Thread: Hard Times For Haiti Doesn't Mean We Need Another Battle Of The Black Sea

One of my old high school friends and I were just talkin' about this not long ago:

As bad as I feel for the Haitians about the earthquake and all; I feel like we need to worry about OUR problems in our own country before we tackle the problems of other countries. The US is quick to rush off and try to save Haiti, but they didn't respond to the Katrina victims that quick. We have TONS of homeless people, children who go to bed without food in their stomachs, elderly folk who don't get the meds they need and mentally ill people without proper treatment. But, there's an ad that suggests we send money to Haiti to help them, when our economy is struggling and we have all the above mentioned problems. Don't get me wrong, I'm not sayin' "Screw Haiti," but isn't there a way we can help them without spending so much of our own money outside of the country? Can't we conserve money to help those who need it within our borders while donating a percentage to Haiti? Then, at the very least, we're helping ourselves AND the Haitians at the same time. We can't just continue to sweep our problems under the rug.

But, now I digress from the topic at hand...

I agree with you, Beast. I don't think that it's a good idea to just give them money without monitoring what the money is being used for. Haiti had enough trouble before the earthquake and, like you said, guns can be bought just as easy--hell, they could be considered "supplies", depending on how you wanna look at it. I also agree with your idea about how inflation could cause Haiti quite a bit of trouble. If the country is poor, there's no need for inflation. There's already enough struggle to get supplies. I seen on the news a few days ago that people were in a frenzy down there, tryin' to get supplies. It'd be a full scale riot throughout the country of Haiti were living costs to rise.

You mentioned Canada. Are they even donating to the cause? I'm wondering what other countries are doin' to help Haiti.

I`m so flattered you trust Canada to be fair and charitable in the place of America, though I disagree that we shouldn`t be completely focused on getting Haiti back to how it was and farther.

The problem with industrialized countries is that we don`t want to invest in developing and third world countries even though it would build good trade bonds and make even better allies. With American protectionism crowding the stage Canada has turned to Brazil to do business with and I hope that in the future we keep feeding money into their little football playing pockets so that they find their way into comfortable, affordable life like we ourselves do. And they choose us to do good business with.

Maybe I`m biased because the impacts of the so called economic crisis haven`t been quite as evident in my city (and all of Canada mostly) but the last thing America needs is to close its borders to us and seal themselves into a little bundle of tight nerves; they should be aiding Haiti and pushing for more aid as it is. Canada is getting hit hard by the loss of American trade and I`m sure America isn`t doing so well without our business either, however your guys aren`t in that bad of shape.

If you were, Canada would there helping out unless you pull total American and refuse the help out of pride which very well may be the case.

Did you know there are surveyéwhatever drones patrolling the border in BCÉ

.. my comp has that thingy going on with the french accents instead of regular keys and I don`t remember how to shut it off.

Though anyway, like any tragedy to strike a country not my own I think that all those able to help should be helping regardless of the situation. If we all stand together and give our excess then Haiti will be fine.

I read something once.. it was like: we can`t just produce money from nowhere, it has to come out of the machine first.

Why can`t weÉ If money weren`t so powerful than no one would bat an eyelash if we printed off millions of dollars and just burn it. Money is the real controlling power in all of the world, not the leaders or it`s people.

There`s an old Cree saying that I think is really fitting but often not given any thought;

Only when the last tree has died, the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught, will we realize that we cannot eat money.

Not to mention Canada has been in the process of making Haiti a part of our country for the better part of the last hundred years...

FLawEdmiNd, I'd agree with you normally, except for the fact that America doesn't have this 'excess' you speak of. We have our share of wealthy people to be sure, but there's even more poverty. Things can get pretty bad down here, but if Americans don't even give their 'excess' to help their own people, then why would they do it for Haiti? Everyone seems to be hoarding money, and noone cares about the little people. I know it's messed up, and I wish it wasn't like that, but people get greedy when they get money, and even when they come from poverty, once they get even the slightest bit of money, they're afraid to lose it, and they just stuff it in the bank. Yes, the world would be alot better if everyone would just share what they don't need with the less fortunate, but they don't. They say "I'm sure someone else will." But that's what everyone is thinking, so hardly anyone helps out. That's Psychology 101. (You can actually see an example of this in the 1st Episode of Code Geass. The more people in the crowd, the less the chance that someone will help.)

it was really hard nd terrible what happend in haiti, well i´m living far away from haiti actually in spain i can´t understand the relation between the US canada nd haiti like you do,but i´ll say that a lot of people here feel so sorry for them nd we know that´s everyone´s feelings but it´s not enough of course we should show them that we really with them not only through our feeling but also supporting them nd also here there is foundation where you can send anything you have to haiti so only we wish that really they get them...
nd ofc there is more than one haiti in the world, i mean there is other people that they don´t have anything, without earthquick,or tsunami... i only wish that anyone have the chance to help that he won´t hesitate

1. The US is the largest charitable contributor in the world and has the best organized response teams, private and otherwise, as well. If it needs to be done and lives are on the line I would rather see them go in then anyone else.

2. If you think we have poverty in the US you have no idea what true poverty is. Those charitable donations do include donations to inside the US and between both government and private welfare, shelters, foodbanks, free clinics, etc our poor are better off then much of the worlds wealthy.

3. Do not donate money. If you want to help donate through charities (religious or otherwise) that can get it to them make it items that are needed there now. You would be surprised how little it costs to put together sanitation packages or clothes and blankets that are needed so desperately. It takes less time to get to them if the organizers don't have to go out and buy the stuff themselves and you know that a blanket can't be spent on something else besides actual assistance.

The way I see it we should keep the poor here better off and help them. Haiti was a snake pit before this happened and it will be afterwards as well. I know for a fact they were mocking the laws with fun and drug running. I know obseervation teams that have seen it.