Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

[kimo55]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

we in the US burn $5 billion each and every day we are in Iraq to support our war machine.
Miulang

jeez. incredible.

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

jeez. incredible.

The actual daily figure is more like $180 million, without the addition of the 20k more troops that will be incountry by Jan. 30.

Gotta be factual.

Miulang

[Linkmeister]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Yeah, it's ~$4B/month, not per day.

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Just a little reminder that we need to disavow ourselves of the notion that we can control nature, because we can't. Something else to consider: we throughout history have killed more people through manmade disasters like wars than nature has killed people through natural disasters.

"Our species is in reality, when compared to the forces of the only home we have, an impotent army of six billion primates at the mercy of anything Earth throws at us. We are as primitive as the humans of 100,000 years ago, with slight evolutions – or regressions, depending on how one might look at it – of theology, music, dance, communication, war, culture, technology, art and food, to name but a few, that have grown with our increased numbers and our communal intelligence.

In fact, we have been doing much of the above since the beginning of time, banging on drums, wood and rock with bones, grunting and singing below a sky-lit night, thus making music in front of fire; conjuring up deities to explain a mysterious and dangerous world around us, encompassing the unknown and the fear-induced, creating myths and fables to give our existence meaning and our world answers; painting figures on cave walls to the extent of human imagination much like today’s art masterpieces conjure up world’s of creative design and ingenuity; hunting for mammoth and bison and picking seeds now replaced by hunting and gathering at the nearest supermarket; caves and primitive dwellings have been replaced by homes and buildings, yet we still sleep in our nests, our beds, and still perform daily functions in the home much like our forefathers did in their caves; we still fear out of ignorance, we still fight over territory, we still claim hierarchical leaders and we still battle over which god is better than the other; we communicate much like those of yesteryear, much like humanity has done since the beginning, but with newer technologies. Everything remains the same, only altered by changing technology and the power of the growing communal brain, now six billion strong.

Yet primitive we remain, no matter how enlightened industrialized nations and their peoples think themselves to be, no matter how modern their societies tend to be and no matter how ego driven their delusion of supreme ascendancy is. Modern man, with all his knowledge, intelligence, technology, culture and civilization, remains as primitive as his ancestors of centuries past. He remains a product of his animal urges, needs, wants and psychology, a mammal confined to the basic elements of what makes him a bipedal primate.

In the end, all humans, whether from industrialized nations or third world hellholes, whether rich or poor, whether from one tribe or ethnicity, live life in much the same way, breathing, seeing, hearing, sweating, bleeding, communicating, reproducing, thinking, observing, eating, drinking, sleeping, surviving and behaving much the same way humankind has done for thousands upon thousands of years, much the same way as our mammal cousins have and continue to do as well. We are the same species of long ago, our brains being of the same variety, not having grown or evolved for millennia, leaving the long chain of primate links behind as testament to our origins and our reality. For evolution does not work in decades or centuries, and our changes over the last 100,000 years have been civilizational and societal, not physical, mental or behavioral. Modern man of today has not changed significantly for a few hundred thousand years, and our behaviors, while more technologically sophisticated and assaulted by the never-before stresses of modern life, are nonetheless very similar to those of our long dead ancestors who roamed the plains of the world in the greatest Diaspora in the history of man.

We are powerless to stop and control nature, yet we crown ourselves emperors and rulers of the planet. From the smallest virus birthing plague and disease to the largest earthquake destroying our cities to the deadliest hurricanes ravaging states to the most unpredictable tornado causing havoc we are at the mercy of nature and Earth, unable to control and dominate weather and even the smallest microbes. Yet we think ourselves beyond primitive, beyond the impotent and plebian species we really are, ravaging its planet and its home, making extinct untold number of species, polluting its air, water and land, growing in number like the most voracious plague of locusts, exploiting Earth beyond its means, ripping apart balances that have lasted into perpetuity and each year bringing closer to destruction an entire planet. .."

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse....rticle7628.htm

[Serenity]

The Tsunami disaster.Light a candle here...

Below is a sight for you to light a candle and leave a message to all those involved in this disaster. Whether the people be dead or alive and for those left behind..
just let them know we all care...thanks.

http://www.kaskus.com/peduliaceh/index.php

[kimo55]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

ride da wild surf....

http://homepage.mac.com/demark/tsunami/

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

One of the helicopters stationed on the USS Abraham Lincoln, which is providing assistance by ferrying supplies and personnel into remote areas, crashed earlier today in Aceh. None of the 10 people on board the flight was killed, but all other helicopter aid flights have been suspended indefinitely while an investigation into the accident is launched.

Locals insist the accident was caused by rebels shooting rifles at the helicopter but the Navy will not comment on the report for now.

Helicopters have been the most effective means of distributing supplies in areas where the infrastructure was severely impacted by the earthquake and tsunamis.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...nesia_crash_dc


Also reported a few hours ago on cable news: there is a possibility of cyclones hitting Indonesia over the next day or so, which would only add more misery to a country already suffering from the staggering loss of so many people.

Miulang

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Starbucks has donated $100,000 plus $2 from every bag of SBUX Sumtra coffee sold during the month of January to aid in tsunami relief. On top of that, its partners are also putting together their own campaigns to bring in more money for relief aid. At least this multinational company cares about the people in some of the countries from which it buys product. (Hello, WM? Wherefore art thou?)

Miulang

Starbucks Donates $100,000 to Southeast Asia Relief Efforts
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)---- In addition, Company Will Enhance Contribution by Donating $2 From Sales of Select Southeast Asian Whole Bean Coffees During January

In response to the unprecedented natural disaster in Southeast Asia, Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq:SBUX) has made an initial contribution of $100,000 to two international relief organizations -- CARE and Oxfam UK. Both international relief organizations have been actively involved in the rescue efforts in the countries that were badly impacted by the earthquake and tsunamis.

In addition to the immediate cash donation to these relief agencies, during January 2005 Starbucks will also donate $2 for every pound of Sumatra, Decaf Sumatra and Aged Sumatra whole bean coffee purchased in its Company-operated stores in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and Germany, while supplies last.

"We are deeply saddened by the tremendous devastation and rising death toll in Southeast Asia, and extend our condolences and deepest sympathies to the bereaved families and those impacted by this tragic event," said Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman. "Starbucks has a long tradition of striving to contribute positively to communities in which we do business. Our prayers and thoughts are with all the families who have lost their loved ones."

To further enhance the Company's initial cash contribution to the designated relief organizations, Starbucks Company-operated stores in these markets will donate $2, or local currency equivalent, for every pound of whole bean Sumatra and Decaf Sumatra coffee sold in January 2005. The donation will also apply to Aged Sumatra, the next Starbucks(R) Black Apron Exclusives(TM) coffee, when it arrives in stores on January 5.

CARE will receive the donation from the sale of these coffees in the U.S. and Canada and Oxfam UK will be the recipient of the donation from coffee sales in the United Kingdom, Australia and Germany.

Starbucks partners (employees) around the world are also supporting the relief efforts in a number of ways. For example, stores in Thailand proclaimed December 29 "Day of Giving," during which 100 percent of the day's store profits were designated for relief. The store partners from the remaining Phuket, Thailand Starbucks store spent several thousand baht (local currency) of their own money in the immediate aftermath of the tsunami to buy food, water, and cloth to wrap bodies for victims in the community.

"I am humbled by the response demonstrated by the world community," continued Schultz. "We know in our hearts that giving back to the communities of Southeast Asia, which have been part of the Starbucks family for more than 20 years, will help towards recovery and rebuilding efforts. As the days go by and the relief needs change, the Company and our partners will continue to look for ways to provide support to the impacted communities."

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Sometimes you can be damned if you do the right thing, and then damned again for trying to make things right.

After hastily burying thousands of victims in the wake of the tsunamis in Thailand, authorities now have to exhume the mass graves in order to try to identify if there are foreign bodies mingled with the Thai victims. They were in such a rush to get the bodies buried to prevent some of the diseases they feared might erupt that they neglected to even try to differentiate between the white and nonwhite corpses. Yuck.

They are also saying that the "second tsunami" (of money and supplies from abroad) is starting to hit now, and they don't know how or if they'll be able to ensure that all the money and aid go to the people who need it most. This is particularly true in Indonesia, where the terrorists who control the Eastern part of Indonesia are claiming that "their" people are not getting the same assistance that the rest of Indonesia is. They have gone so far as to set up their own relief agency in Banda Aceh to ensure that their people get some assistance. This, in turn, has caused the Indonesian government to insist on lists of all foreign aid workers and military personnel...just in case someone gets kidnapped. Why does politics always have to get in the way of humanitarian assistance?

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ts_nm/quake_dc

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

The FBI recently sent around the following document to warn consumers about the potential for being scammed by internet (and other media) appeals for tsunami relief. Before handing your credit card information or cash over to any group, do a little homework: the best agencies to send money to for the relief effort are well-established organizations who already were doing development work in SE Asia. They were at the disaster sites first, and they know best what kinds of assistance the local people need.

Since I work in e-commerce, it's important to keep the internet safe from the crackpots who give this way of buying and selling things a bad name.

Miulang

http://www.fbi.gov/page2/jan05/tsunamiscam010505.htm

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Your interesting thought to ponder for today: According to various news reports, the world has thus far committed to sending a little over $2 billion to the victims of the SE Asian earthquake and tsunami. While that sum appears to be a staggering amount of money, consider that we in the US burn $180 million each and every day we are in Iraq to support our war machine.

Miulang

Another interesting comparison on how much we (meaning the government) spend on killing people overseas, v. how much we spend in humanitarian efforts to save people.

Also note that to pay for both our wars and our humanitarian efforts abroad, people in this country are suffering. There's only so much of the pie to go around and now the Bush Administration has decided that more than half of that pie should go to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse....rticle7662.htm

[Miulang]

Re: Hawai'i and Tsunamis

Anybody else notice that Myanmar, sandwiched in the middle of devastated countries, shows no damage?

What's the story there, eh?

Blaine

For anyone who wants to know the real toll in Myanmar (Burma) is from the tsunami, here is a report from Indymedia. Prior to the tsunamis, there were many immigrants (legal and illegal) from Myanmar working at the beach resorts in Thailand. When the tsunamis hit places like Phuket, the illegal immigrants were denied assistance by the Thai government. The Thai government is also using the disaster as an excuse to deport many Burmese illegals back to Myanmar.

The true toll to inhabitants living on the coastline of Myanmar may never be known because of the repressive military junta that controls the country, but this Indymedia report states that as many as 3,000 Burmese who were working in Thailand had been killed.

Miulang

http://www.indymedia.org/en/2005/01/112810.shtml

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

A report on the progress being made in the countries impacted by the SE tsunami from one of the leading American relief agencies, Oxfam America.

I am proud to say that I not only contributed money to their tsunami relief fund, but I once was the director of volunteers for this organization when I lived in Boston. I truly believe in their goals of not only providing immediate assistance in times of disaster, but working with impacted communities to teach them how to live after a disaster in ways that make sense for that culture and increase the health, economy and welfare of that community. For Oxfam America, there's no going into a community and saying, "You have to do it like we do in America." (unlike some other American entities are wont to do ).

And even though the immediate needs of the people are being met right now (Oxfam America alone has collected more than $30 million), much more will be needed in the long run to help rebuild their lives, homes and businesses.

Miulang

http://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatwedo...-20.7196970165

[Linkmeister]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Anyone remember the name Kevin Sites? He's the guy who reported on the shooting of the Iraqi in the mosque a month or two ago. He's now in Indonesia, and he's sporadically blogging what he's seeing.

[Miulang]

Re: Deadly Indian Ocean Tsunami

Anyone remember the name Kevin Sites? He's the guy who reported on the shooting of the Iraqi in the mosque a month or two ago. He's now in Indonesia, and he's sporadically blogging what he's seeing.

Yeah, I used to go to his blogsite every now and then to see what was really going on in Iraq. So now he's moved on to Indonesia? He must be running on adrenalin only. Before Iraq, he was in Mexico and Afghanistan. If it wasn't for people like him, risking life and limb, we might never know what was "really" going on in places of conflict.

Miulang