Didn't somebody say that foreign aid is "taking money from poor people in rich countries and giving it to rich people in poor countries". Just about sums most of it up.

I like the new(ish) Oxfam initiative where you pick what you want to send from their catalogue and it goes directly to the people concerned. Most popular items are, apparently, goats and water filtration units. I'm gonna buy a goat for an African village and call her Mabel.