cheekee.monkee

You'll Think Of Me

2008-07-14T15:13:00.000-04:00

I woke up early this mornin' around 4am
With the moon shinin' bright as headlights on the interstate
I pulled the covers over my head and tried to catch some sleep
But thoughts of us kept keepin' me awake
Ever since you found yourself in someone else's arms
I've been tryin' my best to get along
But that's OK
There's nothin' left to say, but

Take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
Take your space and take your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothin' left to weather
In fact I feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me

I went out drivin', tryin' to clear my head
I tried to sweep out all the ruins that my emotions left
I guess I'm feelin' just a little tired of this
And all the baggage that seems to still exist
It seems the only blessing I have left to my name
Is not knowin' what we could have been
What we should have been
So

Take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
Take your space and take your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothin' left to weather
In fact I feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me

Someday I'm gonna run across your mind
Don't worry, I'll be fine
I'm gonna be alright
While you're sleepin' with your pride
Wishin' I could hold you tight
I'll be over you
And on with my life

So take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothin' left to weather
In fact I feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me

So take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
Take your space and all your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we've got nothin' left to weather
In fact I feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me, yeah

And you're gonna think of me
Oh someday baby, someday

-Keith Urban

for a friend...

2008-04-11T08:21:00.001-04:00

merry christmas, mommy

i cannot say the words i want for you to hear
i hope this little poem makes it all so very clear
each time you look my way it's so plain to see
nobody in your world is more important then me
sometimes your heart is sad for all you cannot give
most important to know, it is for me that you live
all i know about love i have learned from you
my biggest fan, my mommy and my hero too
you worry it's only me and you, but that's okay
you're all that i need, you'll see that some day
you are there for me when i'm not well
got the best mommy as far as i can tell
you'll see, one day i'll grow up, by your side
we'll look at each other with so much pride
because everything i am i owe to you
i think you're better off with me too
and so together through life we shall go
i will love you forever, this you should know.

my anthem

2008-03-03T10:07:00.004-05:00

Stand Back Up
- Sugarland

Go ahead and take your best shot,
Let 'er rip, give it all you've got,
I'm laid out on the floor, but I've been here before,
I may stumble, yeah I might fall,
Only human aren't we all?
I might lose my way, but hear me when I say,

I will stand back up,
You'll know just the moment when I've had enough,
Sometimes I'm afraid, and I don't feel that tough,
But I'll stand back up,

I've been beaten up and bruised,
I've been kicked right off my shoes,
Been down on my knees more times than you'd believe,
When the darkness tries to get me,
There's a light that just won't let me,
It might take my pride, and my tears may fill my eyes,
But I'll stand back up,

I've weathered all these storms,
But I just turn them into wind, so I can fly,
What don't kill you makes you stronger,
When I take my last breath,
That's when I'll just give up,

So, go ahead and take your best shot,
Let 'er rip, give it all you've got,
You might win this round but you can't keep me down,

'Cause I'll stand back up,
And you'll know just the moment when I've had enough,
Sometimes I'm afraid and I don't feel that tough,
But I'll stand back up,

You'll know just the moment when I've had enough,
Sometimes I'm afraid and I don't feel that tough,
But I'll stand back up.

the me you never see

2007-07-22T21:12:00.000-04:00

do you know what it's like to be me
to wait, to wonder to watch and see
lives crumble before you
secrets held within
quick right yourself you're needed again

that girl in the mirror stares back
braces herself, awaits the attack
the hurt rushes in
the tears flow once more
as she frantically races for the door

to run, to hide, to live inside

quickly toss away your pride

the pressure builds

sadness rushes in and takes hold

heart sputters, dies, goes cold.

and now a post...

2007-04-10T17:33:00.000-04:00

the sting of regret
the horror of defeat
an impenetrable
sadness takes hold

wait - step back
clear your head
the big picture
holds the lesson

learn from this
gain strength
establish your
perspective

dissapointment

2007-04-10T17:21:00.000-04:00

a definition: the emotion felt when a strongly held expectation of something desired is not met.

expectations

2007-04-10T17:12:00.000-04:00

a definition: what is considered the most likely to happen. An expectation, which is a belief that is centred on the future, may or may not be realistic. A less advantageous result gives rise to the emotion of disappointment. If something happens that is not at all expected it is a surprise. An expectation about the behavior or performance of another person, expressed to that person, may have the nature of a strong request, or an order.

riding the rut

2006-11-13T13:20:00.000-05:00

as the weight of horror smashes me down the depths of sadness do me in. I'm feeling real sorry for myself, which frustrates me. i just want it all to go away. i don't want to BE a survivor of childhood sexual abuse anymore. yeah okay so we all have our crosses to bear but can i carry someone's cross for a bit? mine has become heavy and i feel i cannot carry it any longer.

i'm tired of always reaching out but then hearing the sound of the wind pass by me as i fall - alone. why would it be any other way though? we are all about me.

damn i'm angry today. at nothing in particular. i feel like standing up and screaming. all these fucking expectations thrown at me. fuck expectations, it only leads to dissapointment. maybe it's time i stop living up to all these expectations. maybe it's my turn to stop giving a shit about everyone.

nobody really gives a fuck about anybody else anyway. it doesn't matter what you do for people, it doesn't matter how long you stay like a fucking stupid loyal dog - nothing is appreciated. be a better person? why bother?

in times of need...

2006-11-08T14:48:00.000-05:00

I wish you and your family the outmost happiness and health.
I hope for you continued strength and good nature
I give you to all the love and encouragement you need.

For this journey may be long
For life maybe unfair or harsh
For fear and pain lurk evermore

Family will gather round and rejoice
Love will be your eternal strength
Friendship guides you through sorrow

And me, my friend will have happy wishes
And you, my friend will know my loyalty
And he, will rise, stonger then before.

- Mona (11/08/2006)

LONG WAY TO HAPPY

2006-11-06T11:44:00.000-05:00

One night to you
Lasted six weeks for me
Just a bitter little pill now
Just to try to go to sleep
No more waking up to innocence
Say hello to hesitance
To everyone I meet
Thanks to you years ago
I guess I'll never know
What love means to me but oh
I'll keep on rolling down this road
But I've got a bad, bad feeling

It's gonna take a long time to love
It's gonna take a lot to hold on
It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah
Left in the pieces that you broke me into
Torn apart but now I've got to
Keep on rolling like a stone
Cause it's gonna be a long long way to happy

Left my childhood behind
In a roll away bed
Everything was so damn simple
Now I'm losing my head
Trying to cover up the damage
And pad out all the bruises
Do you know I had it
So it didn't hurt to lose it
Didn't hurt to lose it
No but oh
I'll keep on rolling down this road
But I've got a bad, bad feeling

It's gonna take a long time to love
It's gonna take a lot to hold on
It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah
Left in the pieces that you broke me into
Torn apart but now I've got to
Keep on rolling like a stone
Cause it's gonna be a long long way

Now I'm numb as hell and I can't feel a thing
But don't worry about regret or guilt cause I never knew your name
I just want to thank you
Thank you
From the bottem of my heart
For all the sleepless nights
And for tearing me apart yeah yeah

It's gonna take a long time to love
It's gonna take a lot to hold on
It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah
Left in the pieces that you broke me into
Torn apart but now I've got to
Keep on rolling like a stone
Cause it's gonna be a long long way

It's gonna take a long time to love
It's gonna take a lot to hold on
It's gonna be a long, long, long, long way to happy, yeah
Left in the pieces that you broke me into
Torn apart but now I've got to
Keep on rolling like a stone
Cause it's gonna be a long long way to happy

-Pink

at one

2006-10-27T08:40:00.000-04:00

here we wonder
there we wane
sit back relax
let peace
take over again

circle of friends

2006-10-16T09:30:00.000-04:00

Me, I'm a part of your circle of friends
and we notice you don't come around
Me, I think it all depends on you touching ground with us.
But, I quit. I give up.
Nothing's good enough for anybody elseit seems.
And I quit. I give up.
Nothing's good enough for anybody else it seems.
And being alone is the best way to be.
When I'm by myself it's the best way to be.
When I'm all alone it's the best way to be.
When I'm by myself nobody else can say goodbye.
Everything is temporary anyway.
When the streets are wet -- the color slip into the sky.
But I don't know why that means you and I are-
that means you and....
I quit -- I give up.
Nothin's good enough for anybody else it seems.
But I quit. I give up.
Nothing's good enough for anybody else it seems.
And being alone is the best way to be.
When I'm by myself it's the best way to be.
When I'm all alone it's the best way to be.
When I'm by myself nobody else can say...
Me, I'm a part of your circle of friends
and we notice you don't come around.

--Edie Brickell

the stars

2006-10-15T00:31:00.000-04:00

this is my horoscope for today ... it ties in sweetly to my previous post .. BTW my friend is also an aries!

Aries (March 21 — April 20)

Since nothing in this world ever stays in balance, it leaves us no choice but to accept a state of perpetual imbalance. Having recently swung to one extreme, events are causing you to lurch back in the opposite direction. Stick with it. Stability will return.

time marches on

2006-10-14T23:16:00.000-04:00

okay so i have this best friend, we've been best friends since high school ... she lives in the U.S. with her family (consisting of husband, son, unborn daughter and dog). i love her like nobody's business. our lives are in such different places though. that's no problem, it happens right? well it's all okay until i come to visit - the problem is that they are all in bed by 10pm and i'm usually going out then, hey i'm a single 30-something chick - this is the life i choose. the problem is that i'm bored out of my freakin mind when i'm here because she is usually working all day or at the very least on the phone with work. so the evenings give way to a great dinner and maybe some cards, that's the excitement of it!

i should be happy just to see her, i know but i'm not anymore. i know it's selfish but sometimes i'd really just like to hang out with her. without all the distractions. that would be possible if she ever came to visit me, oh wait there was that one time...

it bothers me more then i have ever admitted that she thinks because i'm single i should be leaving my life for a week to come here and watch hers. it sounds horrible and i feel about that guilty but it's gotta stop! i'm starting to become resentful of it all.

oh yeah it's best when i visit and their fighting. i'm not sure which is worse the fighting or the over indulgent making up; where everything is about them and oh wait here i am on the outside. it's just become too much and it needs to stop.

she's having a baby in november and i'll visit for the weekend then, but after that ... the ball is in her court. i won't be back for quite awhile. i feel that we're growing apart and i'm not sure there's much that can be done about it right now. she needs to be here for her family but i don't. if when i came here we chatted or did something; maybe that wouldn't be so bad but most of my time is spent with either her husband or her son (or both) and the rest of the time is spent with the whole family. it's not fun anymore. okay it never really was but i love her.

i'm not saying the frienship is ending because it's not - i'm saying it's changing. these are all her changes but somehow i'm suppose to make up for them. perhaps that's what a bestfriend is for but 5 years later - i'm about done.

“True friendship is when two friends can walk in opposite directions, yet remain side by side.”

i added the above quote .. because it is exactly how i feel right now. we are walking in very opposite directions but still i will not leave her nor will she leave me. i need to live my life for me. she knows something is changing as well, she has become jealous and somewhat concerned that i'm done with her. however, instead of enjoying the time we could have spent together; she was doing everything other then that. whatever game we were playing is not a game either of us are going to win. i'm sad and it feels like even when we're in the same room we are miles apart.

greet the day

2006-10-13T08:30:00.000-04:00

Almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
--Steve Jobs

...very well put, it's really too bad we don't enjoy what we have when we have it! always too busy trying to figure out what else we could have, why we don't have it and how we can go about getting it! what a complete waste of time. if you do nothing - always enjoy the people you are surrounded by; there will come a time they will not be around.

my niece explained to me that her biggest worry is that she is fat. okay so she's turning 13 and is nowhere near even chubby. why is that the biggest concern of a girl her age? i guess that's what comes of living in a world of excess. we have no basic needs to concern ourselves with any more. no fields to sow. we are living in a world of too much: too much time, too much food, too much money, too much things ... we are losing track at a rapid rate of what's important.

if you do anything today - take stock of what/who you really couldn't live without and act accordingly. admittedly, this is hard to remember every minute of every day but i try to remember this whenever i can.

as the wagon arrives

2006-10-04T20:18:00.000-04:00

so here i am 33 and still the monsters hold me tight. just when i think i've broken free enough to move on. they sit in waiting for just one weakness, one small window to be cracked.

i guess if i weren't 33 i could still blame them - i can't. it's all on me now and i'm just not strong enough sometimes. all it takes a marginal images of doubt and my self-esteem already slipping; slips, falls and makes a fool of itself. so needy. never enough love to combat the violence i inflict upon myself.

i know better - i do. i've said all the things to young girls. expecting them to believe something i cannot! it's hard to know how to build a self when that self was rendered damaged so long before it ever had a chance to develop. who would i have been? i don't care. it made me who i am today and so much of that is good. it's the yearly lapses that just take hold. always around the same time and i'm also caught unaware. how is that possible? every year i think - no, i think i'm good to go - no sign of pain and torment and then they arrive in their wagon of guilt and shame, kicking up dust laced with anger and self-hate.

i never ask for help - my job is to help. who can i ask? who wants to listen to all this bullshit?! i don't anymore. i just want it all to go away. i want to wake up tomorrow and not be an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse. can't i just have that? just that! i don't need to be rich or pretty or fall in love even or have kids or have a house or have much of anything but just that one thing i know i can never have...that's all that i desire. to wake up, look in the mirror and not see that little girl that was raped, abused and left. i was like that old dirty rag that well you may as well use one more time - it's already damaged. that's me damaged

on into the abyss

2006-10-04T09:15:00.000-04:00

the darkness surrounds me
threatens to swallow me whole
to take to hold of my senses

the struggle has worn on me
once a fight of brute strength
a mental match of sorts unfolds

my anger the king
my pain the queen
my confidence the rook

i teeter and i totter
one mood to the next
on into the abyss

Meditation of the Day

2006-09-19T15:36:00.000-04:00

I am building myself. There are many roots. I plant, I pick, I prune. I consume."
--Wendy Rose, HOPI/MIWOK

The most sacred thing on this Mother Earth is life. My life on this earth is governed by God's laws, principles and spiritual values. These things are my roots. Let me see Your gifts of growing and becoming a spiritual warrior. Make my strength based on values - spiritual values; on principles and laws, the laws of God that really run the universe. We need to realize the seeds we plant in the spring will be what shows up in our summer season of growth and will be the fruits that we will harvest in our fall season. We really have a lot to do with what shows up in our lives.

a report from the wayside

2006-09-12T12:21:00.000-04:00

i'm not posting...it comes in fits. i seem to have lost my voice for the time being, it's been too long. i need to force myself back out of my head. are my thoughts, history, etc... a quaility public read; naw not really. but this is not about y'all.

i'm standing up and back from all that has happened in the last bit of 2005 and all that has transpired in 2006. so much beyond my control. that's what about life, i find hard - my niece is out of control, my sister spiraling into a depression she doesn't seem to realize she is in, nor does she realize she is taking her kids down with her. abusive live-in who's absolute uselessness has got to win him some sort of anti-award.

why am i so frustrated with things the way they are? i never have an accurate guage on how to judge how others feel about me. it has always has been a struggle for me to figure that out. i have to rely on what i'm told and what happens when you're never told? why do i care about it at all? i don't fuckin' know!

being alone is the best place to be (Edie Brickell) ... i'm at odds with myself; it's much more simple for me to be alone but something in me craves peoples attention and affections, almost like there's never enough of it. but i don't want to seem desperate so i hold it all in and back. no wonder my stomach is a mess!

the above bit was all from a time long ago .. however the setiment is the same still. i am a little more at peace BUT the same frustrations exsist. rather then write a whole new post (which i really need to get back to) i'm just going to continue on with this one.

work is overwhelming at best and my social life is leaving me feeling very unsocial. romantic life ... after 7 years it's finally alive! the interest is there ... but that's as far as i've gotten thus far. i'm still very tentative but it's a start.

i feel like i'm on the outside and everyone is having a merry ol' party without me. the worst part is i know it's all my own doing. i just don't allow myself to get close to or trust these days ... this is not helpful when dating. here is where the rebuilding starts...

random meditation

2006-05-14T23:02:00.000-04:00

If we force our breath to be too long or too short
we're not balanced, the mind won't be at peace.
Don't get concerned over how long or short,
weak or strong it is, just note it.
Know it's there.
Simply let it be.

Vipassana

as it lays upon me

2006-05-14T22:37:00.000-04:00

the virtue of truth unfolds
the river swells with hunger
as the shore envelopes,
caresses then returns it.

Live and let be!

2006-04-05T14:30:00.000-04:00

taken from the headlines....

Tories to hold free vote on same-sex marriage
Updated Wed. Apr. 5 2006 12:43 PM ET

Canadian Press

OTTAWA — The federal Conservatives say they will follow through on a campaign promise to hold a free vote in the House of Commons on same-sex marriage.

While the issue was not mentioned in Tuesday's throne speech, Justice Minister Vic Toews says the vote will be held "sooner rather than later."

The Tory campaign platform says if MPs vote to overturn same-sex marriage, a bill will be introduced to restrict marriage to unions between men and women.

A gay rights lobby group is urging the Tories to drop the plan.

Canadian for Equal Marriage says most Canadians feel the issue should be put to rest.

Already? It seems the Conversatives do not plan to hold office for long. Is this really what we need to be focusing on? We have troops dying in a war we have no business being in, full cultures are being wiped out, children are dying in a horrible violent way, our climate is stuggling for breath. And here stands our government making true on the ONE PROMISE we would like the to leave be. When did government stop being ruled by the people? Did we ever truly get a say?

Why do we care so freakin much what people do in their beds? Why is this an issue? Live free as long as you hurt noone. Why do we NEED to define the term marriage? Who really gives a shit?! The times they are a changin, intolerance needs to be illiminated and nothing more.

Updates will be posted as they happen.

Bill Gates Speaks

2006-04-04T10:54:00.000-04:00

Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this!

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The
world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE
you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high
school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you
earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your
Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they
called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't
whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring
as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills,
cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool
you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from
the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the close
in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. DO that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

Is morality God-given or simply human intuition?

2006-01-12T11:38:00.000-05:00

It's not blasphemous to believe the ability to tell right from wrong is the result of the millions of years our ancestors lived as social mammals, some academics say

By Marc Hauser and Peter Singer

Tuesday, Jan 10, 2006,Page 9

Is religion necessary for morality? Many people consider it outrageous, perhaps even blasphemous, to deny the divine origin of morality. Either some divine being crafted our moral sense, or we picked it up from the teachings of organized religion. Either way, we need religion to curb nature's vices. Paraphrasing Katherine Hepburn in the movie The African Queen, religion allows us to rise above wicked old Mother Nature, handing us a moral compass.

Yet problems abound for the view that morality comes from God. One problem is that we cannot, without lapsing into tautology, simultaneously say that God is good, and that he gave us our sense of good and bad. For then we are simply saying that God meets God's standards.

A second problem is that there are no moral principles that are shared by all religious people, regardless of their specific beliefs, but by no agnostics and atheists. Indeed, atheists and agnostics do not behave less morally than religious believers, even if their virtuous acts rest on different principles. Non-believers often have as strong and sound a sense of right and wrong as anyone, and have worked to abolish slavery and contributed to other efforts to alleviate human suffering.

The opposite is also true. Religion has led people to commit a long litany of horrendous crimes, from God's command to Moses to slaughter the Midianites -- men, women, boys, and non-virginal girls -- through the Crusades, the Inquisition, innumerable conflicts between Sunni and Shiite Muslims, and suicide bombers convinced that martyrdom will lead them straight to paradise.

The third difficulty for the view that morality is rooted in religion is that some elements of morality seem to be universal, despite sharp doctrinal differences among the world's major religions. In fact, these elements extend even to cultures like China, where religion is less significant than philosophical outlooks like Confucianism.

Perhaps a divine creator handed us these universal elements at the moment of creation. But an alternative explanation, consistent with the facts of biology and geology, is that over millions of years we have evolved a moral faculty that generates intuitions about right and wrong.

For the first time, research in the cognitive sciences, building on theoretical arguments emerging from moral philosophy, has made it possible to resolve the ancient dispute about the origin and nature of morality.

Consider the following three scenarios. For each, fill in the blank space with "obligatory," "permissible," or "forbidden."

1. A runaway boxcar is about to run over five people walking on the tracks. A railroad worker is standing next to a switch that can turn the boxcar onto a side track, killing one person, but allowing the five to survive. Flipping the switch is ______.

2. You pass by a small child drowning in a shallow pond, and you are the only one around. If you pick up the child, she will survive and your pants will be ruined. Picking up the child is _______.

3. Five people have just been rushed into a hospital in critical condition, each requiring an organ to survive. There is not enough time to request organs from outside the hospital, but there is a healthy person in the hospital's waiting room. If the surgeon takes this person's organs, he will die, but the five in critical care will survive. Taking the healthy person's organs is _______.

If you judged case 1 as permissible, case 2 as obligatory, and case 3 as forbidden, then you are like the 1,500 subjects around the world who responded to these dilemmas on a Web-based moral sense test (www.moral.wjh.harvard.edu). If morality is God's word, atheists should judge these cases differently from religious people, and their responses should rely on different types of justification.

For example, because atheists supposedly lack a moral compass, they should be guided by pure self-interest and walk by the drowning child. But there were no statistically significant differences between subjects with or without religious backgrounds, with approximately 90 percent of subjects saying that it is permissible to flip the switch on the boxcar, 97 percent saying that it is obligatory to rescue the baby, and 97 percent saying that is forbidden to remove the healthy man's organs.

When asked to justify why some cases are permissible and others forbidden, subjects are either clueless or offer explanations that cannot account for the relevant differences. Importantly, those with a religious background are as clueless or incoherent as atheists.

These studies provide empirical support for the idea that, like other psychological faculties of the mind, including language and mathematics, we are all endowed with a moral faculty that guides our intuitive judgments of right and wrong. These intuitions reflect the outcome of millions of years in which our ancestors have lived as social mammals, and are part of our common inheritance.

Our evolved intuitions do not necessarily give us the correct or consistent answers to moral dilemmas. What was good for our ancestors may not be good today. But insights into the changing moral landscape, in which issues like animal rights, abortion, euthanasia and international aid have come to the fore, have not come from religion, but from careful reflection on humanity and what we consider a life well lived.

In this respect, it is important for us to be aware of the universal set of moral intuitions so that we can reflect on them and, if we choose, act contrary to them. We can do this without blasphemy, because it is our own nature, not God, that is the source of our morality.

Marc Hauser is professor of psychology and director of the Primate Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory at Harvard University. Peter Singer is professor of bioethics at Princeton University.

Poverty Stats

2006-01-11T16:09:00.000-05:00

According to NetAid, over a billion people, or roughly one in six, live in extreme poverty. Extreme poverty is defined as living on less than US$1 a day.

The World Bank goes on to define moderate poverty as basic subsistence living, on $1 to $2 a day. All told, nearly half the world's population lives in poverty -- that's 2.8 billion people living on less than two dollars a day.

Some other facts to keep in mind:

Each year over 8 million people die because they are simply too poor to stay alive.

More than 800 million people go hungry every day.

The gross domestic product of the poorest 48 nations is less than the wealth of the world's three richest people.

Thirty-thousand children die every day due to hunger and treatable illnesses.

6 million children die every year before their fifth birthday, as a result of malnutrition.

You can find detailed poverty assessments of specific geographical regions on the World Bank's PovertyNet. And if you're interested in learning how the World Bank comes up with its poverty statistics, take a look at PovcalNet.

The goal of the Millennium Campaign is to reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day by 2015. And the aim of the One Campaign is to direct an additional 1 percent of the United States budget towards eradicating global poverty.

taken from Yahoo Answers...Wednesday January 11, 2006