First On The Ground....

We are all reeling as the scope of the disaster in Haiti unfolds. We are overloaded with the 24/24 nonstop coverage to the point of sensory numbness.

Most people want to do something and I would like to give you this link to Medicins Sans Frontiers, Doctors Without Borders, the organization already on the ground in Haiti with the infrastructure to deliver the kind of help that the people need the most.

You can be assured that the charity you donate for this disaster will be used solely for this effort and nothing else. I have a few good friends who worked in this organiation in Cambodia, Mali and Ruanda and they can attest to the hands on competence this organization of experts can be counted on to deliver.

They are experts equipped to set up staffed field hospitals any where in any conditions quickly. When the Israelis were bombing Gaza last year, they had instant hospitals set up under the bombs to recieve and give care to the huge number of civilians who were maimed in the bombings.

The latest reports hint at a death toll topping 100,000 in Port Au Prince. If you go to the MSF page, you will see their latest news as they try to locate and scramble the personel on the ground there as they mobilize to move their resources in from The Dominican Republic.

Now that I tried to let you know what I think is a very good way to show your support and help the Haitian people, here is the transcript of  Pat Robertson's demented racist rationalized history on todays 700 Club, showing you the best way to express his hate:

PAT ROBERTSON: And, you know, Kristi, something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III and whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, "We will serve you if you will get us free from the French." True story. And so, the devil said, "OK, it's a deal."

And they kicked the French out. You know, the Haitians revolted and got themselves free. But ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after the other. Desperately poor. That island of Hispaniola is one island. It's cut down the middle. On the one side is Haiti; on the other side is the Dominican Republic. Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, et cetera. Haiti is in desperate poverty. Same island. They need to have and we need to pray for them a great turning to God. And out of this tragedy, I'm optimistic something good may come. But right now, we're helping the suffering people, and the suffering is unimaginable.

UPDATE: Jan 14...12:18 CET

I got so pissed at Pat Robertson, you know the jerk who owns stock in the African slave labor diamond mines, and his christian spook story history of Haiti, that I decided to find the real story of Haiti's Deal with the Devil:

Back in May, the Times Online provided some slightly better insight into Haiti's past. Beyond a vague assumption that Imperialism had probably screwed Haiti somehow, I didn't know much about the country's history. Reading this story has been nothing short of nauseating.

Summary: Haiti was forced to pay France for its freedom. When they couldn't afford the ransom, France (and other countries, including the United States) helpfully offered high-interest loans. By 1900, 80% of Haiti's annual budget went to paying off its "reparation" debt. They didn't make the last payment until 1947. Just 10 years later, dictator François Duvalier took over the country and promptly bankrupted it, taking out more high-interest loans to pay for his corrupt lifestyle. The Duvalier family, with the blind-eye financial assistance of Western countries, killed 10s of thousands of Haitians, until the Haitian people overthrew them in 1986. Today, Haiti is still paying off the debt of an oppressive dictator no one would help them get rid of for 30 years.

The rest of the world refuses to forgive this debt.

So, in a way, maybe Robertson is right. Haiti is caught in a deal with the devil, and the devil is us.