Comment by Debby Bruck on January 13, 2010 at 10:39am

If there was a system in place where the U.N., The Red-Cross, Oxfam and other aid agencies were trained and supplied with homeopathic remedies, books and care kits there could be assistance using Emergency Homeopathy.

Haiti Earthquake: Thousands Feared Dead

Neal Walker, Sky News Online

Thousands of people are feared dead after a powerful earthquake struck Haiti's capital, leaving tens of thousands homeless and buried beneath rubble.

The dead and injured lay in the streets of Port-au-Prince after the earthquake hit the impoverished Caribbean country, toppling buildings including the presidential palace.

The Red Cross and United Nations have unlocked emergency funds and mobilised supplies for a "massive" aid operation amid fears of huge devastation.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said it was gearing up to help a "maximum of three million people".

The headquarters of the UN's Haiti peacekeeping missionwere seriously damaged, and the organisation says at least five people died in the building when the quake hit.

Missing UN chief Hedi Annabi

 

The French foreign minister says the head of the UN mission, Tunisian Hedi Annabi, appears to have died in the earthquake.

Bernard Kouchner told French radio that "everyone who was in the building is apparently dead".

The quake, measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale, is said to be the most powerful to hit Haiti in more than 200 years.

It took just 60 seconds for the quake to destroy large parts of Port-au-Prince, just 10 miles from the epicentre of the tremor.

As darkness fell last night, screams could be heard coming from victims still trapped in the debris of buildings across Port-au-Prince.

Residents on the impoverished island used flashlights to try and find the injured and dead.

Thousands of people gathered in public squares late into the night, singing hymns and weeping, with many seriously injured people sitting in the streets pleading for doctors.

Karel Zelenka, a Catholic Relief Services representative in Port-au-Prince, said "there must be thousands of people dead".

At least one of the capital's hospitals collapsed in the quake, burying many patients.

Medicins Sans Frontieres' trauma hospital, a 60-bed centre and one of the only free-of-charge surgical facilities in Port-au-Prince, was seriously damaged by the quake.

 

Shock: Minutes after the aftermath victims post pictures on Twitter

 

 

The organisation says it is "deeply concerned" for the safety of its staff and patients, and will be deploying additional staff to the country in the coming days.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said the earthquake had a "devastating" impact on Port-au-Prince, and said he plans to visit the area as soon as possible.

US President Barack Obama said his "thoughts and prayers" were with the people of Haiti and pledged immediate aid.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the US would provide both military and civilian disaster assistance to the Caribbean country.

Gordon Brown said he was "deeply saddened and worried" about the reported scale of the earthquake. Britain has sent a team from the Department for International Development (DFID) to assess Haiti's humanitarian needs, as well as teams of search and rescue officers and sniffer dogs.

The Prime Minister added: "We stand ready to provide whatever humanitarian assistance may be required."

Development Secretary Douglas Alexander told the House of Commons that Britain is ready to play its part "as part of the international community to aid the relief effort in Haiti".

As the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti is ill-equipped to respond to such a disaster.

Aid agencies are preparing a major disaster relief effort in Haiti.

International Red Cross spokesman Simon Schorno says the agency is sending a relief team to help hospitals deal with casualties.

Schorno said Haitian Red Cross staff are "completely overwhelmed", and that there is little or no coordinated aid effort at this point.

An injured man in the street
The US Fund for Unicef launched an urgent appealfor emergencyassistance to aid the victims.

Oxfam said in a statement posted on its website that it was "poised to respond" to the earthquake.

Kristie van de Wetering, a former Oxfam employee still based in Port-au-Prince, said in a statement on the Oxfam website: "There is a blanket of dust rising from the valley south of the capital.

"We can hear people calling for help from every corner. The aftershocks are ongoing and making people very nervous."

Pope Benedict XVI called for a generous response to the "tragic situation" in Haiti.

Comment by Debby Bruck on January 13, 2010 at 10:43am

Please note that the way news travels fast is through SKYPE [see video on the website link] and Twitter.

MASHABLE SHOWS PHOTOS SWEEPING ACROSS THE INTERNET VIA TWITTER

An outpouring of well wishes and support for the Haitian people has swept the web in the wake of a devastating 7.0 earthquake in Haiti. And just like the Eureka earthquake, tweets have quickly spread moving and gut-wrenching TwitPics of the disaster.

Photos taken by journalist @CarelPedre on his mobile phone are providing a glimpse into the devastation that has slammed the Caribbean nation. Another Twitter user, @MarvinAdy, shared those pictures through TwitPic, resulting in tens of thousands of view and countless retweets.

There are also thousands of Facebook and Twitter updates on the disaster appearing every minute. The web has been moved by the plight of the Haitian people. Social media has quickly become the first place where millions react to large-scale catastrophes.

Our best wishes go out to the victims of this devastating natural disaster, as well as their families. Below is a collection of the most retweeted pictures coming out of Haiti, courtesy of TwitPic

Comment by Debby Bruck on January 13, 2010 at 6:19pm

I am posting this message I received from my friend Zoe.

As you might know, Haiti sustained a 7.0 earthquake yesterday, Tuesday, January 12. It is unclear how many people have died, but "a serious loss of life" is expected and the damage to the capital area of Port-au-Prince is beyond severe. For the poorest poorest country in the Western hemisphere and one of the poorest on Earth, this is a major blow.

SO HOW WE CAN HELP?
Here is a sampling of some of the easy and promising relief efforts that I have heard of. You can also see MORE relief efforts not listed here at http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/impact/.

1) Yele: A non profit created by Haitian American musician, Wyclef Jean
Using Your Phone: You can text 'Yele' to 501501 to donate just $5 (FIVE) Yele Haiti's relief efforts. Your donation will be added to your phone bill.
Online: Check out http://www.yele.org/ Click on "Donate Now" on the top right hand side. Donate however much you have and can.

2) The Lambi Fund of Haiti: A not for profit created by Haitians and Americans to work together toward economic justice, democracy and alternative sustainable development in Haiti.
Online: Go to website at http://www.lambifund.org/ to donate. The tab is on the left hand side. Donate however much you have and can.

Using Your Phone: You can text "send $20 to give@lambifund.org" to PAYPAL (729-725) using Paypal mobile. Note: $20 is there request, but they would LOVE for you to send anything.

3) Direct Relief International: An organization that provides medical assistance to improve the quality of life for people affected by poverty, disaster, and civil unrest at home and throughout the world.
Online: Go to http://www.directrelief.org/EmergencyResponse/2010/EarthquakeHaiti.aspx to read about their relief efforts in Haiti and/or click the "Donate" tab on the left side. You can specifically choose Haiti to benefit from your donation. Donate however much you have and can.

4) International Medical Corps: A global, humanitarian, nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through health care training and relief and development programs.
Online: Go to website at http://www.imcworldwide.org/Page.aspx?pid=183 to donate. Donate however much you have and can.

5) American Red Cross:
Online: Donations to their International Response Fund can be made at https://american.redcross.org/site/Donation2?4306.donation=form1&idb=520717783&df_id=4306&s_subsrc=RCO_NewsArticle. If you would like to be sure that it goes to Haiti...

Mail: Send donations to American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013 or to your local American Red Cross chapter, which you can find here http://www.redcross.org/aboutus/ at the right hand corner of the page.

6) Your Prayers/Thoughts/Well Wishes/Encouragement/Love:
We often underestimate how much of difference this can make. If you have no money to offer, now or until you get your next check, then let's all believe that our prayers/thoughts/well wishes/encouragement/love makes a difference.

Magen David Humanitarian Aid: Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu instructed the professional echelon in the Defense Ministry to urgently act in order to send humanitarian aid to the country, according to a statement issued by the PMO.

Let's put our generous hearts together and help the Haitian people in this tough time. Also, feel free to forward this email to others so we can spread the word.

Comment by Dr. Robert Bruck on January 13, 2010 at 10:01pm

President Bill Clinton is the UN High Commissioner for Haiti. The Clinton Foundation is certified to provide 96.5% of every dollar (pound,rupee) donated for direct aid to Haiti. They are now saying 500,000 dead and 2 million homeless with no food, water, medicine or communication-- very sad.

Comment by Dr. Robert Bruck on January 13, 2010 at 10:03pm

QUESTION--- IS HOMEOPATHY PRACTICED IN HAITI?? If so- does anyone have any contacts?

Comment by Debby Bruck on January 14, 2010 at 12:01am

TIMES ONLINE: Twitter's human touch amid the horror of Haiti
Minutes after last night's devastating earthquake in Haiti, Twitter and other social networking sites were abuzz with witness accounts, photographs and appeals for help.

Wyclef Jean, the Haitian-born musician and record producer – who used much of the wealth generated by the success of the band The Fugees to set up Yele Haiti, a charity to improve living conditions in the Caribbean country – was among the first to launch an appeal for financial aid through Twitter. In his latest tweet, he is waiting for a plane to take him to Haiti via the Dominican Republic.

Jean's appeal uses a reverse-charge text number for users in the United States. His Twitter page has 1.3 million followers.

In Haiti itself, Carel Pedre, a local celebrity DJ and TV presenter, has been offering his eyewitness reports to international news organisations such as the BBC and CNN via his Twitter feed. His images of the aftermath of the disaster have been picked up by the Associated Press.

Comment by Maureen Shepard on January 14, 2010 at 1:58pm

I received this message from Jean Hoagland, the NCH facilitator for Homeopaths without Borders, and a member of this community:

To all friends of Homeopathy:

Homeopaths Without Borders will be dedicating $5,000 toward the work needed in Haiti. You can give through their website by either check or PayPal. www.homeopathswithoutborders-na.org.

Equally important is human assistance. Conctact is being sought at this time but as you know that is difficult. HWB was there in 1999 (I think) for instruction and assistance, and we are willing to again provide both human and financial help.

The National Center for Homeopathy will be assisting in getting the word out but we are waiting for details and constructive action before seeking volunteers to go.

Thank you for asking. Please spread the word that if folks give money they should, if they want it to go to Haitian relief, indicate that when they contact us.

Jean Hoagland, NCH facilitator for HWB

Comment by Gina Tyler DHOM on January 14, 2010 at 7:08pm

Warning Red cross uses 80-90% of donations for administration,verry little goes to the victims.
The tsunami in Indonesia 2004 is an example of this,Hurricane Katrina again another example.
The three million unpaid volunteers for the Red Cross are an able, well-intentioned bunch… and they certainly do a lot of good. But recently the Red Cross organization itself has undergone some close scrutiny, and there are some troubling findings.

According to Richard M. Walden (president and CEO of Operation USA), it is estimated that 70% of the $1.2 Billion donated to Katrina-related donations went to the Red Cross, yet the Red Cross is fully reimbursed by the government for any shelters or emergency services they provide. Repeatedly, the Red Cross has run into trouble for spending much less on disaster recovery than they collect, shuffling the extra funds into their “national disaster account,” where it can be used for purposes other than that it was collected for. That’s the sort of trouble they saw in the aftermath of the 1989 San Francisco Bay Area earthquake, and after 9/11.

Despite landing in trouble for soliciting more donations than they need and squirreling the rest away, the Red Cross continues to operate this way. The organization makes a total of about $3 billion annually, about half of which is from selling donated blood. Some of this surplus money ends up in disaster relief, but it seems that much does not. Last year alone, the Red Cross spent $111 million in fund raising, and their CEO Marsha Evans made just under $652,000. It seems the the main value they offer is the free help of their volunteer force.

From the LA Times article:

The Red Cross expects to raise more than $2 billion before Hurricane Katrina-related giving subsides. If it takes care of 300,000 people, that’s $7,000 per victim. I doubt each victim under Red Cross care will see more than a doughnut, an interview with a social worker and a short-term voucher for a cheap motel, with a few miscellaneous items such as clothes and cooking pots thrown in.
[snip]
Giving so high a percentage of all donations to one agency that defines itself only as a first-responder and not a rebuilder is not the wisest choice. Americans ought to give a much larger share of their generous charity to community foundations, grass-roots nonprofit groups based in the affected communities and a large number of international “brand name” relief agencies with decades of expertise in rebuilding communities after disasters.
The Red Cross also has some disturbing caveats in the agreement form which every volunteer is required to sign. From the BoingBoing article:

Every volunteer for the American Red Cross is required to sign on to an agreement that covers things like proper conduct, confidentiality, and includes a requirement for all volunteers to sign over all copyright/trademark/patent rights in any work-related writing, art and inventions come up with during their term, and for a full year afterward. Why the hell does the Red Cross need to own the copyrights in the work-related blog postings you make for a year after you stop spending your free evenings handing out cookies to blood-donors? If you write a novel and include some real-life details gleaned from volunteering in a disaster-relief efforts, does the Red Cross really deserve to take all rights to it?
So has the Red Cross become little more than a massive PR engine which takes advantage of millions of well-meaning volunteers, and capitalizes on disasters? It’s an unpleasant conclusion, but it may just be the truth. Any evidence to the contrary is welcome, because this story is far too depressing if it’s true.

LA Times article
BoingBoing article

Comment by Gina Tyler DHOM on January 14, 2010 at 7:34pm

One does not have to go too far back in history than the 911 and Tsunami disasters to see that governments and pretentious agencies only do something if there is something in it for them. Sad.

"Red Cross' Top Person: Marsha Evans
Top Salary:* $651,957 (FY ending 06/30/03)

Total Revenue FY ending 6/2003: $2,946,000,000"

There is no one, repeat no one, that is worth that kind of money let alone members of a charitable organizations who can't or won't fulfill even their mandate let alone are befitting of all that dough!

Just like days of old when all were duped into thinking that the kings where above others but finally when challenged to prove that they indeed were better than others they could not do it.

In this gloomy picture there yet may be glimmer of hope - naturally you will not hear much about this if at all....

"...One charity has stayed above all this for 137 years. The Salvation Army is unique among all U.S. charities for many reasons. Let’s start at the top. Commissioner Todd Bassett receives a salary just $13,000 per year (plus housing) for managing this $2 Billion dollar organization. By comparison, Brian Gallagher, President of the United Way receives a $375,000 base salary (plus numerous expensive benefits) and the Red Cross President Marsha Evans receives $450,000 (the article was written in 2002 a wapping 50% increase in 1 year??) plus benefits..."

Full article: A Trusted Charity

"There is no such thing as a "natural" disaster. Hurricanes happen, but death comes from official neglect, from tax cuts for the rich that cut the heart out of public protection. The corpses in the street are victims of a class war in which only one side has a general."

Full article: Bush Strafes New Orleans - Where is our Huey Long?

Leaving poor black Americans to rot: the federal response to hurricane Katrina reveals Bush's priorities

New Orleans Mayor tells it like it is! (a 14 minute audio).

We Have Been Abandoned By Our Own Country (a 5 minute video).

When such shysters abound can there be charity at home let alone elsewhere?


-----------------------

Don't Give Your Hurricane Donations to the American Red Cross
Establishment charities have criminal history of stealing disaster funds

Paul Joseph Watson & Alex Jones | Updated September 3 2005

As the aftermath of hurricane Katrina continues to wreak mayhem and havoc amid reports of mass looting, shooting at rescue helicopters, rapes and murders, establishment media organs are promoting the Red Cross as a worthy organization to give donations to.

The biggest website in the world, Yahoo.com, displays a Red Cross donation link prominently on its front page.

Every time there is a major catastrophe the Red Cross and similar organizations like United Way are given all the media attention while other charities are left in the shadows. This is not to say that the vast majority of Red Cross workers are not decent people who simply want to help those in need.

But what the media fails consistently to remember in their promotion of the organization is that the American Red Cross have been caught time and time again withholding money in the wake of horrible disasters that require immediate release of funds.

The Red Cross, under the Liberty Fund, collected $564 million in donations after 9/11. Months after the event, the Red Cross had distributed only $154 million. The Red Cross' explanation for keeping the majority of the money was that it would be used to help 'fight the war on terror'. To the victims, this meant that the money was going towards bombing broken backed third world countries like Afghanistan and setting up surveillance cameras and expanding the police state in US cities, and not towards helping them rebuild their lives.

Then Red Cross President Dr. Bernadine Healy arrogantly responded when questioned about the withholding of funds by stating, "The Liberty Fund is a war fund. It has evolved into a war fund."

Despite the family members of victims of 9/11 complaining bitterly to a House Energy and Commerce Committee's oversight panel, the issue seemed to be brushed under the carpet and the mud didn't stick.

The Red Cross' scandalous activities reach back far before 9/11.

After the devastating San Francisco earthquake in 1989, the Red Cross passed on only $10 million of the $50 million that had been raised, and banked the rest.

Similar donations after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and the Red River flooding in 1997 were also greedily withheld.

Insight Magazine reported,

“The first days after the bombing,” says one family member, “people from all over the country were sending checks in lieu of flowers and we were getting a lot of checks and cash every day ­ hundreds, even thousands, of dollars. Then the Red Cross went down to the post office and made arrangements to collect the mail and they would deliver it to us in bulk. All the mail had been opened, and from that point on there never was a dime, even in letters that said money was enclosed.”

The Red Cross has been caught engaging in rampant corruption on an all too regular basis.

3,000 people died after thousands of Canadians were infected with HIV and hepatitis C from tainted blood supplies.The Canadian Red Cross pleaded guilty to the charges earlier this year after they had been directly caught knowlingly shipping out the infected blood.

Smaller charities that were involved with the 2004 Tsunami relief project went public to say that large charities like Red Cross and United Way were engaged in secret backroom negotiations with each other that meant a large portion of the donation money was purposefully restricted from reaching the most needy areas affected by the disaster.

The history is clear, the Red Cross and other large so-called charities are in actual fact front group collection agencies for the military industrial complex.



Do not give any money to the Red Cross unless you support the expansion of empire abroad and police state at home. Find a smaller trustworthy organization in the local areas.
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Comment by Gina Tyler DHOM on January 14, 2010 at 7:39pm

My point in posting this; If you want to really help show up in person,as a homeopathic volunteer you see firsthand how you can help,This is what I do. The bigger the organization the more corrupt,I never donate to the Red Cross,I saw for myself what the Red cross Did Not do for the Victims of the 2004 Indonesian Tsunami,Just got back a few months ago,stood on one of the demolised beached communities hit so hard by the 2004 tsunami (indonesia) No clinic,no homes,no business,nothing but barren empty land. And this is 5 yrs after- close to 300,000 people died.Best to donate to 'local' charities you know firsthand,or come in person.

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