Maria

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Maria

Life & Events > I AM Beyond Angry!
 

I AM Beyond Angry!

I am beyond angry. One year anniversary of the most horrendous and tragic event in Haiti and you might as well say NOTHING has been done towards the re-building efforts in the city's capital, Port au Prince.

Only 5 percent of the rubble has been removed and millions of people are still living in tent cities because there is no land to build their homes on.

The world ''donated'' millions of dollars of aid and yet less than 50 percent of it has been received. The United States has only given 10 percent of what was promised, apparently 90 percent is  still locked in congress.

I am beyond anger, I am totally disgusted.  In my disgust I begin to make assumptions that may or may not be rational, I dont know.

My first one is, if this was a country where the majority of the population or the community is white, would so much more have been accomplished by now?  Ludicrous question?  Think about it.

Many major donors are being choosy as to what their donations pay for...they dont want their donations spent on ''unglamorous'' projects like clearing rubble. This gives me a sense or a feeling that this country is being seen as a people of diminished worth by comparison to a country of a predominantly white population.

Many will accuse me of once again using the ''race card'' but you know what, using the race card when it is obvious is reasonable under the circumstances, dont you think?

They've had funds to hold a presidential election, and yet no funds to assist their people by providing the most basic in human needs like a home, adequate sanitation, adequate medical and social welfare needs. So much so that cholera is now running rife in the community and has killed countless people.

This is a disaster which killed more than 200,000...estimates are claiming as many as 300,000 but nobody knows for sure. How bad is that, when the country or the powers that be dont even have a system of recording the deaths or at least attempting to record who is dead and who isnt.  What a sad, sad situation when human beings can cease to exist and there seems to be no ''caring'' or a severe lack of obligation or responsibility by the country's government.

When the tragedy first happened, many kind-hearted people with generous intentions went there to do what they could, many more people donated their hard earned monies at a time when the world was going through one of the worst global economic climates in history.

Politicians or ex-politicians like Bill Clinton were there along with many other celebrities in front of a barage of news photographers and media, pledging and promising every possible assistance and aid to a ravaged nation....but now that the media frenzy has died down, many of these people who took advantage of propping up their ''image'' seem to have lost their drive, their compassion, their caring, and I guess they have moved on to other things.

See what I mean about being ANGRY?  In my anger I get all this notions in my head and it exacerbates my disgust and yes it might very well be irrational, even uncalled for....but can someone please explain to me why, why is this country and its people still suffering just as much as they were on the very first day of this tragedy, one year later?

posted on Jan 13, 2011 8:37 PM ()

Comments:

I see you're popular here too!
comment by ilovecats on Jan 14, 2011 8:11 PM ()
HIYA SIS!!!!!

It's so good to see you here!!!! It's easy to be popular here because everyone is so nice, you wont see the squabbles that are prevalent over there, people respect each other and each other's opinions here...WELCOME!!!
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 10:00 PM ()
Oooops, I dont know what happened to my reply to Martha....I still keep having trouble with this site...is it just me?????
comment by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 4:36 PM ()
Hang in there, sweetie! Comments here can be confusing because you have to click on "reply" then go to the bottom of the page for the comment box. You'll get used to it.

Regarding PBS programming, it's available online at www.pbs.org/ — see if you can view the programming online.
reply by marta on Jan 14, 2011 5:25 PM ()
This week, PBS Frontline did an illuminating program on Haiti's problems relating to the stagnant earthquake situation. The PBS NewsHour has been doing detailed segments all week. The Haitian government is hopelessly uncoordinated and dysfunctional, its agencies corrupt, and the lack of progress is not really related to the charities involved. Much of the charity money is still unspent, but fortunately it's not been distributed to the Haitian government or it'd have disappeared in bribes and shady fees. Much needed resources are stuck in warehouses because of government red tape and corrupt blocks on aid. The roads are still impassible for truck convoys. Heavy loaders are confined at the airport. And on and on.... I feel so sorry for the Haitian people, who are so desperately in need. It is not something we can readily conceive of. The United Nations Foundation is pushing for change, but with the current election impasse, there is no leadership. It will be a long haul in Haiti. What a mess!
comment by marta on Jan 14, 2011 3:37 PM ()
I will try again Martha...sorry about that..lol.

I dont get PBS here but I would have liked to have seen those shows. On the other hand I find it very distressing to hear or see or even think about the plight of those poor people. I dont know what the solution is to this problem but I hope they find one very soon. Thanks for expressing your feelings about this here...
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 4:38 PM ()
I appreciate what you said here fredo, and how you feel about your own countrymen who are living in poverty. It is something that is not unique to any one nation but is a sad fact of life in every country in the world. Haiti had a devastating earthquake that exacerbated their already very sad state of affairs and they have received pledges of financial assistance and what I am really tee'd off about is that people make promises they dont keep. This is not about Americans or Australians or Europeans, this is about a little island called Haiti and the hell that the people there are living in right now, the hell they've been living in for a year since the catastrophe. Thanks for your input and for expressing your feelings..

Thanks for your comment Martha..
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 4:34 PM ()
Well look yes they are suffering.Have been for years.
Had anyone done anything for our children here in the states?
everyone try to put the blame on someone.They have to learned to work it out.No I am not bias.But my country comes first.The United Nations is supposed to take care of this.Who is going to feed the homeless babies.
Has anyone come here to help us.Yes we are a rich country but we do have priority here.We make a donation to Haiti.Let them worked it out.
That is my thought and feeling.As I look around here in my state to see so many people.Babies in cars and no place to go.Yes,this is happening in America.What do you want us to do .We only can do so much.
We have made a donation to Haiti and other country.I do not hear anyone helping us here.
comment by fredo on Jan 14, 2011 1:31 PM ()
I appreciate what you said here fredo, and how you feel about your own countrymen who are living in poverty. It is something that is not unique to any one nation but is a sad fact of life in every country in the world. Haiti had a devastating earthquake that exacerbated their already very sad state of affairs and they have received pledges of financial assistance and what I am really tee'd off about is that people make promises they dont keep. This is not about Americans or Australians or Europeans, this is about a little island called Haiti and the hell that the people there are living in right now, the hell they've been living in for a year since the catastrophe. Thanks for your input and for expressing your feelings..
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 4:27 PM ()
I, too, am troubled and angered over this "slight" of the people of Haiti. Unfortunately, the think people perceive the situation "hopeless", money down a rat hole, "too bad, so sad". It's a shame. These people (and country) need help. We have the resources and should use them, not ignor them.
comment by solitaire on Jan 14, 2011 6:33 AM ()
The 'resources' have been pledged...the money is being held somewhere, why is it not being released to at least save people from dying from cholera, never mind re-building the country. I am very angry because I just dont understand. If this was Long Island or New Jersey, it would be a different story. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here..
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 14, 2011 6:41 AM ()
It's so sad. I was surprised the other day to see how little progress has been made even though, according to the news people, billions in aid has been sent to Haiti but it hasn't filtered down to the people living in tents. Like you say, we have to wonder how it would have been different if the affected people weren't mostly black, and if it had been a different country.
comment by troutbend on Jan 13, 2011 9:47 PM ()
I'm glad I'm not the only one who has doubts about why the situation is taking so long to improve. thanks for your comment Laura...
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 13, 2011 9:54 PM ()
Haiti has always been a poor country and a poorly run one--I am sure most of the donations have 'disappeared'--regarding the USA--they meant well but they don't have the money to fulfill their pledge--they don't even have enough money to take care of their own people.
I don't know the answer but I do know a lot of Haitians have
been given temporary visas to remain in the States--what should
be done is that the people should be moved off the island--yes,
I know it is their home but there is nothing there anymore and yet so many are too sick to even be moved--it is a sad situation with very few answers.
comment by greatmartin on Jan 13, 2011 9:10 PM ()
people shouldnt make pledges they cant keep.
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 13, 2011 9:13 PM ()
You have made some strong arguments for bias at work. I also think bureaucracy and incompetence contribute to the problems. So very sorry that the Haitian people continue to suffer.
comment by tealstar on Jan 13, 2011 8:54 PM ()
me too Teal, I get so mad whenever I hear or read the continuing saga of the people suffering in Haiti....it breaks my heart..
reply by aussiegirl on Jan 13, 2011 8:59 PM ()

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