Catastrophe in Haiti

haitisupport.org...man here in the Vi can testify...

"University Community Responding to Haiti Earthquake

Members of the UVI Community are organizing a response to Tuesday’s earthquake, which visited terrible death and destruction to the Virgin Islands’ Caribbean neighbors in Haiti.

UVI’s Reichhold Center has initiated a Haiti relief collection effort in collaboration with the Student Government Association on the St. Thomas campus. Canned goods and clothing can be dropped off at the Reichhold Center beginning on Friday, Jan. 15, at the start of the Soweto Gospel Choir concert. Goods will continue to be collected at the Reichhold Center on Saturday, Jan. 16, from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. and next week, as staffing allows.

Members of the ad-hoc relief drive have also contacted the executive director of the Red Cross in the Virgin Islands to coordinate the University’s efforts with any overall plans.

The University’s contribution to the relief effort is expected to broaden over the coming days to include the entire UVI community. Additional details will be announced as they are finalized."

Any drop off center on St Croix for donations that anyone knows of?

...UVI’s Reichhold Center has initiated a Haiti relief collection effort in collaboration with the Student Government Association on the St. Thomas campus. Canned goods and clothing can be dropped off at the Reichhold Center beginning on Friday, Jan. 15...

Donated goods are impractical because they must be delivered to Haiti, stored when they arrive, and distributed without creating additional frenzy, a financial and logistical burden for which I doubt the UVI Student Government Association has planned. Relief organizations have requested individuals give CASH donations only. Businesses and governments are welcome to donate some goods (like gross quantities of body bags, and MREs.) Volunteer help is also welcome on Haiti, provided the volunteers have at least ten years of experience in some area of disaster management i.e. water systems expert, body sniffing dog handler, etc.

Individuals who so desire can text "HAITI" to "90999" and a $10 donation to the Red Cross to help with Haiti earthquake relief efforts will be charged to your cell phone bill.

"The cell phone may be one of the big heroes in a campaign to donate money for relief efforts in earthquake-ravaged Haiti. In the United States, more than $1 million was raised Wednesday via text-messages sent to organizations like the American Red Cross..."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34850532/ns/technology_and_science-wireless/

i think donating money is the way to go. at least for now. i have things i can give but money is probably more needed now and will get their quicker.

Do you think the red cross is the best one?

Bill Clinton said yesterday you could send it to him and he would see it got there. hummmmm!!

Hey DixieChick,
Former United States of America President Bill Clinton, who is now the special envoy for the United Nations in Haiti, When speaking at the UN General assembly he added that people could also donate through the website of his Clinton Foundation at:
www.clintonfoundation.org/haitiearthquake

I Hope the above statement is enough to satisfy your satirical hummmm!

hey i like bill clinton. didn't mean it to sound satirical. sorry. sure bill will see money gets there.

thanks for the web site

I just sent $10 to 90999... it was easy. I think they're up to $3M. If 300M Americans each sent in $10, that would be $3B... that's got to help a little bit.

BTW, I haven't heard how far away it was felt... 7.0 is a really strong earthquake.

The quake was not felt here in STX...

how about this creep: Pat Robertson "True Story" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUd0U-ZZZgw&feature=rec-fresh+div-r-7-HM

This is the same man who called for the assassination of the President of Venezuela. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-22-robertson-_x.htm

We had this conversation here in this forum some months ago. It is a United States Federal crime to aid, assist, abet, encourage, or participate, actively or passively, in a conspiracy to murder a foreign citizen. Gerald Ford issued Executive Order 11905, which says, in part, "No employee of the United States Government shall engage in, or conspire to engage in, political assassination."

Robertson is either (1) encouraging employees of the United States Government to violate an Executive Order (which has the force of law) to engage in, or conspire to engage in, political assassination, or (2) encouraging others to commit the crime. In either case, he has committed a felony and should be charged.

As a matter of law, participating in a conspiracy to commit a crime is the same as committing the crime itself and carries the same penalty.

It is one thing to express an opinion, regardless of how inane, objectionable, immature, and historically inaccurate it may be, as are his comments about Haiti. It is quite another to participate in a criminal conspiracy.

Just a little perspective.

Robertson isn't an employee of the US Government so I'm not sure how Gerald Ford's Executive Order 11905 applies. Further, I think the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution likely trumps an executive order such as this one.

I'm not defending Roberson's point of view by any means, just his right to have it. That is what the U.S. is all about. Fortunately his right to speak doesn't mean the rest of us have to listen.

Sean

Just saw this moments ago - AT&T Wireless customers have donated $2.63 million to the Red Cross to provide food, shelter, counseling and more. AT&T updated their systems to make AT&T text messages sent to Haiti relief efforts free of charge. This change will be retroactive — it will cover those who donated Wednesday. $5.2 million total has been raised from all the people texting HAITI to 90999.

I've also heard that American Airlines is also trying to land some planes with relief supplies. Does anyone else remember how outstanding American Airlines was after Hugo....

These people are not getting enough help. It is Katrina all over again times 10. Too late and too little. So heart breaking. I wish I had a huge ship and could go there and scoop up all those poor children.

Haiti's needs, even before the earthquake, have been greater than what the rest of the world can provide, and historically their conditions for accepting help have effectively excluded many avenues of assistance. Aid is arriving as quickly as humanly possible, which is never quick enough when circumstances are dire. The pier and harbor are unsafe for ships, there is only one runway and it has been operating 24/7 since it was inspected and deemed safe, and the Dominican Republic has helped facilitate safe road travel between the countries. Relief efforts are greatly hampered by homegrown thugs, and the extra steps that are necessary to protect the safety of aid workers, which is of paramount importance if disaster relief agencies want manpower willing to assist with the next disaster. I don't think the U.S. response to Haiti's current crisis has fallen short in any way so far -- I've actually been impressed with the response from our government, our industries, and individual Americans.

dntw8up, I agree completely. I wasn't expressing disappointment or in anyway upset with the response of the world. I understand that the infastructure or lack thereof that exsist in Hati has hampered rescue efforts. I have family on those Navy ships that have responded from Virginia and I want them to be safe. I just feel sad and wish that there was something more I could do.

What happened in the Dominican Republic? I have not heard anything about that side of the island.

Sean, Just be be clear, what I said was, "Robertson is either (1) encouraging employees of the United States Government to violate an Executive Order (which has the force of law) to engage in, or conspire to engage in, political assassination, or (2) encouraging others to commit the crime. In either case, he has committed a felony and should be charged."

Robertson is not violating the Executive Order; rather he is doing either (1) or (2), above. His crime is not in violating the order; it is in aiding, abetting, or inducing another to commit a crime. Given his popularity, it is reasonable to expect that some person may be influenced by his speech.

As to what trumps what, it is a common misconception that the first Ten Amendments to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, especially the First and Second Amendments, are absolutes.

More than 200 years of Supreme Court decisions confirm that no right is absolute. Even though the free speech clause of the First Amendment says, "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech...", Congress and states routinely do make such laws. The test of the Constitutionality of such laws is whether or not the state (read any level of government) has a "compelling interest" in abridging the behavior. The state does have a compelling interest in deterring one person from inciting another into committing a criminal act.

So even though Pat Robertson is not directly bound to observe the Executive Order, he is bound to obey the laws as they are recorded in Federal and state criminal statutes. (All criminal charges must be based on written law.)

I agree we don't have to listen. Unfortunately, many do listen and, as we have seen with the clinic murders, take the kind of action that Robertson called for. Think of the men who heard Henry II say about Thomas Beckett, ""Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest?"

I am encouraged to hear that the comments of Robertson and Limbaugh about Haiti and the Haitian people have been condemned by public officials from the left and from the right.

From a former prosecutor and staunch defender of free speech,

Edward

An executive order does not have the force and immutability of law and is subject to change by the President. It is not an effective legal obstacle to assassination, but rather is only a visible symbol of policy and a mechanism to ensure that the authority to initiate an assassination attempt resides with the President alone.

Pat Robertson Statement as Reported;

We have the ability to take (Chavez) out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability.

The " I think" is not actionable in a court of law in the USA. Also his statement could be considered a plea to The President.

Regadless of the legalities, I can only imagine how we would feel if some other government was plotting to assassinate our leader. Why even go there?

LindaJ,
Pat Robertson isn't the Govt of the USA. Your question of "Why even go there?" would best and only be answered by Pat Robertson.

donated last night when Larry King was doing the Telethan. Tried the UNICEF phone no. and it came up Bob Villa heaters. some guy tried to sell me a heater. and i know i had the right no. ....finally called red cross.

What happened in the Dominican Republic? I have not heard anything about that side of the island.

This has been on my mind quite a bit. I know there is historically bad blood between the DR and Haiti. I have heard very little though of the DR helping out which is surprising as logistically it makes sense. For instance, I keep hearing the PAP airport is overwhelmed, why can't food supplies go into Santo Domingo or Santiago and then be trucked to Haiti? Am I oversimplifying?

Sean