It didn’t really hit home how bad it was until I watched television (CNN) last night for the first time in a week. I’ve been hitting CNN’s web site at work but watching moving pictures, hearing unscripted reactions of victims and reporters was something else.
I was in New Orleans for SIGGRAPH 2000 (held at the convention center, no less) and I have memories of it as an beautifully old, yet vibrant city full of friendly people. It is beyond sad and disheartening to see what’s happened in the aftermath of Katrina. What’s even more sad is to see the recrimination and finger pointing going on by politicians and media as this all unfolds. While there’s no doubt there is plenty of that to go around – the disaster relief efforts look pathetic, unbelievable that this is the United States (a first world country!) we’re talking about here – now doesn’t seem to be the time to be look for someone to accept responsibility. And on ther other side, it’s definitely not the time to be patting oneself on the back for relief efforts that seem far too late in coming.
Whether or not you think this is just an American problem – and I’m sure some of my Canadian friends think so, and might even think Americans have brought this on themselves – there are people in misery out there who had no control over the Kyoto Protocol, who couldn’t (not wouldn’t) evacuate, who couldn’t influence those in charge about levees and flood prevention, who couldn’t afford to move, and who certainly didn’t expect the aftermath relief to be as disastrous as it’s looking. They deserve better. If you don’t know how else to help, and I certainly don’t, donate money. The Red Cross works. I’ve heard the Red Cross is inundated (not my experience), but apparently you can even haul spare change to your local Coinstar machine, which accepts donations for the Red Cross (without skimming the top). USA today has a list of other charities. Find a bank and ask. Or do charity research on google. It takes 10 minutes to do the research and type in a credit card number during a coffee break.
