Hey!! Government and Muslims of Indonesia.......
.......Here's one from a stingy, selfish American.
Gee, where the hell were you when we had people suffering from loss in the hurricanes in Florida? Where are you now with the people who are suffering losses in California? Matter of fact where are any of you people when this country has a natural disaster?
WHO'S STINGY AND SELFISH NOW?!?!?!?
Gee, where the hell were you when we had people suffering from loss in the hurricanes in Florida? Where are you now with the people who are suffering losses in California? Matter of fact where are any of you people when this country has a natural disaster?
WHO'S STINGY AND SELFISH NOW?!?!?!?
posted by Red at 10:09 PM
5 Comments:
Hey Anon-
Maybe you didn't hear about Indonesia. They have one of the highest number of victims from the tsunami. Americans, who seem to always come to the aid of other countries in distress, yet are never compensated for during their own times of natural disaster distress, have gone to Indonesia to offer aid in the form of food and money. We were called stingy and selfish by the rest of the world, yet Indonesia is demanding we leave.
If we do leave, then we will be criticised for not caring and being stingy and selfish.
The world always seems to look to us for help, but at the same time criticises us for being able to do so.
So my question would be- WHICH IS IT?
I say we just get the hell out of every where- close the borders and let the rest of you whiners fend for yourselves and see how long that lasts.
Get yer head out of the sand.
Americans aren't any more arrogant, selfish, stingy or self-important than any other country in the world.
Yet we are also compassionate enough to help when there is a disaster such as the tsunami.
I can admit that we have an ego--we earned it.
I can also admit that in other matters mistakes have been made.
I'm only guessing that your not an American- but if you are- you're still not an American.
I respectfully admit that you thought the situation through somewhat more than was demonstrated in your first blog. However, I believe your new observations lack some context, which further perpetuates this "spoiled" syndrome that is the symptom of much of our western world (in my effort to expand the American colonial borders).
That context has to do with a couple, again, fundamental, things:
Americans make more per capita than much of the rest of the world. In terms of Gross Domestic Product, you also make more than any other country on the face of the globe. Money, as a fact of U.S. colonialism unfortuantely makes the world go round. Traditional countries are currently adjusting to this reality in an attempt to overcome influencing conditions (eg. geographical) which they, themselves did not have a hand in creating.
In short, the U.S. has money and power, Indonesia (comparatively) does not. If you want capitalism and democracy to stick around so you can keep it that way, you have an international responsibility to help countries that are in an adjustment stage. Certainly not to, as you put it, "get the hell out of every where- close the borders and let the rest of you whiners fend for yourselves and see how long that lasts." We, friend, are not whining, rather trying to make you see something you are blind to. We don't blame you. It's a geographical condition just like the one Indonesia finds itself in. You cannot elevate your humanity above everyone else's. Ego does not belong in the realm of international development, compassion, or human rights.
Having money also means that if you suffer a natural disaster, you have a responsibiliy to help yourself before debt-owing countries (countries that owe you money) contribute to your cause. It's just common sense.
As a country with a high muslim population, it is also common sense that Indonesia would not want a U.S. presence any more than you, or perhaps another in your country, would want Iraq (were the situation reversed) to help you. To think about this past the "screw you, we're trying to help you" mentality, think about this: Why, when a country's people is suffering so much would they STILL not want you there? That speaks to the depth and magnitude of their difficulty with the world the United States is trying so badly to influence.
To your question "WHICH IS IT?" - my answer is to save the information I've given you and spread it around so that you can make an INFORMED choice. You don't have to ask whether or not to help or not to help. The fact that you're asking is probably what shames you most.
To your use of the word "stingy", I wish to point out that Kuwait, Norway, Australia, Germany, and Canada among other nations, spent far more per person than you did. Let me spell it out clearly - here is a random sampling of the top contributors arranged from highest per capita (per person) contribution to lowest:
Kuwait, $120 million, $53.23 per person
Australia, $1 billion, $50.22 p/p
Norway, $222 million, $48.53 p/p
Denmark, $94 million, $17.36 p/p
Finland, $81 million, $15.53 p/p
Canada, $425 million, $13.07 p/p
Sweden, $98 million, $10.91 p/p
Germany, $806 million, $10.08 p/p
United Arab Emirates, $24.5 million, $9.77 p/p
United States, $432 million, $1.47 p/p
Get YER head out of the sand: you are no more compassionate than any other first world country even though you have the means to be. You haven't earned your ego yet. I hope you will though, before our conversation is over. It will be to the benefit of humankind.
Wow!! Condesention reigns!!
Cheery-o! Good fellow(or lady)!!
You, of course, also know that the figure given is primarily funds given by the *government* and not the citizens. You average out the amounts in per person dollars, but that is a bit of a skew on facts because money and time are still being donated and I would guess that the final figures won't be tallied for some time and will be quite a bit higher.
We do take care of ourselves. I cite the 9/11 attacks as an example. Private citizens raised millions of dollars for the families who lost loved ones to help them take care of loose ends and to make sure their children got good educations. The same goes for soldiers who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Now, let me say this: The original post was intended as a tongue-in-cheek essay. True, it may seem a bit on the tasteless side, but it got your attention.
Consider this:
The U.S. knows how Muslims feel about us(I know, not *all* Muslims), yet *we* overlooked those differences to help these people. As egotistical as we may seem, we do have the ablility to give one the benefit of the doubt, and to a fault sometimes. Isn't it interesting that these Muslims(for the sake of debate) cannot find it in their hearts or souls to accept a good will offering and that an act of kindness towards them only makes them want to kill(sic) us more?
The problem seems to me to be that most people are too stuck on their anger or hurt or misinformation to work towards a common goal.
Is it easier to ride the current and just go where the stream goes or to paddle against the current and accomplish things that those riding the current will never accomplish?
Obviously, the previous is easier, but what is the reward? You've done little, if any, work and achieved the same as everyone else.
Why not put a little effort into it and give to those in need?
There is a much greater reward in caring and loving your fellow human than there will ever be in just letting things remain as they are.
This reflects on my post about education. It makes me think of an old CSN&Y song: "Teach Your Children Well".
I regret that I may have strayed a bit, but the whole point is: Forget who gave how much, but ask why the people we want to help are so against being helped.
I may have some of the "American Ego" in me(since I am American),but I am not so blind to see that the people(not necessarily the government) of this country give because they care.
P.S. If I needed assistance and could get over my own
ego and pride, I would accept aid from whomever
gave it. If they were to put conditions on it or
kill me after, than I'm pretty sure it would be a
major strike against them in the end. Also, I
have no qualms toward the Iraqi people. They are
not who we are fighting. The majority of the
terrorists over there are Saudi, Iranian or
otherwise. The general Iraqi populace is glad we
are there and ridding their country of the bad
guys. I have the privlage of working with a
soldier who was over there for a year who tells me
that they were welcomed most everywhere they went.
Thank you. If I came off as condescending, I apologize. I do understand that the figure given is primarily funds given by government and not citizens, because that is what is measurable. I suppose it is important to point out that there is no way of knowing what the final figure will be, so we are unfortunately limited to the knowledge of the present.
Indeed, you must take care of yourselves as part of your international responsibility, including that of the 9/11 attacks. The attacks were a terrible event, and engineered to be of great spectacle, but to donate some measure of perspective, the attacks were nothing on the humanitarian scale of something such as the Tsunami or of other wars currently going on in areas such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (by far the greatest ongoing conflict since WWII), a direct result of American unintervention in the Rwandan Genocide. But I do not wish to conflate issues.
I do wish, however, to call attention to your quote,
"the original post was intended as a tongue-in-cheek essay. True, it may seem a bit on the tasteless side, but it got your attention." To resort to such tastelessness to get attention is unfortunate, but I am happy to read your aknowledgement of this.
Finally, I wonder if a re-read of the following quote while putting it in the context of your initial blog post might illuminate how one such as myself read it initially: "The problem seems to me to be that most people are too stuck on their anger or hurt or misinformation to work towards a common goal."
As Kenneth Burke says, "an attitude is preparation for an act." Tongue-in-cheek or not, the underlying attitude is what is most unsettling about the initial blog, especially given your comment as to how "unamerican" it might be to have a different opinion. For a country so concerned with "freedom," it seems quaintly limiting to have pressure put on another human being as to how American they may or may not be. I just hope it's not (however likely) a direct consequence of the American flag being flapped consistantly on Foxnews or in the bottom corner of CNN or because Bush says that's what being American is.
Read the Constitution. That's what being American is *supposed* to be. Too bad too many people consider it a "living" document. It was never meant to be any such thing. Being American does include waving the flag. It means being patriotic and strong. It means pride in your nation.
On the other hand, unfortunately, lately, it means that your country is responsible for everything that happens everywhere. It means being a scapegoat for enviromental problems- real and imagined. There were actually some enviromentalists I heard about somewhere in the world that were hinting that maybe we were responsible for the tsunami! No lie. It's what I heard anyway, from a reputable source.
Sorry to digress.
Please don't try to shrink me.
Yeah, there's some anger there- I won't deny that. The people of this country are not bad people. The people I personally have dealt with from New York to Texas, are, in general, great people. There are some bad apples, but that is true no matter where you go. To really know the people of this country, you have to get out among them. Not just the big cities. Get out in the country. The midwest, the midsouth, the heartland. You can't judge this country's population by what you get from Fox News or CNN. To fall into that trap only reinforces my point about the laziness inherit in the world today.
For a long time I have believed in a somewhat bastadrized rule of life. I believe it was taken from either Nietsche(sp?) or Jung or both. It goes like this: Believe none of what you read; Believe some of what you hear; Believe most of what you see.
Now then- I understand that my government has done some questionable things from time to time. I also understand that many governments around the world have done questionable things from time to time.
I also understand that I, myself, have done some questionable things from time to time and I also understand that a good share of the people of the world have more than likely done questionable things from time to time. This is not to say that that makes it alright. It's to say that man is not infallable and will inevitably do something questionable at any given moment in time.
I go back to my point in my previous reply that it is easy to remember the bad stuff, but why is the good stuff never clung to and concentrated on?
One explanation would be that goodness builds confidence which in turn builds individuality, which builds power, which builds fear in others who just want to get that power without having to do too much work(which is unlikely to happen). So, if you constantly remind people of all the bad stuff going on, whether it's their fault or not, it will suppress their will and confidence, which in turn builds lack of self esteem, which in turn builds the fear necessary to control the masses. So, you must be sure to keep hacking away at the will of the people and keep feeding them bad news and gloom and eventually they will give up and give in. There are many third world nations where this is true. However, this is what makes America such a great country. The will of the people is stronger than the will of those who would crush it. This includes most of the electronic and print media from foreign nations and from this one. There are many groups within this country alone that would love to see it fall to anyone but America. I believe that that will not happen. I see everyday how people are not listening to opinionated media and they are calling their bluff. Viewership of the Big 3 Network news and certain cable news networks is way down these days.
So, I think this country is finally becoming fed up with taking the blame for too many things that it did not do and for things that have been so stretched and bent out of shape that they no longer resemble the truth.
You illustrate my point to a "t". You talk about the war(s) in the Congo and how it is a result of American un-intervention. We can't win. If we intervened, do realise the reprocussions it would cause. But if we stay out, then we're just as bad.
You truly have to pick your battles. Whether your one person or one government.
Actually, the fact that I said that my post got your attention due to it's content is more of a compliment to you than an insult. You cared enough to respond- regardless of your original and/or continued intent. There may be hope for you yet!! ;^)
The underlying intent of the whole thing was to vent about something that made me upset. Again, tongue-in-cheek, or perhaps sarcasism would be a better word.
The common goal I am in favor of is "local". I would like my country/government to unite in such a way as to let the rest of the world know that enough is enough.
I truly cannot fathom how people can hate and kill one another for centuries just because they have a different name for their god. On second thought, I guess I do have a bit of a grip on it as I have repeatedly stated it as far as what's easy and what's not.
As for being un-American, I think I covered that with my point about the Constitution and those who are citizens but would still rejoice if the country fell.
If you live in my house, you live by my rules. If I lived in your house, I would have little choice but to live by your rules.
Our problem is, we don't have enough people enforcing those rules.
I've gone on long enough.
I was only going to be here for utility reasons to try to figure out what to do about my graphics. The place I'm storing the files won't let me link them anywhere, so it looks like I'll have to come up with another plan.
I have enjoyed our on- going debate. Feel free to keep it going if you wish. I can't guarantee as quick of responses after Tuesday. I've been off work for medical reasons, but will be going back Wednesday and I will probably only get around here on the weekends.
If you have a blog of your own, I'd love to visit. If you want, post the address here or send it to redbundy66@hotmail.com.
Cheers!!
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