back after lunch... basically, although resources are finite, the population will most likely stabilise between 11 and 15 billion, and recycling vs new methods of extraction vs as of yet unseen scientific discoveries, make it unlikely that we will reach a crisis point where we cannot all live well. Just one brief illustration:
1 billion people are deemed overweight or obese. 1 billion people are starving. That is showing there is no shortage of food, just failed distribution.
Ok, I have a mo, so if you are interested here's the argument in brief:
Technology will overcome most resource based obstacles:
Water: Desalinasitation, water harvesting, grey water use, cleaning and preservation will easily cover our needs globally as we develop, bearing in mind the earth is well over 2/3 water or something like that.
Food: EU crop yields average 6* more than the US due to intensification methods that are not necessarily needed in the US because the land is larger. However, the US produces 1/3 global grain... with the intensification methods, they could provide 2* the global grain consumption on the same land.
Also a lot of land is being lost to bio-ethanol subsidies which drive up food prices and will be redundant in the coming decades, freeing up lots of land.
Energy: There will be more and more innovative ways that will see off oil in time, but currently if you're worried about oil, then consider that the wells that we have closed are still 60% full... it's just that extraction methods 50 years ago only had 40% efficiency. Now new methods like fracking can reopen closed wells and ensure energy security for DECADES while we look for new sources.
Wood: We can grow trees
Metals: Recycling is becoming more and more effective and efficient. Most of the metal not in construction is now in rubbish heaps... as a result sometime we will be able to recycle these materials very efficiently and rotate waste, which when the population stabilises will be more than enough to provide the worlds technology.
This is of course disregarding the environment, however, technology tends to become more efficient and cleaner over time, as does development and nature can naturally heal once we've got over oil, though it will take a couple of hundred years, it will have little impact on human development.
I'm so glad that you're raising awareness of issues like this.
JOHN! NEXT QUESTION TUESDAY! How long did it take you to write FIOS? Your other books?
OH MY GOD IT'S A YEAR LATER AND I KNOW YOU!!
Whoah...
Garrett Robinson Dude, I'm form 2015, I need to tell you some things.
1.) Say out of West Africa
2.) Tell someone to start worrying about ISIS
3.) The Pats win the Superbowl- so bet a bunch of money on them
4.) At some point this year there will be race riots and an anti-vaccine movement, basically we revert to the 1960's with Tumblr
4.) Tell someone to start worrying about Ted Cruz- he takes over NASA
Uplifting as always.
Yes they are. As long as we, the industrialized of the world, continue to perpetuate dependency theory, the poor will stay poor.
I know this video is 5 years old, but I’m so glad that this video exists. My life feels like it’s falling all to shit (it may not be, but it feels that way all the time), but hearing that bad things were happening less 5 years ago than they had in the previous 100 years or so made me feel much better and I’m so happy. I’m also a lil drunk, but imma keep living and that’s been a hard decision today so good on you nerdfighteria:)
i wonder if we invested in the youth and the poor here in usa, would we be better off down the road????
Thank you Mr Green!! The Australian government is promising foreign aid cuts which is very upsetting. I'm going to send Bill and Melinda's article to my local member.
Basically this new government of ours, by cutting funding where it matters, is suck itself. Though not to say the Labor reign was too fantastic either.
WHAT IS THIS STRANGE ROOM YOU ARE VLOGGING IN
hes inside an easter egg
I am "on vacation," although it is the kind of vacation where you work a normal work day. But NO SNOW. -John
valwow187 Oh man I really am. -John
***** University feels much like a 3-year-long one of those 'vacations', so I know the feeling well! Although I don't even have a nice leaf-print sofa to collapse into between work things.
Only time I am able to focus while learning about finances: when John Green is speaking.
Great video! (:
My dad's reaction to walking into my room while I was watching this video: "Is that Snowden?"
Me: ......noooooooooooo.
Stopping by to say that I was assigned your book to read in my college course. I forget the name of the course at the moment but it has something to do with adolescent literature. Can't wait to read it!