The Live 8 "global concert event", intended to raise awareness of the struggle of tens of millions of people in the world's poorest nations, just to survive, brought millions into the streets to hear concerts in 9 nations, and tens of millions of viewers on TV and online together to hear its message. The message was succinct and hopeful: Make Poverty History.

During the performance by Pink Floyd of their song "Money", at London's Hyde Park, the marquee over the stage read: "NO MORE EXCUSES". The event was organized according the spirit of activist musicians like Bob Geldof (the organizer) and Bono of U2: that spirit puts the practical result of informing the public and the pressure put on governments to act on a large scale ahead of mere publicity, ahead of any single issue or political viewpoint.

The idea behind Live 8 is more than a repeat of Live Aid, twenty years ago: this time, the planners and participants are hoping to influence world opinion, to mobilize political factions in the Group of 8 wealthy industrialized nations, so that when their leaders meet next week in Edinburgh, Scotland, they will make aggressive commitments to ending poverty in Africa. The ONE movement wants the US government to commit an additional 1% of its overall federal budget to eradicating poverty, HIV infection, AIDS-related deaths and deaths from preventable causes such as hunger and preventable diseases.

The event has been interlaced with advertisements serving as public awareness spurs, repeating the horrifying figure that one person dies every 3 seconds from extreme poverty, be it from starvation, from AIDS or from other preventable and/or highly treatable diseases. Pop stars, artists, political and religious leaders, as well as UN Sec. General Kofi Annan, and South Africa's great leader and first post-apartheid president, Nelson Mandela, lent their voices to the chorus of organizations and activists asserting that it is well within the reach of the wealthiest governments on earth to end the global pandemic of unsustainable extreme poverty, starting with aggressive expenditures to assist the most at-risk parts of Africa.

For more on today's events: Guardian.co.uk
Live 8 Online: www.Live8Live.com
The ONE homepage: ONE.org