7.0 Earthquake Hits Haiti Hospital Collapses

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Shamrock said:
Thanks for that. I'm wondering how to know where is the best place to donate money?? (that sentence was horribly grammatically incorrect) I saw a huge long list on CNN but I never know which place will take my money and make the most use out of it?? I don't want only 10% of my donation going to the actual relief fund whereas the other 90% goes to who-knows-where.
Click to expand...

There are SO MANY organizations you are right.
The Red Cross is one that is doing the text donations, the other is Wycleff Jean (from the Fugees he's also worked as a solo artist). He's from Haiti and started an organization years ago called Yele Haiti. I sehs him $5 and will again for the next several weeks...there's no excuse for me not to when my favorite Starbusk's coffee is $4 and change...and I'm a fiend! I hope people will realize that every penny helps, especially in a country so poor...

Still praying.
 
Dark Knight said:
I almost always use Catholic Relief Services: http://www.crs.org/

Something like 95% of your donation goes towards the need, making it easily one of the most efficient charities in the world.

Ratings and Endorsements of CRS: 1. Found to meet all 20 Charity Standards of the Better Business Bureau/Wise Giving Alliance. 2. Rating of A+ from the American Institute of Philanthropy.
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Bump.
SHAMROCK and EMMomma - I bumped this for you.

I gave through the Jewish World Services - also listed on the link below.

MOO
Habitat for humanity is great.
Doctors without boarders is great.
Feed my starving children is great.
This link will give you ratings of the top foundations:
http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=1004
 
As I see it,the problem is not the people of Haiti,it is the corrupt government,that have abused all the aid that has been given to this country. Instead of spending it to improve the lives of their people they have kept it for themselves. When this immediate urgency is over,it is time for someone,(hopefully not the US,but I'm sure it will),hopefully the UN(what else are they good for),to oversee the rebuilding of this country. Make sure the Haitian government doesn't have a "business as usual" policy. If the monies don't go toward building a proper infrastructure,it will be like pouring money down the drain,and with each and every natural disaster,we will be faced with another crisis. Some authority needs to watch that every single dollar is spent on bettering these poor souls lives.
 
The long history of troubled ties between Haiti and the US

When US President Barack Obama announced that one of the biggest relief efforts in US history would be heading for Haiti, he highlighted the close ties between the two nations.

"With just a few hundred miles of ocean between us and a long history that binds us together, Haitians are our neighbours in the Americas and here at home," he said.

Hundreds of thousands of Haitians have indeed become neighbours of Americans.

Some 420,000 live in the US legally, according to census figures. Estimates of the number of Haitians in the country illegally vary wildly, from some 30,000 to 125,000.

It is a sizeable diaspora which wants to see quick and decisive action from its adopted homeland.

Desperate to see aid getting through to friends and relatives, many expatriate Haitians have welcomed President Obama's decision to send up to 10,000 troops to help rescue efforts.

Historically though, US military deployments to Haiti have been controversial to say the least, and ties have often suffered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'American leadership'

The election of President Obama and the nomination of Bill Clinton to the post of UN envoy to Haiti, combined with a period of relative political stability, led to a strengthening of US-Haitian ties.

Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who spent their honeymoon in Haiti, have long taken an interest in the country.

President Obama has enlisted their help, alongside that of former President George W Bush, to help drive fundraising for Haiti.

Speaking on Thursday, President Obama said that this was "one of those moments that calls out for American leadership".

This US intervention, he stressed, would be "for the sake of our common humanity".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8460185.stm

It's not so bad when The World comes together for a tiny and poverty stricken island nation in The Carribbean. Peace.

JMO
 
aprilshowers said:
I was just talking to my husband about this ... and I agree with what he said:

If there HAS to be a war .. or it turns into a 'war zone' ... then so be it! If that's the only way we can get help to the survivors, then that's the way it has to be!

American troops (and troops from other countries that choose to be involved) will have to go in there with weapons, if they are threatened by a Haitian yielding a machete, and they are warned to put it down and don't ... they shoot.

If the Haitians (those that are) are choosing to try and attack us or those that are trying to help the sick and dying people, then it becomes 'By any means necessary'. Too damn bad if they don't like it .. that our soldiers have to kill a few .. to get the point across, that we're SERIOUS about getting in there and save lives.

I agree completely with him (oh .. and that's RARE! LOL), because ... how else can it be done, if not by force .. if need be? If there are so many injured and dying, we're not going to just sit back and let them die ... we need to force our way in, and if some die in the process ... well, they asked for it then. (those who are attacking, if that report is true).

I suppose it's as if .. you came upon a group of people killing children in the streets, and you have a group of soldiers equipped to protect themselves. They're not going to turn their backs on the children, they'll do what is necessary to get to them .. and if that means shooting a few attackers to get them to back off, so be it.

That's my take on this ... as is my husband's .. IF the reports of Haitians attacking with machetes and other weapons, are true.
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Honestly, there are no reputable reports of Haitians killing anyone. At least not as of midnight last night. I think there is no need for "force" or "killing a few Haitians to make a point". I frankly think that people see a group of desperate, poor, black people and immediately think they will become violent savages and I don't agree with this. While ANY group of people can resort to violence, I think race or class based fear can only serve to make the situation worse. Again, I saw the Bolivian UN peacekeepers go into a very poor town and organize the handing out of food in a very orderly manner - no violence, no pushing. We just need to get it there and quick.
Problem is, I hear that it is very hard to get trucks through with the supplies due to jammed roads. So, we'll see today what happens. Pray for Haiti.
 
hockeymom said:
As I see it,the problem is not the people of Haiti,it is the corrupt government,that have abused all the aid that has been given to this country. Instead of spending it to improve the lives of their people they have kept it for themselves. When this immediate urgency is over,it is time for someone,(hopefully not the US,but I'm sure it will),hopefully the UN(what else are they good for),to oversee the rebuilding of this country. Make sure the Haitian government doesn't have a "business as usual" policy. If the monies don't go toward building a proper infrastructure,it will be like pouring money down the drain,and with each and every natural disaster,we will be faced with another crisis. Some authority needs to watch that every single dollar is spent on bettering these poor souls lives.
Click to expand...
And how is the USA different. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Keep sending money down the bankers drain. While the people are unemployed and getting their homes taken away.
Same difference just a difference show.
since we want "Public Opinion" in the world to be good about us we help others. but our Government drains the people to the bone.
I would not give to Haiti through a fund that is politically lobbied. UN, Red Cross...UNICEF :no: 10% if you are lucky gets to the cause. the rest is lining pockets.
But the kind citizens of our country want to believe in some of these organizations because they are large.
The volunteers do great work. The real money is not going where you all hope it will. FACT...:(
 
SWAG1959 said:
Please try to understand that I am not being cruel or bitter when I used the word uncivilzed. I am using it in the truest sense of the word. A huge majority (I'm willing to bet 90% or better) don't have televisions so they don't get "news" from anywhere - local or otherwise. Computers are non-existent. Indoor working plumbing is a necessity we take for granted but the Haitian people just don't have at all. No running water. Why do you think there were 90,000 UN peacekeepers there? We have been trying for decades to improve the lives of the Haitian people.

As for the people here sending help back home- yes to some extent they do. What a lot of us don't understand with the Haitians is why they send money back home but then get on the news and cry and say "my daughter is over there, my wife is over there, my sister/brother is over there". Why? Why haven't you brought those family members over here? Or at least gotten them out of that squalor? When Haitians get here it is such a culture shock for them - compared to how they live there. I think some of them become so caught up in the "American Way" that they somehwhat forget. I ask you, if you had escaped from a country where you literally have nothing and get to America - wouldn't your first order of business be to get your children, husbands/wives, family here as well? I know many many Haitians that have done that - but for those, there are hundreds that haven't.

Again, I would love to see Haiti emerge from this a better, stronger country. But in order for that to happen they have to be shown how and then continue to use that knowledge to grow and start to propsper.

Let's "teach them to fish" instead of just "giving them the fish" is what I desperately wish we can do for the people of Haiti's sake.
Click to expand...

Respectfully snipped for space by me:

You know, I really do appreciate your post. I do not think you are trying to be unfair. You have made some excellent points and I seriously agree that just dumping money on a problem is not necessarily an answer.

But, as to your post about Haitians complaining about their people back home and why they cannot just bring their relatives here, well, we have this thing called the immigration process. We only allow a certain number of Haitians in, that's why many are here illegally. Haitian immigrants are very lucky to be here and cannot simply bring their family to the U.S.

By the way, according to statistics, Haitian immigrants do not just send a bit of money back home. They send $900 MILLION a year. And that makes up a quarter of Haiti's GDP. That's freaking HUGE! http://www.maykuth.com/stories/haiti708.htm

I find the Haitian people to be strong family people and very resilient, as a whole. I am leery about Americans getting a picture that they are all ruthless, corrupt thugs. But, you are 100% right about teaching them to fish. We cannot save every country yet research shows that aid designed to help people in other countries support themselves is the only kind with long-term, positive effect. Much of our aid to many countries, such as in Africa, has effected almost no change there. Some of it is taken by corrupt forces. Its a mess.

But, that is not to say that emergency aid is not important and seriously helpful. That's a differnet thing altogether and I think we should all do as much as we can to prevent further devastation in Haiti now.

Also, there are some great long-term projects in third world countries that work. We need to educate and provide the tools to empower the empoverished. Dumping money at them on a regular basis is like dumping it in the toilet. So, I see your point. However, right now we are talking about something different. Emergency Aid. What we give today will help if given to the right agency. We can talk about long-term aid and/or "nation building" later.
 
aprilshowers said:
Yes, but at this moment ... children are dying ... stuck, sick .. women and men are in dire need of help. Push the assholes aside, to get to those that need help.

Worry about the rest ... later.
Click to expand...

That's what I'm saying. So few words and you put it perfectly!

By the way, about the machete roving bands I hear about, today in the LA Times, there was a story about a group of men with machetes using it to clear a space to camp and then cutting through junk to find plastic with which to build homes as it won't kill them in the event of further aftershocks or another earthquake.
 
songline said:
What you are saying is true of all 3rd world countries. Much is due to lack of education / ignorance.
Some of it is due to their belief that capitalism is the devil itself. (take the poor Arabs for example).
Where ever you have uncivilized groups of people, uneducated, who do not know any better you get primitive behaviour.
Take the middle east one side Israel up to date and advanced in technology, medicine, education, agriculture, and much more. the other side Palestinians in the same region in tents and huts and uneducated. Some only live one mile apart from their more civilized neighbor. Much like the region of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
We also have American Indians who also choose to be close to the land and not become westernized.

We ask this question for many years.....Of all the groups of people who chose not to become civilized / westernized.
Who chose to live on the land and not in big structures.

THIS IS A NATURAL CATASTROPHY - even if they had chosen to become westernized, civilized, this kind of upheaval would have devastated them.

SO this is not the time to ask why? this is the time to say How can we help to save the living.
If you want to ask why? talk to God and ask why do we have so many Natural Disasters?
Let us know if you get an answer...
I have asked why so many times that I had seen a baby suffer, or a very kind person die young.
but I always come back with the same reply - Some spirits come here for a very short time,
some come to do great things and that is their personal evolution, but we all have to help each other.
Click to expand...

Wow, Songline, powerful post!
 
songline said:
Forgive me for saying but this sounds like an excuse to either not help or to be right.

There are not that many bad guys with guns out there, looting happened at Katrina too due to desperation.
They barely have a car to get around, let alone ammunition.
there are more people helping each other and saving each other then there are bad guys with guns :crazy:
The main problem is logistics and order due to a brake on whatever communications and transportation that was available prior to the quake.
They need transportation to get things to the needy.
There are not 2 million people there with mostly azzholes NO WAY.
This is just an excuse to not help. MOO. :(

I am on unemployment for a year now and no savings, no health insurance but I helped. BECAUSE THEY ARE PEOPLE.
Click to expand...

Again, BRAVOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love you Songline!!!!
 
According to Better Business Bureau:
BBB Wise Giving Report for
American Red Cross

Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Programs: 90% Fund Raising: 4% Administrative: 6%

Charity Review of American Red Cross

Just saying, use your own judgment as to what organization you want to funnel your funds through.
Personally, I don't see a current problem with Red Cross.
 
i.b.nora said:
According to Better Business Bureau:
BBB Wise Giving Report for
American Red Cross

Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Programs: 90% Fund Raising: 4% Administrative: 6%

Charity Review of American Red Cross

Just saying, use your own judgment as to what organization you want to funnel your funds through.
Personally, I don't see a current problem with Red Cross.
Click to expand...

I agree with IBN gather your own information.

I can only tell you I worked day and night 5 months and I have first hand experience (NOT PR baloney)
My personal experience had been posted, but here is a little more.
I gave already, I hope your dollars reach the people not the various pockets.
http://www.aim.org/aim-column/bad-week-for-the-red-cross/
http://www.gettingattention.org/my_weblog/2006/03/when_brand_goes.html

And there is a lot if you look....
 
songline said:
And how is the USA different. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Keep sending money down the bankers drain. While the people are unemployed and getting their homes taken away.
Same difference just a difference show.
since we want "Public Opinion" in the world to be good about us we help others. but our Government drains the people to the bone.
I would not give to Haiti through a fund that is politically lobbied. UN, Red Cross...UNICEF :no: 10% if you are lucky gets to the cause. the rest is lining pockets.
But the kind citizens of our country want to believe in some of these organizations because they are large.
The volunteers do great work. The real money is not going where you all hope it will. FACT...:(
Click to expand...

Songline,I love your posts and agree with most,but I don't believe you can compare the US and Haiti. Who knows though,maybe we are on that track?
I absolutley agree that all this money that has been spent on Haiti(and other poor countries),is being used to line peoples pockets and people need to be very careful who they give money to,but despite all the world's efforts ,if there is not proper leadership in Haiti,willing to truelly fight for the people,they may survive this crisis,but it will occur again. If any good can come out of this at all,it might be that the eyes of the world are on this poor country,and maybe they will end up a better place.
I remember a story my friend's father told me years ago and it has made me leery of giving to charities. Even if they have the best intentions,sometimes the government intentionally holds down its people. He was a soldier in Korea. There were boats of food for the starving people and the Korean government would not allow then to be unloaded. Apparently this went on for weeks until finally the food rotted. He remembered seeing big bags of rice being cut open and tossed into the water,as people were literally starving to death. To this day it sickens me to think of that.
 
songline said:
Haitian doctor takes 100 patients into his home
<<<SNIP>>>
The conditions at his home are far from ideal. Plastic buckets serve as toilets, and for some patients Surena can do little more than change dressings on infected wounds. But they are better off then many in Port-au-Prince, the capital city of 3 million people.

>more at link>>>>>>>
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34892995/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake
Click to expand...

Thank you for posting that article. I just found the discussion here. I've been following this since the moment it hit the news. I've donated, as has my immediate family members and I have asked everyone that I come into contact with (mostly at the college that I attend) to denote. Many have. My question is this; like this article, there are others caring for groups of children and/or the injured (e.g,. the two young ladies with the orphanage there caring for 25+ children who cannot get an adequate food supply for 25 children because of rationing) who are not able to get the supplies needed in order to continue providing this care; How, if possible, can we help these individuals directly? Any ideas? Thank you.

My heart is in Haiti -
 
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