Charlie,
Please don't do what CNN, Fox, and our fearless leader want you to, and over-glorify the US and our troops for the "great effort" they are doing in helping "us" Tsunami victims!
Don't get me wrong, without the massive airlift and the helicopters we would be in worse shape than we are. I used to be one of those crazy young special opns guys myself in a big black bird, and I did my fair share of humanitarian service (got the ribbons too, don't you know!), so I do thank the troops. I thank them individually every time one of them crosses my path, or flys overhead. I spent a lot of time (well over the half-way point to retirement) as a soldier, and regardless that I've given up my uniform a few years back, I still feel the brotherhood with anyone in uniform. To all of you here that either served, are serving, or for that matter didn't serve because you chose not to....thanks.
It's unfortunate that the mistakes that our (the US's) administration made during the first couple days of this thing are being corrected by a major public relations campaign to make us look good in front of the world. Actually, our hearts are in it now as a population, but only because it's the en-vogue thing to do....sort of a jumping on the bandwagon thing. Sort of like the sell-outs and massive flows to Wal-Mart to buy American flags or "I support the cops!" bumper stickers in late September '01. Where are all those flags now? Are they still being displayed every morning? How many still "support the cops."
After 150,000 plus folks had died (with a projected final count at around 300,000). Wait, let me say that again, and please let it sink in......300,000 DEAD.......it sure seemed like an awful long time before someone could finally convince our Govt (I'm trying not to say our President, since I don't only blame him, he's just a man trying to do his job) to make a statement and offer help. Why, because this thing happened on the other side of the world and us folks over here don't seem to exist to most people that are busy eating an egg-mcmuffin. Well you know what? We have egg mcmuffins here too!
Anyway, we finally offered help, and what did we offer? A couple of dollars here or there (to be exact, $15 Million, which is less than we spend in "ONE MINUTE," every minute in Iraq). Now, once the world laughed in our face and Jackie Chan offered more than our President, we try to fix our flub up by making sure that everyone in the world "sees" what a great job we are doing, and how "wonderful we are." $15 million from the USA, and over $840 Million from Australia......could we step on our proverbial pee pee's a little bit more you wonder?
Every headline says "America helps" or "look at us, we are helping the most, why? because we are number one, and everyone else sucks! (so love us, and then after you love us, please support our dirty little war against aggression in Iraq)." It took 3 days for the US to even "respond" to what was happening (in a press statement) regardless that within 7 hours of this event happening, Japan, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Russia and China all had medical and emergency teams in the air, and on the way here. Seven hours response time folks....think about that.
So, now we have egg-mcmuffin on our face and we embarrassed ourselves by having more coverage of the Scott Peterson trial on our news than 300,000 dead world citizens, so what do we do.......? We do what we always do, we send two guys in suits to Bangkok to "SAVE THE WORLD!" And who do we send? Why our presidents very own brother! Why? Because he knows all about disaster because of what happened (and this was a tragedy too, so don't think I'm downplaying it) in Florida. But wait.....did we really send him due to his extensive knowledge in damage assessment, or perhaps did we send him because....HE'S THE PRESIDENTS BROTHER, AND WE NEED THE NAME "BUSH" TO BE CLEARED AGAIN?" Not only does our president care deeply for the Southeast Asians, but "his entire family does too." Why? because "America is a country full of family-value having, caring individuals. Not the rude, self-centered, heartless, uncaring, (unless it's another American that is suffering) folks that we looked like three days after the tragedy!
I'm sorry, but it was funny seeing Jeb Bush walking around surveying the damage in a black wool tailored suit that probably cost more than most folks here make in a year. This while the folks from Australia showed up in khaki's and t-shirts along with their own hard-hats in case they needed to "help" instead of just "look good."
I'll get off my horse now.....I am not criticising America, as some of you seem to think. I'm criticising the fact that the entire world is globalizing, and opening it's doors, and slowly but surely I see the US closing its. I fear that in another 50 or 100 years from now, America will have turned itself into something other than the number one country in the world. Don't think it can't happen....look at Siem Riep (some of you may know what that means), then look at Rome, and so on and so forth. Every Kingdom falls when it forgets to think outside it's gates once in awhile.
The world is moving on, and the USA seems to be moving away from the rest of the world. I see a downfall ahead and it worries me.......that's why I criticise so deeply.
I've never forgetten where I came from, and never will, but as an outsider looking in, I don't like what I see. Think hard on that folks.....
