Control of the internet isn't the only hot button issue at this week's UN summit. There is also movement afoot to create digital tax. This movement takes center stage at the U.N. World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis later this week. The UN has already called for voluntary contributions to the “Digital Solidarity Fund,” but some advocates are calling for a more reliable revenue stream, what we would recognize as a tax. This tax would be imposed on wealthy nations, to fund various technology projects in the developing world. The taxation program was first proposed by Senegal and has naturally gained the support of a number of 3rd world nations, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa and France. The idea behind this tax would be to close the digital gap between the West and the developing world.

As we noted this fund is currently a voluntary initiative but given the growing chorus from poor nations, we can most certainly expect a push for a binding international treaty, which will enshrine a digital tax on the productive to augment the unproductive. Given the dire straits some poor nations find themselves in, one must call into question the priorities of those who advocate the Digital Solidarity Fund. Poverty has many causes and certainly there are numerous factors that have depressed conditions in the third world, but the Internet has little to do with any of them. The primary difference between successful developed nations and unproductive third world nations lies in the fact that successful nations are less corrupt, there isn’t constant racial and ethnic violence and for the most part these developed nations don’t have irresponsibly high birth rates. How can a country prosper when corrupt officials have no respect for democratic ideals or the rule of law? How can a country prosper when various ethnic groups waste time and resources harping over petty centuries old grudges? How can a country prosper when women keep having children, when they are incapable of taking care of themselves, placing a further strain on society and the government? How is the Internet going to solve these problems?

Yes the Internet is a wonderful tool and a helpful resource, but just as computer access won’t teach Johnny to read in the local public school, computer access and the Internet won’t solve the problems of the developing world. The Internet is little more than window dressing to hide the real issues. Poverty needn’t be a perpetual condition, however, a number of third world nations have cast off the shackles of the past to emerge as prosperous nations. Korea is a prime example, once a nation of rural peasants, South Korea now has one of the highest living standards in the world. The same can be said of Singapore, Taiwan, Poland and even India is beginning to move in that direction. Even in Sub-Saharan Africa several nations have chosen a path to prosperity, countries like Mauritius, Uganda and Ghana. These nations serve as models for their Africa counterparts as they have embrace democracy and the rule of law, allowing a far greater degree of prosperity than their regional counterparts. Mauritius for example has the region’s highest standard of living, with unemployment below that of some western nations, including Germany and France. These countries have prospered because they share certain fundamental characteristics. They have embraced the rule of law, they respect the concept of representative government and they foster an environment that allows individuals to prosper and innovate.

The world’s poorest nations are still plagued by brutal dictators or perpetual violence and mayhem. These are the real problems in the 3rd world. Prosperity is inexorably linked to social responsibility and civility. These ideals are lacking in many corners of the world and no amount of handouts will change that. Indeed, further taxing the prosperous, further erodes the incentive to be prosperous. Most successful people do not work hard everyday so they can finance someone else’s retirement. What is needed is a work ethic. Why not export that instead?http://business.bostonherald.com/technologyNews/view.bg?articleid=112004&format=&page=1