Comments on: Haiti: News roundup, new satellite images, tweets from the ground

By: Alan

Alan — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Good info, and a lot needs to be done in Haiti, immediately and over the next decade. However, I take issue with the Patrick Cockburn piece (Crushing Haiti, Now as Always) you link to. Not only does he not give any examples (instead, citing activity in Afghanistan), but he equates Obama’s reaction to this disaster to Bush’s reaction to New Orleans. I’d like to point out a couple of differences:

Hurricane Katrina was known in advance, and there were no surpises that it was going to hit New Orleans. Preperations could be made, situations could be anticipated. The Haitian earthquake was a bit of a surprise, so it was harder to be prepared.

New Orleans is in the United States. Resources can be moved more quickly, and the hierarchy to do so it very clear and already set up. Add to that the fact that the bulk of the US wasn’t affected by the hurricane, and it makes it even easier. Port-au-Prince is on an island in another country. Not only does it take longer to move resources to that location (overseas, even), but it has to be done through someone else’s system, in this case a very screwed up system.

I don’t mind when someone is indignant. I just wish they would make equal comparisons and not just throw things out there. That’s what Rush Limbaugh does.

By: JoshP

JoshP — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I scurfed the MSF website and found they lack paypal cabability but do have a podcast up. Gonna check it out. Also maybe somebody who’s on school might think about Haitian debt research…
ps. does anybody *not* want to play three card monty against Herr Dr. Pr. Smooth… sheesh, he really is smooth.

By: SamSam

SamSam — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Agree with #1 on Patrick Cockburn’s piece — comparing Obama’s response time to Katrina is ludicrous. The quake hit Tuesday afternoon. The US Coast Guard was on the ground early Wednesday morning (as Alan says, in another country, and one without a working airfield and no organized leadership).

I’d comment there, but some people don’t like allowing people to comment on their op-ed columns…

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

If someone wants to go down there and help, lend a hand, with good all around skills but no doctor or nurse or anything, just lend a hand literally. How would one do so?

cheers

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

In 1805, the U.S. instituted restrictions on trade with Haiti. By the end of the year, Congress banned trade with Haiti, joining the French and Spanish boycotts. These embargos crippled the Haitian economy, and helped prevent the new black nation from making a success of its independence. READ MOREâ€¦â€¦â€¦â€¦â€¦â€¦

Source:

http://phrequency.ning.com/profiles/blogs/why-is-haiti-so-poor

By: Marchhare

Marchhare — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Partners in Health is one of the most well-connected foreign charities in Haiti.

Here is their Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/PIH_org

Here is their website they set up after the earthquake:
http://standwithhaiti.org/

By: hawamahal

hawamahal — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Geographers and GIS folks, datasets are being hosted and linked to from here: http://cegrp.cga.harvard.edu/content/haiti-earthquake-data

Hydrography and high-res Digital Elevation Models are needed, if there are any out there!

thanks!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

New high resolution pictures on the destruction from the 2010 Haiti Earthquake have been posted from on the ground in Port-Au-Prince and Jacmel

http://www.jlaforums.com/album.php?search=haiti&search_cond=Pic%20Description&sort_order=&start=0

http://www.jlaforums.com/album.php?search=haiti&search_cond=Pic%20Title&sort_order=&start=0