58 replies to this topic

[Peridot]

I was kind of surprised no one had posted about this yet...

Cyclone hits Myanmar

They have indicated they're willing to accept aid, but I guess it's taking a little while to get it rolling.  And it looks like they're still counting the dead and missing...last night the death toll was listed at about 4,000....and today, more than four times that.  Shades of the tsunami...

Quote

Up to 1 million people may be homeless after Cyclone Nargis hit the Southeast Asian nation, also known as Burma, early Saturday. Some villages have been almost totally eradicated and vast rice-growing areas are wiped out, the World Food Program said.

Peridot

[Godeskian]

22000 dead in Burma according to the BBC

http://news.bbc.co.u...fic/7385662.stm

[SparkyCola]

[Alica]

I have a friend out there (well, I'm pretty sure she's still out there). I hope she's alright

[Kosh]

Welcome to the board Alica!! Hope your friend is OK. Let us know if you hear anything.

[Alica]

Kosh, on May 6 2008, 09:50 PM, said:

Welcome to the board Alica!! Hope your friend is OK. Let us know if you hear anything.

Thanks my brother's just forwarded an email to me, she's safe...very happy right now. Things sound pretty dire, but as she says, they're alive. That's something. I'm just glad that the UN and relief agencies have been given permission to go and help. Hopefully, they can do some good.

*happy dance*

[Peridot]

Oh, I'm so glad your friend is okay!   

The situation there overall appears to be worse than at first thought--similar to the tsunami that struck Indonesia a couple years back--so it is a bit of a lift to the spirits to have this one piece of good news.

Thanks for letting us know that she is allright!

Peridot

[Lord of the Sword]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24553511/

OK, first they refused the aide...Now they're accepting the aide, but using it as propaganda...and they're still not letting disaster relief experts in.

If that is their response, my response would be "Alright, deal with it yourself. There are plenty of homeless and hungry people in our own country we can give this to."

[SparkyCola]

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Edited by SparkyCola, 10 May 2008 - 10:10 AM.

[Lord of the Sword]

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Oh I'm not blaming the people. But bowing down to these generals, essentially kissing their a$$ just doesn't sit well with me. I mean, if we announced, and dropped leaflets ect, telling the people we tried to help, but the generals said no....It just might cause them to stand up for themselves and kick out their generals.

Edited to add: Please don't even get me started on how Bush handled Katrina.

Edited by Lord of the Sword, 10 May 2008 - 10:20 AM.

[SparkyCola]

^ They've tried to stand up to their military rule before. A landslide voted for a democratic party, but it didn't work. Hundreds of monks in jail later and I think it's safe to say the uprising failed, the vote was not accepted and the military rule continued regardless.

[G1223]

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans. How it was his fault that the city did nothing for 30 decades How it was His fault that the state did nothing.  Sorry those oppsed used the disaster for their propaganda ends. Remember Bush blew up the Levees, Just ask Louie Farakan.

As to Myanmar I am sorry for the people but thi time you let them suffer and use that suffering to oust those men.

[SparkyCola]

Quote

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans. How it was his fault that the city did nothing for 30 decades How it was His fault that the state did nothing.

I don't mean that, I'm referring singularly to the photo ops he chose after the event. And it's not just Bush, politicians everywhere do the exact same thing - but that's just one that came to mind.

Quote

As to Myanmar I am sorry for the people but thi time you let them suffer and use that suffering to oust those men.

wow, that's callous. Just so long as it's not YOU suffering to prove a point, it's ok, right? Because, when you've lost your family and your home...let's just say I'm sure they'll understand if you think that's a great opportunity to make a political statement, instead of helping them. They'll understand that right? When they're starving to death? Political statement- makes it worthwhile.

Sparky

[BklnScott]

G1223, on May 10 2008, 12:25 PM, said:

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans.

No we didn't.  I defy you to produce one post -- hell, even one news article -- that said "it's Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."

On the other hand, I could produce numerous links to Republican hate-mongers who say *God* made a hurricane hit New Orleans because it's gay-friendly.

[Bobby]

ScottEVill, on May 10 2008, 01:31 PM, said:

G1223, on May 10 2008, 12:25 PM, said:

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans.

No we didn't.  I defy you to produce one post -- hell, even one news article -- that said "it's Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."

On the other hand, I could produce numerous links to Republican hate-mongers who say *God* made a hurricane hit New Orleans because it's gay-friendly.

Well, Haggee said recently that he didn't know the mind of God when asked if he still believed that.  Course, that thinking disappears when a tornado hits a Baptist university here in Tennessee, God could never be pissed at them, no sir.  

People held the Federal governments lack of response against Bush.  It didn't help him any that "Brownie's" former job was as the head of a horse association of all things.    Every administration has people they give jobs to but a job that important with someone who had no qualifications for it?  Buck stops on Bush.

As for Myanmar, why send the ships there when they are refusing aid, don't waste the fuel, let them ask for it.  I actually do agree with G to a point.  Yes, we should and do want to help those people but their government won't let us.  Sometimes the people have to get fed up with a situation enough to rebel.  I know it's horrible to be crass but people have to die to get freedom.  Our founders did.   We play both sides of the fence, we say that people have to choose freedom for themselves like in Iraq.  We gave them the ability to choose democracy and they have but some see it as a puppet occupation government that will collapse if we leave.  And if you follow Hillary the only way that they'll stand on their own is to let them go, sink or swim time.  

As to Myanmar people, god bless em.

[BklnScott]

Runaway Train, on May 10 2008, 03:40 PM, said:

ScottEVill, on May 10 2008, 01:31 PM, said:

G1223, on May 10 2008, 12:25 PM, said:

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans.

No we didn't.  I defy you to produce one post -- hell, even one news article -- that said "it's Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."

On the other hand, I could produce numerous links to Republican hate-mongers who say *God* made a hurricane hit New Orleans because it's gay-friendly.

Well, Haggee said recently that he didn't know the mind of God when asked if he still believed that.

And the next day, according to the Dallas Morning News, he retracted his retraction.

Quote

People held the Federal governments lack of response against Bush.

Yes, because he stocked FEMA with crony appointments--but that's a far, far cry from saying "it was Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."  (BTW, hope everyone caught 30 Rock this week, where Matthew Broderick plays an inept crony appointed by Bush to be acting-head of FEMA.)

[SparkyCola]

Quote

Sometimes the people have to get fed up with a situation enough to rebel.

My goodness, do you know anything about Burma at all? How many times have they tried, only last year people got killed in a rebellion and the leaders got tortured to death. I think it's pretty ripe for you to act like it's their fault for not doing anything. In fact it makes me pretty angry.

Sparky

[Bobby]

ScottEVill, on May 10 2008, 03:13 PM, said:

Runaway Train, on May 10 2008, 03:40 PM, said:

ScottEVill, on May 10 2008, 01:31 PM, said:

G1223, on May 10 2008, 12:25 PM, said:

SparkyCola, on May 10 2008, 11:10 AM, said:

^ The people who got caught up in that cyclone.... it's not their fault LotS. I mean, don't punish them for the actions of the ones in power (who probably didn't lose homes or people they loved in this).

I'm sure if you ask them if they want help they'll say "YES!" - so we should try as hard as we can to help them, despite their stupid military generals.

ps - it's not as if Bush didn't use the New Orleans thing as propaganda in his favour too.

Huh we heard for month after month how it was Bush's fault that the Hurrricane hit New Orleans.

No we didn't.  I defy you to produce one post -- hell, even one news article -- that said "it's Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."

On the other hand, I could produce numerous links to Republican hate-mongers who say *God* made a hurricane hit New Orleans because it's gay-friendly.

Well, Haggee said recently that he didn't know the mind of God when asked if he still believed that.

And the next day, according to the Dallas Morning News, he retracted his retraction.

Quote

People held the Federal governments lack of response against Bush.

Yes, because he stocked FEMA with crony appointments--but that's a far, far cry from saying "it was Bush's fault that a hurricane hit New Orleans."  (BTW, hope everyone caught 30 Rock this week, where Matthew Broderick plays an inept crony appointed by Bush to be acting-head of FEMA.)

  

We agree.

[Shalamar]

"Power comes from the muzzel of a gun"

Don't remember who said it but in Butma that is the way it is - and the people don't have guns - they on a good day barely have the clothes on their back, and food in their bellies.

And the aid that is getting through is being plastered with sticker spouting the juntas propoaganda. Freaking infuriates me.

[G1223]

Now you start to see why and how this situation is impossible. And if it cannot be fixed then the effort is wasted. I am sorry if the people suffer. But they will suffer no matter what we do. These leaders are simply in need of being assassinated. Done with a force ready to step in and keep the supporters heads down or if need be put to the sword.

And till folks get this idea into their skulls then the hand wringing and simpering is rather annoying.