Tonight 854 million people will go to bed with an empty stomach even though enough food was produced to feed everyone. Aware of this sad reality, Pope Benedict XVI marked today’s World Food Day by urging all countries to recognize food as a universal human right.
..."A sense of solidarity, in which food is considered a universal right without distinction or discrimination, must develop in all the countries of the world," the pontiff said.
He noted that the main causes of food shortages could be traced back to "human behaviour", such as wars and "a general economic and social deterioration".
I can't think of a single person who could sanely argue against this point. Unfortunately there are still parts of the world where certain classes of people are considered to be chattel, unworthy of life. Further, widespread corruption and violence, particularly in many parts of Africa, make getting this available food to those who need it difficult at best and life-threatening in many cases. The problem is not with the farmers a lack of crops or anything of that nature, it is with the murderous thugs who would deny their fellow man even a simple meal for an ounce of hatred or greed. The Pope can't solve this problem all on his own - it is up to us, the laity, to work for a solution one person, one soul at a time.
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