food.... water.... shelter .... and the desire for those you care for to be safe

[DucofWestwood]

i see more suffering than greed in these pictures.  if you don't like the looters, think about the young kids, and give some cash.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/01/haiti_six_days_later.html

[Triple J]

Haiti was 7.0

SF was 7.1


there are reports that 150.000 people are feared dead in Haiti

there were 62 confirmed deaths in sf

I'll agree that Haiti has serious, long-standing problems...but the above comparison means nothing. The recent Haiti EQ was quite a bit different that the SF Loma Prieta one in '89, not to mention building code differences, geologic differences, etc. There easily could have been many more deaths in SF if only a couple minor things were different.

One day relatively soon a country in good shape will have a very high number of casualties from a large EQ (most likely Turkey)...it can happen anywhere really.

That being said..... I cant watch the news and just do nothing.... I gave money to the red cross with the hope it goes to feed a somebody hungry or dig a grave for somebody who deserves a decent send off.  Help for me is blind. If I could go there myself... I'd bring my shovel before I brought my wallet.... but see'n how thats not the case..... we did the lil bit we could do.

Agreed. 

[junior varsity]

Did I hear correctly that this morning around 5am another 6+ hit?

[Triple J]

Did I hear correctly that this morning around 5am another 6+ hit?

Yep...6.1 aftershock.

[LMT]

I won't support the Red Cross. But I am giving a $40 donation to an organization that uses ALL of the money for it's intended purpose.

Why not give to the Red Cross?  Yes, some $$ sent in for specific disasters went into the general fund.  People complain when the RC is not there, complain when they think the RC make the beast with two backss up, and complain that it all takes to long.

In my RC chapter (my employer) we have 80 paid staff, 24  Vista volunteers, 300 language bank vols, over 300 vol teachers, and 2,000+ disaster (local fire, flood, EQ) vols.  The chapters get $$$ when a BIG disaster hits.  The rest of the time people send $, and not a lot of it. 

People gave so much $$$ during Katrina that it could not all be used up in the local theater, so some went to pay for the people that make it all happen.  We did not get raises last year, will not get them this year, and are laying off staff.  Yet when a disaster strike, help is still expected.  People get what they pay for.

So don't give to the Red Cross.  But remember, if your house burns down we will be there right after the fire trucks with offers of shelter, cloths, and a  hot cup of coffee.  All free.

[NAKID]

Many. A great deal of assistance was offered and some was accepted. This is well-documented and easy to confirm.

That's fine, it's just not something I've heard about.

Here's an alternate way of looking at it: every country richer than the US went all-out to help us at those times. What? Did you expect Haiti to send aid workers to NYC?

Not at all.

Are you saying that if a country is too poor to help us out, our response when they have a disaster should be to say "make the beast with two backs 'em?"

Nope, it just seems that we spend more money helping the rest of the world when there is plenty of needy people right here.

The universe doesn't run on a quid pro quo basis.

Never said it did or should...

[Kopfjäger]

Finest Military in the world, to the rescue again. (not like were already spread thin)


And the Pentagon announced that 2,000 more U.S. Marines would be sent to Haiti, adding 11,500 U.S. military personnel already on the ground or on ships offshore â€" a number expected to reach 16,000 by week's end.

[Randimus Maximus]

Nope, it just seems that we spend more money helping the rest of the world when there is plenty of needy people right here.

When you live in one of the wealthiest countries of the world, that's what you do.

Not to say we shouldn't be doing more at home.  And the resources are there, as evidenced by the generosity of the US citizenry we are seeing in assisting Haiti.

[Grampa]

I'll agree that Haiti has serious, long-standing problems...but the above comparison means nothing. The recent Haiti EQ was quite a bit different that the SF Loma Prieta one in '89, not to mention building code differences, geologic differences, etc. There easily could have been many more deaths in SF if only a couple minor things were different.

One day relatively soon a country in good shape will have a very high number of casualties from a large EQ (most likely Turkey)...it can happen anywhere really.

Agreed. 

stop be'n all engineery and shit  with proper facts

[Triple J]

stop be'n all engineery and shit  with proper facts

Sorry man. 

[junior varsity]

it just seems that we spend more money helping the rest of the world when there is plenty of needy people right here.

This is a real problem I have with foreign adoptions. There are unadopted children here that need families. I think it unfairly burdens these kids when a family goes abroad (China) to adopt, especially when the motivation is saving money. Buy a foreign car over an "American" car, fine with me. Buy a foreign kid over one here? I find issue with this. There are other legitimate motivating reasons, but its always hard to see some of these kids here wondering why nobody wants them.

[mstevens]

it just seems that we spend more money helping the rest of the world when there is plenty of needy people right here.

I couldn't agree more. For some reason we seem to be excessively focused on disasters elsewhere and liable to ignore ongoing, real problems right in our midst.

[Grampa]

^ HMRF

He Man Relief Fund

[junior varsity]

[MendoDave]

Why not give to the Red Cross? 

In my RC chapter (my employer) we have 80 paid staff, 24  Vista volunteers, 300 language bank vols, over 300 vol teachers, and 2,000+ disaster (local fire, flood, EQ) vols.  The chapters get $$$ when a BIG disaster hits.  The rest of the time people send $, and not a lot of it. 

People gave so much $$$ during Katrina that it could not all be used up in the local theater, so some went to pay for the people that make it all happen.  We did not get raises last year, will not get them this year, and are laying off staff.  Yet when a disaster strike, help is still expected. 

Because....

http://www.jw-media.org/hti/20100118.htm

And there are no paid volunteers. And this sort of thing goes on all the time.