Does it even count as news at this point?

[sabotabby]

The U.S.: Still killing Haïtians.

Speaking of which, if you're American, here's where your aid money is going:

Each American dollar roughly breaks down like this:
42 cents for disaster assistance
33 cents for U.S. military aid
nine cents for food
nine cents to transport the food
five cents for paying Haitian survivors for recovery efforts
just less than one cent to the Haitian government
about half a cent to the Dominican Republic.

And if you're Canadian, don't feel smug. The always-problematic CIDA is emphasising foreign policy considerations in its aid strategies. Which it always did, of course, but expect Canadian foreign aid to be even more nakedly imperialist than it was before.

They're going to turn Haïti into a bloody resort for Westerners, over the corpses of 200,000 Haïtians. That's what they're talking about when they say "rebuilding."

Comments

[hopita.livejournal.com]

Do you have suggestions for where a better place to donate might be?

[sabotabby]

This is foreign aid, so if you're donating privately, it's an entirely different matter. Transparent and effective NGOs (Partners in Health, MSF), places like the SOPUDEP school, and groups with strong ties to Haïtian grassroots organizations like Haïti Emergency Relief Fund are all good.

[shelestel.livejournal.com]

Which is why saying "this is where your aid money goes" is very confusing. Agitprop all the way, you.

[fengi.livejournal.com]

I saw that earlier and found some local coverage indicating it's some sort of pissing contest between Florida state government, the feds and the army - and several spokespeople tried to hint it was the hospitals saying no, and it was a lie.

[sabotabby]

It's also part of a broader emphasis on establishing "security" as a higher priority than saving lives.

[numb3r-5ev3n.livejournal.com]

Well, this is depressing. Is it okay for me to be officially sickened now? The bake sale I atended the other day was giving the money to Oxfam. Would it be naive to hope they are actually getting the money to the people who need it?

[ironed_orchid]

Oxfam is international and independently audited. Approximately 75% of a donation goes to where it is intended. [disclaimer, I work for Oxfam Austalia].

[pope-guilty.livejournal.com]

Yay for you!

[sabotabby]

I'm talking about state foreign aid, not donations to charities and NGOs. So it's not that naïve to hope that your private donations are getting where they should go. Your tax dollars, on the other hand...

[ironed_orchid]

And people have the nerve to complain that the Haitians aren't going to use that money responsibly.

[sabotabby]

Because the Haïtian government is corrupt, don't ya know? Because the last time they elected a leader who wasn't, we kidnapped him.

[lienne.livejournal.com]

asdlkghjfdj

Why is nothing humanity does ever just good? Where do people get off fucking around with something as ethically unambiguous as "natural disaster killing lots of people pls halp"? What will it take to get us to stop shitting on them?

[sabotabby]

There's a long tradition of white people shitting all over Haïti. Why stop now, I guess?

[lienne.livejournal.com]

Ugh. I want to be an idealist, but people keep being such douchenozzles.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

Does it help donating to places like unicef? my mobile phone (Orange) asked me to so I did.
It would probably be better in the long run to find somewhere to donate to help with things like prosthetic limbs and physio etc for all the people who have had to have limbs amputated. It is horrific.

[sabotabby]

I'm not sure about Unicef specifically, but it helps doing private donations. Because your tax dollars to foreign aid are probably just going to be used to kill people.

[rbowspryte.livejournal.com]

Can I share this post with others BTW? I'm so pissed at the Haiti situation, then and now.

[(Anonymous)]

Of course!

[sabotabby]

That was me.

[shelestel.livejournal.com]

Many third world countries get a lot of money from tourism, so it may not be such a bad idea.

[sabotabby]

You should look into that a little more.

[ironed_orchid]

Seriously

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

I just... I... can't believe you're suggesting that Canada is being so horrible to Haiti. We're a good, charitable country trying to offer Haitians a helping hand. Is it our fault that they have nice beaches?

[sabotabby]

They have nice beaches? I thought those were our beaches that somehow got put in Haïti.

[ironed_orchid]

You saw this bullshit, right?

[sabotabby]

Yeah. They keep talking about looting in Haïti, presumably referring to desperate people trying to eat. The real looting in Haïti is this sort of thing.

[ironed_orchid]

Fuckers.

Some good discussion of how fucked up it ius and why on karnythia's post.

[orpheus42.livejournal.com]

I kept saying this sort of thing on Facebook and got tired of dealing with all the fucktards who don't have a clue. That and my internet access (at least with a computer, I can't do involved discussions on my phone, it pisses me off) isn't consistent enough to deal with it. I honestly can't believe people don't see how fucked up it is that we've basically put millions of black Haitians in a position where they have to go to (mostly white) Americans with machine guns to get the things they need to live.

Heh, my dad sent me a nice email over one of my posts talking about what a dick Chavez is because I mentioned that Venezuela's immediate response was more effective and ethical than that of the US. Never mind that Haiti-Venezuela ties go all the way back to Bolivar. *facepalm*

[mendaciloquent.livejournal.com]

They're going to turn Haïti into a bloody resort for Westerners, over the corpses of 200,000 Haïtians. That's what they're talking about when they say "rebuilding."

I thought it was pretty funny when they put Clinton at the head of the assistance effort -- turning Haiti into a militarized tourist trap / sweatshop has been a wet dream of his for quite a while. Anyway, the earthquake probably saved George Soros millions in demolition costs. I'm picturing a reopened Club Med, brand-new golf courses, waterfront timeshares, maybe a few new garment factories...

[sabotabby]

That's pretty much what I've heard is going to happen.