In Haiti mother nature has just reminded us again of how diminutive the human race is in the face of her power; the death and devastation is almost beyond comprehension; tens of thousands perhaps dead in the space of a few seconds; here in Britain we struggle to imagine what has happened. We have disasters for sure; floods; explosions; landslides etc. but nothing which comes anywhere near this; some will go there to help; some will organize aid; some will send donations and a great many people of all religions and none will pray for them; a disaster of this magnitude touches us all.
It seems desperately unjust that the country which is described as the poorest in the world should be visited by such ruin and death; the people of Haiti are completely stunned but already they are showing signs of fighting back which is beyond doubt heroic. It will be many years before people’s lives are in any way normal and for some that will never happen; the loss of family members is devastating especially children.
The world community or the “family of man” which we all belong to is making a huge effort to assist with the tragedy and we can all do something; most of us will only be able to make a financial contribution; I expect people in their millions to do this as I will. We are often told by aid workers that every little helps and there has never been a time when that mantra was as important as it is now; no one need worry about the amount donated because there will be millions who will donate small amounts and they will amount to a huge sum so go for it.
I have been contacted by Douglas Alexander MP; Minister for International Investment who has asked me to make a donation which I will be doing; the way of doing this is shown below.
Just visit - www.dec.org.uk or call 0370 60 60 900.
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8 comments:
Well of course we will all be giving. Your sanctimonious rubbish only grates over this. Read your self 'a great many people of all religions and none will pray for them...'? Aye right! What would I pray for when I don't believe in any of the rubbish about god or allah or whatever. But I tell you what, I believe in compassion and charity and caring about my fellow 'man',bugger all to do with praying!
(Anonymous) 15/01/10
“I believe in compassion and charity and caring about my fellow man”
You could have fooled me.
In terms of a gratuitous over reaction mixed with bizarre and inexplicable nastiness you have won first prize. You sound like you have some serious problems.
If any good at all can come from this awful situation is that people might begin to question why Haiti has been in such a mess for so long even before this earthquake.
Obviously the priority right now is get humanitarian aid in but I hope that people won't simply forget Haiti once the news moves on. The destructive outside intereference that country has been subjected to over the centuries is shameful.
Terry,
I agree 100 percent, I have already made a donation online. what does worry me though, I hope the Nats don't send Fiona Hyslop to "Haiti" that's the last thing these God loving people need.
Tosh Kones.
(Anonymous) 16/01/10
I confess that my Knowledge of Haiti was sketchy; I was aware of the slave’s revolt; the poverty; the disease and its proximity to Cuba and America.
Also the corruption and the larger than life and completely terrifying regime of the Duvalier family; Papa and Baby Doc. I could never understand why they were never the target of “Regime Change”.
I agree that this disaster is despite everything an opportunity to put Haiti on to a safer and more flourishing future; the thought of rebuilding and continuing as before is anathema to me.
(Anonymous) 11:25
I’m sure Ms. Hyslop will donate as well.
Cllr,
A sketchy knowledge of Haiti is nothing to be asamed of. Our media pretty much ignore it until things like this happen. The American and Canadian left tend to be much better informed than the UK left.
If you are interested in finding out more you should read
The Black Jacobins by CLR James
The Uses of Haiti by Paul Farmer
Damning The Flood by Peter Hallward
This is also a good intro (by Peter Hallward), though it's a short article and light on detail
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jan/13/our-role-in-haitis-plight
(Anonymous) 17/01/10
Thank you for your comment; I do intend to read more. I remember reading the cricket columns of CLR James in the Guardian I wasn’t a cricket fan but I was attracted to the column because I was aware of James being a Marxist historian; he helped me to understand and enjoy cricket. God I’m getting old.
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