Haiti Rocked by Earthquake, Thousands Dead

This is exactly what Haiti didn't need. After decades of government misrule, after hurricanes that killed hundreds, an earthquake hit yesterday that measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale killing thousands. This journal urges its readers to give to the American Red Cross as generously as possible. The first 72 hours are the most important.

Nature was particularly unkind with this temblor. The epicenter is believed to have been just 10 miles from the capital of Port au Prince, a city of 2 million. Worse, it was a very shallow quake, maybe just five or six miles below the surface; that means the energy didn't dissipate much into the planet's crust. The only blessing was the tsunami some feared never came.

Because of its poverty, most people in Port au Prince had no access to clean water before the quake; now none do. Because of its poverty, the infrastructure that is vital to saving lives was a mess before the quake. Because of its poverty, most of the buildings in the capital were made of concrete slabs; they collapsed on themselves, trapping their occupants. The race is now on to rescue the survivors. They have only a short time, and there is little equipment or coordination of rescuers.

If Haiti has anything going for it right now, it is the proximity of the United States. Florida isn't far, and the US military is exceptionally good at logistics. While the airport may not be able to handle the heavy transport planes the US uses, America has helicopters and sea-going vessels that can get supplies and personnel in.

If Australia is the Lucky Country, then Haiti must be the Unlucky Country. Born of a slave revolt in the days of Napoleon, its governments have wasted every chance at development. The climate has conspired to send hurricanes regularly. While its neighbor on the island of Hispaniola, the Dominican Republic, has done tolerably well, Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest on the planet. It ranks 181st in life expectancy. Its GDP ranks 203rd with 80% of its people living under the official poverty line. It is a sad country when the best advice an elder can give to an ambitious youth is "get out as fast as you can." Yet in Haiti, that has been standard advice for years. It is not about to change anytime soon.

© Copyright 2010 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.

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