People are still being pulled alive out of buildings. My God. I cannot imagine being trapped under rubble for a day, much less a week. One woman was singing today as she emerged from under the bank where she'd been trapped. Humans are truly miraculous creatures.
I was just watching a scene on CNN in which Haitian crowds were cheering, "USA! USA!" as LA County firefighters pulled yet another survivor from the rubble. I've been known to be rather critical of my country, especially when I go abroad and experience some of the wonders of other places. However, I'm not sure I've ever been so proud to be American as now. We may all live beyond our means and we certainly all have our individual vices, but Americans as a group are pretty good people. That our government pledged $100 million in aid without hesitation, that Larry King Live raised $9 million through a 5-hour TV campaign, that the Red Cross and Yele Haiti pulled in $10 million in text contributions in the first few days, that millions of Americans are scrambling to figure out if there's anything else they can do to help right now - it all points to a pretty fantastic populace. My opinions about people are usually cemented one way or another once I see how they behave in a crisis. If someone steps up to the plate, even if I was unsure about that person in the past, he earns my immediate and lasting respect. If they don't, well, the opposite occurs.
Of course, praising the United States does not preclude praise for others. Specifically, Israel and the Dominican Republic have gained tremendous respect in my eyes for their actions in the wake of the earthquake. Israel's currently running the first and only mobile operating room and providing emergent surgical care. The D.R., not the most wealthy of countries by any means, has given $4.4 million in direct financial aid, as well as innumerable and priceless contributions in service - from opening the Santo Domingo airport to relief aircraft to caring for injured Haitians brought across the border. In contrast, some countries should, in my opinion, be absolutely ashamed of themselves. China, in particular, should take a long look at itself. The world power has given a grand total of $1 million to Haiti - this matches the contributions of India (a comparable nation in terms of population, but certainly not economic stability), Brad Pitt, or the U.S. Government in putting 3 students through medical school. For shame.
Those claiming that the U.S. is taking advantage of the earthquake in order to "conquer" Haiti or that Obama is making political hay out of the situation don't even really deserve anyone's attention. I have news for these people - you can't "conquer" a country when you have its consent - when you're ASKED by that country for assistance. It would be entirely irresponsible for us to ignore Haiti in the wake of this disaster as we have for so many years. I cannot and do not want to imagine what would happen if we just let Haiti fend for itself in these times.
Finally, for now, I have to question the priorities that have been set by whoever it is that has been setting the priorities in Haiti. Security first, food and water second, healthcare third. EXCUSE ME?! Shouldn't these priorities be reversed? I can't understand, for the life of me, why three Docs Without Borders planes have been turned away from the runway at Port-au-Prince when people are still dying in the streets and doctors are without the supplies they need to save them. Is it not simple logic that you save people first, feed them second, and secure yourself later? I'm just dumbfounded.
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