Haiti earthquake

[Boomer.....]

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Haitians piled bodies along the devastated streets of their capital Wednesday after a powerful earthquake crushed thousands of structures, from schools and shacks to the National Palace and the U.N. peacekeeping headquarters. Untold numbers were still trapped.

President Rene Preval said he believes thousands of people were dead from Tuesday afternoon's magnitude-7.0 quake.

"Parliament has collapsed. The tax office has collapsed. Schools have collapsed. Hospitals have collapsed," Preval told the Miami Herald. "There are a lot of schools that have a lot of dead people in them."

The Roman Catholic archbishop of Port-au-Prince was among the dead, and the head of the U.N. peacekeeping mission was missing.

The international Red Cross said a third of Haiti's 9 million people may need emergency aid and that it would take a day or two for a clear picture of the damage to emerge.

Amazing that nothing has been said here about this.

Hundreds of thousands of people are believed to be dead. Horribly sad situation. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those people. :(

[soonerbrat]

it's very sad :(

[soonerhubs]

I was just reading about this. :(

[C&CDean]

I've got a cousin there doing missionary work. I'm gonna have to check on him.

[fadada1]

was watching it early this morning on the CNN. place is in ruins... LITERALLY. as if they don't have it tough enough (economically).

[Denton_Sooner]

Terrible news.

[Boomer.....]

American Red Cross Haiti outreach has begun and the organization is posting updates on how you can help on its Twitter account, Facebook page, and Disaster Online Newsroom.

The Red Cross has been posting frequent updates to Twitter. Recently, it announced that it is upping its pledge to assist in Haiti relief efforts from $200,000 to $1 million. It also tweeted an excerpt from its Skype conversation with the head of its Haiti delegation.

For those who want to help, the Red Cross is accepting donations through its International Response Fund. You can donate to this fund here.

You can also text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross relief efforts for Haiti. The amount will be added to your cell phone credit card bill.

For more information and breaking news updates, see the American Red Cross Disaster Online Newsroom.
.

[SoonerJack]

I fully expect that Haiti's neighbors to the west (Cuba) will be sending much aid and assistance.

Why couldn't this have happened to Cuba? What did Haiti ever do to anybody except be really poor. Such a sad situation.

[yermom]

they made a pact with the devil. it's all their fault, really.

true story.

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201001130024

[OklahomaTuba]

Has Jeremiah Wright posited an explanation yet?

[Okla-homey]

Sad deal. The country was already a disfunctional hell-hole, failed stated and garbage dump of epic proportions. Now its even worse. Yikes.

I just hope we don't blow a brazilian dollars of US aid money we can't afford trying to fix the place. And if the Dominicans thought they had an illegal migration of Haitians problem before...I bet they ain't seen nothing yet.:eek:

[SunnySooner]

Really hard to watch the coverage, just complete devastation, so many deaths. Hopefully the aid and rebuilding will end up helping them in the long run, but, wow, it's gonna be a long road.

[lexsooner]

It looks like the situation is really bad. It could not have happened to a more vulnerable country, poorest country in this hemisphere. The people there are certainly in my prayers. I hope this and othe countries are generous in their financial aid and other assistance.

[Half a Hundred]

Has Jeremiah Wright posited an explanation yet?

STFU. This ain't political, this is basic compassion for your fellow man. FFS.

[TUSooner]

Clever-funny comment about Rev. Pat's theory that Haiti is being punished by God for making a pact with the devil in the 1700s:

"By blaming Haitians instead of tectonic plates, Pat is generous to a fault."~~ Jerry Elea

I think they are being punished for poor building practices.

[lexsooner]

I think Americans are being punished by Pat Robertson having a tv show. Maybe we are paying for our excesses by having to endure him.

[TUSooner]

***
"By blaming Haitians instead of tectonic plates, Pat is generous to a fault."~~ Jerry Elea
****

Generous to a FAULT, get it ? It's brilliant!

<crickets chirping.......>

[jkjsooner]

And if the Dominicans thought they had an illegal migration of Haitians problem before...I bet they ain't seen nothing yet.:eek:

I went to Dominican Republic a year ago. I was amazed that Haiti could be so bad that the Dominicans appear rich to them. It's crazy.


Why couldn't this have happened to Cuba? What did Haiti ever do to anybody except be really poor. Such a sad situation.

It's sad that you would say that. I'm sure there are a lot of very nice Cubans out there whose only fault is that they were born under a dictator. Actually, it's really pathetic that you would say that.

[OklahomaTuba]

STFU. This ain't political, this is basic compassion for your fellow man. FFS.While I agree completely, I wasn't the one that posted a link to a political website.

In anycase, everyone might consider a prayer to those folks, the marines getting ready to help them out and also consider throwing a couple of quid at the Red Cross or Salvation Army. Sounds like the Church's are gearing up for the long haul on this one.

[Okla-homey]

I've got a cousin there doing missionary work. I'm gonna have to check on him.

Apparently the 82d ABN DIV CRB is enroute. Proving once again, when a ginormous mess needs rapid sorting out on the ground, paratroopers are the go-to-guys. Especially since once folks recover from the initial shock, things are sure to get violently ugly.

ATW,
Homey

[Half a Hundred]

While I agree completely, I wasn't the one that posted a link to a political website.

"He started it" quit being an argument around 9 years old for most of us.

Good call on the second paragraph. This one's about all of us.

[btk108]

Sad deal. The country was already a disfunctional hell-hole, failed stated and garbage dump of epic proportions. Now its even worse. Yikes.

I just hope we don't blow a brazilian dollars of US aid money we can't afford trying to fix the place. And if the Dominicans thought they had an illegal migration of Haitians problem before...I bet they ain't seen nothing yet.:eek:

http://www.newsok.com/obama-says-u.s.-stands-with-haiti-pledges-100m-aid/article/3432016?custom_click=headlines_widget

100 million.....do we have 100 million?

[C&CDean]

Apparently the 82d ABN DIV CRB is enroute. Proving once again, when a ginormous mess needs rapid sorting out on the ground, paratroopers are the go-to-guys. Especially since once folks recover from the initial shock, things are sure to get violently ugly.

ATW,
Homey

All the Way indeed.

I hope my 82nd brothers are all caught up on their shots before going down to that ****hole. I can't even imagine the diseases that are gonna be running rampant down there. This is the kind of duty I always dreaded. It's a no-win deal for the guys. The locals are gonna hate you cause you're American, and poor desperate people seeing an opportunity for looting, etc. (even though there ain't much down there worth looting) is going to create an issue where we start knocking the thugs' heads and then they're REALLY gonna hate us.

God bless em'.

[tommieharris91]

100 million.....do we have 100 million?

Only if China says we do. BTW, China's there giving aid too.

[Okla-homey]

http://www.newsok.com/obama-says-u.s.-stands-with-haiti-pledges-100m-aid/article/3432016?custom_click=headlines_widget

100 million.....do we have 100 million?

That's just cash. We'll spend a lot more than that. For example, that brigade of paratroopers costs about $10M a month to keep deployed. And those aren't sunk costs. That's over and above what they are paid and it costs to maintain them and their stuff back home. Factor in naval/commercial sealift for in-kind humanitarian-aid equipment and supplies, and 100M won't even touch what we'll spend altogether.

And you know what? It won't make hardly a dent in relieving the suffering.

[GKeeper316]

All the Way indeed.

I hope my 82nd brothers are all caught up on their shots before going down to that ****hole. I can't even imagine the diseases that are gonna be running rampant down there. This is the kind of duty I always dreaded. It's a no-win deal for the guys. The locals are gonna hate you cause you're American, and poor desperate people seeing an opportunity for looting, etc. (even though there ain't much down there worth looting) is going to create an issue where we start knocking the thugs' heads and then they're REALLY gonna hate us.

God bless em'.

"humanitarian" missions always made my stomach crawl, too.

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

STFU. This ain't political, this is basic compassion for your fellow man. FFS.Oh, it's political. It's going to be VERY political. just keep watching the MSM, to get your fill of political.

[thesnowbishop]

What a tragedy. My prayers to the country and the people of Haiti.

Not trying to be coy or a salesman, but I've worked with this group before in mission trips to Nicaragua: UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) has an A+ rating from charity watch.org. (Meaning, hopefully, money meets the most pressing needs.)

If you want to give, they have a direct donation page. Or send me a message for a link. Whatever you do, please pray for this country, for these people.

[TUSooner]

What a tragedy. My prayers to the country and the people of Haiti.

Not trying to be coy or a salesman, but I've worked with this group before in mission trips to Nicaragua: UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) has an A+ rating from charity watch.org. (Meaning, hopefully, money meets the most pressing needs.)

If you want to give, they have a direct donation page. Or send me a message for a link. Whatever you do, please pray for this country, for these people.

UMCOR is my United Way designee.

I just took the time to listen to some news coverage about this disaster. It's bad. God have mercy!

[Half a Hundred]

Oh, it's political. It's going to be VERY political. just keep watching the MSM, to get your fill of political.

Because some toolbags are so blinded with their all-consuming hatred of Obama that anything our government does is immediately tainted in their eyes, and some sociopaths know this and stoke the fires to their own highly-lucrative gain. America is bigger and better than that - but some of its citizens are not. Those citizens should be ashamed of themselves. I think the same of those on the left who used the Bush Administration's response to the 2004 tsunami to score political points.

Yes, I know this. I wish we were better than this - taking our political potshots while tens of thousands suffer and die.

[TUSooner]

Oh, it's political. It's going to be VERY political. just keep watching the MSM, to get your fill of political.

Boo!

[Okla-homey]

Apparently, the machete-wielding thugs have begun their wilding. Similar to our early Somalian relief efforts before that place went "hot", mountains of relief supplies are pouring in as stuff arrives faster than it can be unloaded, but with absolutely no infrastructure, the stuff sits in the Haitian sunshine with no way to get it to the folks who need it.


Gangs Armed With Machetes Loot Port-Au-Prince
Central Business District Resembles Hell On Earth As Bodies Pile Up And Armed Men Battle Over Food, Supplies

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (CBS) ― The earthquake aftermath has brought out the best and worst of the people of Haiti.

Much like the days after Hurricane Katrina, looting has become a problem very quickly.

The looting appears to be isolated to Port-au-Prince's old commercial center. It's an area that under normal circumstances would be filled with many shops, markets and a few homes. But on Wednesday it was a completely different scene.

It looked like a war zone.

Some of the buildings were on fire. Smoke was everywhere and there were bodies in the streets, many just quake victims lying where they were when the magnitude 7.0 blast hit.

What made the situation that much more tense was sightings of gangs of young men with machetes. On Wednesday they were seen getting into stores and taking all the supplies they could carry. The armed men were seen marching up and down the streets with machetes raised and the competition among the gangs turned quite fierce.

Fights between gangs were seen on the streets. Machetes were flailing and it was impossible to predict what would happen next.

There was no sign of police or any kind of law and order.

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Food is often scarce. Now, with this tragedy, desperate people are doing whatever they have to do to eat. People were seen going into stores and rubble and taking anything they could find with them for their trip back to wherever they were camping out.

There was not a single sign of relief on Wednesday. No workers, packages or bottles of water have arrived from relief agencies. There was just nothing.

And with no running water or electricity, people are getting hungry and thirsty.

The situation is dire.

If you have family in Haiti and are having trouble reaching them, the state department can help. It has set up a hotline for Americans looking for relatives there: 1-888-407-4747.

[MrJimBeam]

http://www.newsok.com/obama-says-u.s.-stands-with-haiti-pledges-100m-aid/article/3432016?custom_click=headlines_widget

100 million.....do we have 100 million?

TAXX THE BANKSS!!1!!1!!!11!!

[TheHumanAlphabet]

I have been getting all sorts of phone calls and text messages from an 832 (Houston) number on my cell. They want to help "Heyte".

Its sad and I feel for them. But you know. I think they should evacuate everyone remaining out of Haiti, find a country for them and pass them around the world to those countries that will take then in. Haiti is a failed country and has no hope of ever being prosperous. Give the land a couple of generations to recover and then reopen the country to re-colonization. Would seem to be a better solution.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Apparently, the machete-wielding thugs have begun their wilding.

Maybe these guys should go to Rwanda and be the third tribe there...

[OklahomaTuba]

Yeah, this is gonna get ugly.

Next step is dealing with the waves of Haitian refugees floating their way to Miami.

I'd say send them to the socialist countries like Cuba or Venezuela, but they're probably looking for a better situation, not a worse one.

[Okla-homey]

Yeah, this is gonna get ugly.

Next step is dealing with the waves of Haitian refugees floating their way to Miami.

I'd say send them to the socialist countries like Cuba or Venezuela, but they're probably looking for a better situation, not a worse one.

Easier to sneak into the Dominican Republic on foot. Long N/S border through the heart of island. Alternatively, 50 miles east is Puerto Rico, 50 miles west is Jamaica.

[Kimberlyz4OU]

I would take ships/aircraft carriers to the shores load the people on them - deliver them to other places and burn the island. The death and disease is going to be insane - people can't continue to inhabit it. I would love to adopt and make a difference in those childrens lives. It is so very sad what we have and take for granted on a daily basis.

[C&CDean]

I would take ships/aircraft carriers to the shores load the people on them - deliver them to other places and burn the island. The death and disease is going to be insane - people can't continue to inhabit it. I would love to adopt and make a difference in those childrens lives. It is so very sad what we have and take for granted on a daily basis.

Oh hells no. It is not sad what we have and take for granted. It is a blessing from the Lord above. Why we're blessed with what we have? No clue, but do not curse it.

And no, ships to the shore ain't gonna help a damn thing over there. People just don't understand the ghettoness/filth of that place. Those poor people have lived in conditions that most Americans can't even fathom. A little earthquake just makes the world aware of their plight. Those poor bastards will be OK. I hate to put it that way, but if you live to 60 down there, you are a bad muh****ah who knows all about survival.

Pray for them, go help them if you can, but the dead will be dead, and the living will go on living. Just pray for the health of the whole country.

[Petro-Sooner]

Heard on the evening news Danny Glover blames the quake on global warming. I kid you not.

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

Heard on the evening news Danny Glover blames the quake on global warming. I kid you not.GW was part of the reason, but also because of the way the Copenhagen Cap and Trade talks went.(if I heard correctly)

[Petro-Sooner]

Honestly I'm wondering where hes getting this ****. Hes hearing it from some loon. Global warming caused a fault to shift? Really?.................. REALLY?

I dont think I can take much more of all this nonsense.

[tommieharris91]

I would take ships/aircraft carriers to the shores load the people on them - deliver them to other places and burn the island. The death and disease is going to be insane - people can't continue to inhabit it. I would love to adopt and make a difference in those childrens lives. It is so very sad what we have and take for granted on a daily basis.

The people and government of the Dominican Republic like this idea and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

[ouwasp]

Here's an old curmudgeon for you....

The other day at work a this guy and I were talking about how bad this was...he makes the "that's too bad" comments, then says "I hope they don't expect us to bail 'em out, we're too broke as it is!"

[TUSooner]

Heard on the evening news Danny Glover blames the quake on global warming. I kid you not.

Danny Glover needs to be locked in a windowless room with Pat Robertson. Forever.

[StoopTroup]

Danny Glover needs to be locked in a windowless room with Pat Robertson. Forever.

They could broadcast the room over the internet as Pat and Danny talk about todays topics.

[Half a Hundred]

Since when does anyone give a **** what Danny Glover thinks? He hasn't been relevant since, well, ever.

[StoopTroup]

I care. Danny and Mel should do another Lethal Weapon. Is Pecsi still able to walk or did he over pasta?


http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_goBhoejcGm0/SYdX-PMTUII/AAAAAAAAHAo/QDTz681WkUs/s320/Joe+Pesci.jpg