Asian Disaster

Sara · 29-12-2004, 12:08

Quite suprised that nobody as actually mentioned the asian earthquake/tsunami disaster. Can't help feeling for them poor people it must be a living nightmare for them, and there's us complaining about a bit of snow. The death toll is quite devastating, it just seems to keep going up and up with no sign of slowing down. The UN reckon it will could double if you include the diseases they are expecting due to sanitation and no drinking water. I just hope they get as much help that is needed for them to recover, as quickly as possible.

Gobsmacked · 29-12-2004, 12:24

It's almost too enormous to contemplate isn't it Sara? I think sometimes bringing it into perspective by seeing a few individuals and how their lives have been devastated by loss of friends/family/homes/possessions sometimes helps.

Similarly with the 9/11 tragedy. So hard to know how to react or what to say.

I have seen messages on other boards where the reaction has been "It isn't us so why should we care" and I find it very difficult to understand such a reaction.

Sara · 29-12-2004, 13:33

Quite right Gobsmacked, it is to enormous to comtemplate, and the people that say 'It isn't us so why should we care' all i can say is they must be heartless bast**ds.

janet · 29-12-2004, 15:23

It is devasting what as happened i have been watching a lot on sky news. It makes feel very lucky that i live in this country even though i do slag it off a lot of the time.You have to feel very sorry for the people in asia, makes you think how gratefull we should be with the riches we have.

WillowTheWhisp · 29-12-2004, 17:05

There are British holiday makers involved too so it isn't as if it doesn't affect this country. I cannot understand how anyone can fail to be moved. I watched some news footage and it was frightening.

Margaret Pilkington · 29-12-2004, 19:32

It is hard to know what to say......all the platitudes in the world don't alter a single thing. Nature is a wild beast. I suppose all we can do is be very thankful that it didn't happen to us, and if we are in a position to do so, donate to one of the charities who are trying to help those unfortunate people to pick up the threads. And if you have any religion, pray for those who lost their lives......and for their families to be given the strength to cope.

Doug · 29-12-2004, 21:00

Although I agree with your sentiments theirs not a lot anyone can say. This is a tragedy that could not be foreseen and tonight with the total racing towards One Hundred thousand souls there is little we can do other than contribute to the needs of the aid agencies and prey for those left clinging to what’s left of life out there. I would encourage every one to make donations directly to the main agencies like the British Red Cross and Save the Children or through the Foreign Office. Those that have little money or nothing financially to give I am sure that your thoughts and prayers will be just as important. Others can always help further when the Asian Community makes local requests for food parcels or clothing. Last but not least this is a time for putting race and religion aside. For those who may have lost people or know some of those who have lost someone you have my utmost sympathies….

WillowTheWhisp · 30-12-2004, 09:56

I've just read the front pages of today's newspaper and it makes me feel so helpless.

As Doug says we can all do something however little by donating to the aid agencies. I cannot imagine what it must be like out there.

One thing which really touched me was the bit which says that despite their own terrible losses the people were doing all they could to help the holiday makers too. In times of need barriers come down and people just help other people. This is how it should be.

I wish I could do more. I see the pictures of those little children lost and alone, scavenging for food and drinking stagnant water and I feel so useless here. I want to be able to put my arms round them and just love and help them. If a little money that I can spare can help at least that's something. if we all give a little it mounts up. I don't think anything this bad has ever happened before in my lifetime.

Acrylic-bob · 30-12-2004, 10:23

This is going to sound really horrible and cynical, but here goes....
How about Bagladesh, Rwanda, Cambodia, North Korea, Sudan, Ethiopia, to name but a few.

Certainly the disaster is large, and is a smack in the face for the civilised west, but the world has endured larger disasters, coped and carried on. What is perhaps more shocking about this one is that it is a natural disaster. And what perhaps is more shocking still, is that there are worse disasters to come as a result of our greed and complacent misuse of natural resources.

What happens when Sea levels begin to rise as a result of Global Warming? Where will the population of Bangladesh go when the sea covers it completely? We worry about and resent the levels of immigration we have to endure at the moment, but how will we cope with many hundreds of millions of refugees?

WillowTheWhisp · 30-12-2004, 10:30

All of the above are tragic A-b and I'm not going to enter into an argument about what is or isn't worse than any other.

The sea won't only cover Bangladesh it will make a bit of a mess of East Anglia and The Wash too, not to forget Holland. Will the sea defences be able to hold it back? I have no idea.

I don't personally resent immigrants, I only resent immigrants who expect me to live their lifestyle rather than trying to adapt to ours, even then "resent" may not be the right word.

I'm not sure if this is the biggest disaster ever, the newspapers say we haven't even got the tip of the iceberg yet because there will be many more deaths from disease etc due to children drinking from rivers where corpses are floating. I cannot beging to imagine that. I complain about the taste of water from my tap.

Sometimes I think I am just far too self-centred.

Acrylic-bob · 30-12-2004, 10:46

I quite agree Willow. The threat of disease is probably the most frightening thing about this. Avian flu is a disease waiting for a suitable vector. Epidemiologists speak of 'when' not 'if' it spreads. It looks as though this might just be the opportunity it has been looking for. If that becomes a pandemic I shudder to think of the millions who will die before a vaccine becomes available. What is it that the ancient chinese used to say... May you be cursed to live in interesting times. it looks as though 2005 is shaping up to be an interesting year.

Doug · 30-12-2004, 10:56

The difference here is scale. To add a little perspective, if an earth quake of this scale was to occur off the south coast of Iceland this would be happening to us.

Acrylic-bob · 30-12-2004, 11:01

And, presumably, the east coasts of Canada and the United States. By the time the tidal wave arrived there the devastation would be of truly biblical proportions

WillowTheWhisp · 30-12-2004, 12:01

and how do we know it won't happen?

All those prophetic disasters seem far too possible these days. Or is it just that news travels faster so we get to hear about things?

Acrylic-bob · 30-12-2004, 12:14

Have a look here, there's lots of news about the tidal wave but there are other equally as harrowing stories too...

http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf