Tidal Waves Kill More Than 120,000 in Asia
#276
DVD Talk Hero
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Somewhere between Heaven and Hell
Posts: 34,161
Received 744 Likes
on
545 Posts
I really don't care if the President had anything to say or not. The fact remains that aid is being given. Why do I, or the world, need to hear G-dub say, "We're devastated about the losses, but hey lookit, we're giving you guys aid. Please like me."
#277
DVD Talk Legend
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: |-|@><0r L@n|)
Posts: 17,214
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
"This week's deadly Asian Quake and Tsunami may have been so powerful, that it changed the rate of Earth's rotation. In a Reuters article, a NASA geophysicist theorizes that the quake compacted the Earth enough to speed up the planet's rotation by 3 microseconds. A second article says the quake moved undersea tectonic plates by up to 98 feet, shifting islands near Sumatra out to sea an unknown distance. Also, a USGS team wants images from commercial satellite operators to help pinpoint coastline damage. Lastly, an interesting article from the Australian Spaceguard Survey about the need for a Tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean. The author comments that tsunami warnings may not help much, as people often flock to the coastline to see the giant waves."
- David Stein
#278
Enormous Genitals
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: a small cottage on a cul de sac in the lower pits of hell.
Posts: 37,280
Received 589 Likes
on
337 Posts
Originally Posted by DVD Polizei
You know, I remember how much money was diverted for personal gain during 9/11 and sure hope we don't see this again.
Bandoman,
http://www.mercycorps.org/home/
They say 91% and more go to the actual people.
Bandoman,
http://www.mercycorps.org/home/
They say 91% and more go to the actual people.
They even post a financial statement
#279
Member
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: The Center of the Universe
Posts: 206
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
#280
DVD Talk Legend
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: |-|@><0r L@n|)
Posts: 17,214
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Amazing human-interest story:
- David Stein
American diver underwater during catastrophe
(CNN) -- An American woman who was scuba diving with her husband in Thailand as one of Sunday's tsunamis roared overhead said she was oblivious to the disaster until after they surfaced, her mother told CNN on Tuesday.
Faye Wachs, 34, was diving with her husband, Eugene Kim, Sunday morning off Ko Phi Phi Island in Thailand when they noticed the water visibility worsened and felt as though they were being sucked downward, Helen Wachs said.
Their dive master signaled to them to surface, "but we still didn't know what happened," Faye wrote in an e-mail to her mother Tuesday.
The enormity of what was happening while they were scuba diving was not immediately apparent after they surfaced, Helen Wachs said her daughter told her.
"She said she saw a lot of trash in the water. The dive master said it was really rude for people to throw trash. Then they saw large bits of debris and thought there might have been a boat crash," Helen Wachs said.
She said her daughter didn't know what had happened until the dive master got a text message from his wife telling him about the catastrophe.
Soon they saw bodies floating past them, Wachs' mother said in an interview from Oakland, California, where she lives.
Once they returned to shore, the couple did what they could to help, Helen Wachs said.
"I can't describe carrying a moaning person who just saw his girlfriend killed down a hill in the middle of the night," the e-mail said. "I saw more bodies than I care to report. The hotel where we were staying is mostly gone. We lost everything, but our lives."
Faye Wachs said she was impressed by the efforts of the Thai government and the International Committee for the Red Cross, but "she was appalled at the treatment they got" from the U.S. government, her mother said.
At the airport in Bangkok, other governments had set up booths to greet nationals who had been affected and to help repatriate them, she said.
That was not the case with the U.S. government, Wachs told her mother. It took the couple three hours, she said, to find the officials from the American consulate, who were in the VIP lounge.
Because they had lost all their possessions, including their documentation, they had to have new passports issued.
But the U.S. officials demanded payment to take the passport pictures, Helen Wachs said.
The couple had managed to hold on to their ATM card, so they paid for the photos and helped other Americans who did not have any money get their pictures taken and buy food, Helen Wachs said.
"She was really very surprised" that the government did so little to ease their ordeal, she said.
In an e-mailed response from the State Department, the chief of American Citizen Services said the embassy usually meets and greets every flight personally, but acknowledged there had been confusion the first night in setting up the operation.
Still, "anyone needing assistance is guided to our office in the VIP hall, which is the space allocated to us by the airport authority," the e-mail said.
Typically, anyone needing a passport is directed to go to the embassy, it added.
"If people have no funds to get to the embassy, they are offered a $100 emergency loan on the spot," the e-mail said.
Because of the emergency, the embassy has been issuing no-fee emergency passports since the tsunami hit, it said.
But the photo printer was working only sporadically on the day in question, so its use was reserved for those truly in need; others were asked to walk a building away to get their pictures taken, it said.
"Basically, if you had a decent supply of cash, you were asked to go get photos made so we could try to save the camera for desperate cases."
Helen Wachs said her daughter told her they would need "some serious counseling" upon their return to Los Angeles.
Once aboard the plane, Wachs told her mother, the biggest thing they noticed was the absence of the stench of raw sewage that had permeated the air.
"She said the clean smell was amazing."
Wachs, who described herself as "shell-shocked but happy to be coming home," is scheduled to arrive Wednesday morning in Los Angeles, her mother said.
She returns acutely aware that many thousands of others don't have that option.
"The tourists are able to get out, but those there are left with utter destruction," Helen Wachs said.
(CNN) -- An American woman who was scuba diving with her husband in Thailand as one of Sunday's tsunamis roared overhead said she was oblivious to the disaster until after they surfaced, her mother told CNN on Tuesday.
Faye Wachs, 34, was diving with her husband, Eugene Kim, Sunday morning off Ko Phi Phi Island in Thailand when they noticed the water visibility worsened and felt as though they were being sucked downward, Helen Wachs said.
Their dive master signaled to them to surface, "but we still didn't know what happened," Faye wrote in an e-mail to her mother Tuesday.
The enormity of what was happening while they were scuba diving was not immediately apparent after they surfaced, Helen Wachs said her daughter told her.
"She said she saw a lot of trash in the water. The dive master said it was really rude for people to throw trash. Then they saw large bits of debris and thought there might have been a boat crash," Helen Wachs said.
She said her daughter didn't know what had happened until the dive master got a text message from his wife telling him about the catastrophe.
Soon they saw bodies floating past them, Wachs' mother said in an interview from Oakland, California, where she lives.
Once they returned to shore, the couple did what they could to help, Helen Wachs said.
"I can't describe carrying a moaning person who just saw his girlfriend killed down a hill in the middle of the night," the e-mail said. "I saw more bodies than I care to report. The hotel where we were staying is mostly gone. We lost everything, but our lives."
Faye Wachs said she was impressed by the efforts of the Thai government and the International Committee for the Red Cross, but "she was appalled at the treatment they got" from the U.S. government, her mother said.
At the airport in Bangkok, other governments had set up booths to greet nationals who had been affected and to help repatriate them, she said.
That was not the case with the U.S. government, Wachs told her mother. It took the couple three hours, she said, to find the officials from the American consulate, who were in the VIP lounge.
Because they had lost all their possessions, including their documentation, they had to have new passports issued.
But the U.S. officials demanded payment to take the passport pictures, Helen Wachs said.
The couple had managed to hold on to their ATM card, so they paid for the photos and helped other Americans who did not have any money get their pictures taken and buy food, Helen Wachs said.
"She was really very surprised" that the government did so little to ease their ordeal, she said.
In an e-mailed response from the State Department, the chief of American Citizen Services said the embassy usually meets and greets every flight personally, but acknowledged there had been confusion the first night in setting up the operation.
Still, "anyone needing assistance is guided to our office in the VIP hall, which is the space allocated to us by the airport authority," the e-mail said.
Typically, anyone needing a passport is directed to go to the embassy, it added.
"If people have no funds to get to the embassy, they are offered a $100 emergency loan on the spot," the e-mail said.
Because of the emergency, the embassy has been issuing no-fee emergency passports since the tsunami hit, it said.
But the photo printer was working only sporadically on the day in question, so its use was reserved for those truly in need; others were asked to walk a building away to get their pictures taken, it said.
"Basically, if you had a decent supply of cash, you were asked to go get photos made so we could try to save the camera for desperate cases."
Helen Wachs said her daughter told her they would need "some serious counseling" upon their return to Los Angeles.
Once aboard the plane, Wachs told her mother, the biggest thing they noticed was the absence of the stench of raw sewage that had permeated the air.
"She said the clean smell was amazing."
Wachs, who described herself as "shell-shocked but happy to be coming home," is scheduled to arrive Wednesday morning in Los Angeles, her mother said.
She returns acutely aware that many thousands of others don't have that option.
"The tourists are able to get out, but those there are left with utter destruction," Helen Wachs said.
#281
#283
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Columbia, MD
Posts: 8,173
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by Giantrobo
I would appreciate it if you would stop your moaning about "we could've done more". It's silly. More WILL be done in time. When more info comes in more will be done. That's how it usually works.
Did I stutter? You did understand that right?
Did I stutter? You did understand that right?
I don't think it's "silly" to want my leader to lead. My point is that I would like my President to say something when a disaster like this strikes. That's not too much to ask, and I expect it of the person selected to lead this country. I want to know that my President recognizes the seriousness and tragedy of the situation, and I want him to personally assure me and the world that we're going to be doing something about it. That's part of what makes me proud to be an American, and what makes our country the best in the world. What's so difficult to understand about that?
#284
DVD Talk Legend
Originally Posted by Rhoda
https://secure3.salvationarmy.org/do...SC*USE*USS*USW
Surely, we can spare at least $50. Most of us probably spent more than that on entertainment this month.
Surely, we can spare at least $50. Most of us probably spent more than that on entertainment this month.
Remember the fiasco over Red Cross donations following 9/11? And what the heck is the Salvation Army doing in Asia anyway? I thought they were supposed to help people here? There is such a thing as having too many charities vying for donations, thus diluting the charities that are really doing something.
#285
DVD Talk Special Edition
Join Date: Jun 2001
Posts: 1,610
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
This can help you evaluate non-religous charities. Religious charities don't file the tax/business paperwork used to evaluate.
http://www.charitynavigator.org
http://www.charitynavigator.org
#286
DVD Talk Legend
Originally Posted by Jadzia
The freaky thing is the night before this happened I had this really scary dream that my husband, baby, and I were being flooded out of our home. We had to quickly seek higher ground and it was a terrifying dream. It was only the next day I heard about this and eerily made the connection.
I've had this dream since I was four years old.
I then found out a friend of mine had the exact same dream, including the house.
We figured we both died in the same tsunami in a previous life.
I've always been a little wary of beaches because of that dream.
#287
DVD Talk Godfather
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 1999
Location: Gateway Cities/Harbor Region
Posts: 63,376
Received 1,859 Likes
on
1,150 Posts
Originally Posted by Duran
I'm not moaning that "we could've done more". Stop reading into my posts. The only time I came close to saying anything like that was my first post, when the only information to come from our government was a White House statement saying we "stand ready." That, quite frankly, was weak. I don't doubt the generousity of this country, nor do I doubt we are always the leader in humanitarian aid when events like this occur.
I don't think it's "silly" to want my leader to lead. My point is that I would like my President to say something when a disaster like this strikes. That's not too much to ask, and I expect it of the person selected to lead this country. I want to know that my President recognizes the seriousness and tragedy of the situation, and I want him to personally assure me and the world that we're going to be doing something about it. That's part of what makes me proud to be an American, and what makes our country the best in the world. What's so difficult to understand about that?
I don't think it's "silly" to want my leader to lead. My point is that I would like my President to say something when a disaster like this strikes. That's not too much to ask, and I expect it of the person selected to lead this country. I want to know that my President recognizes the seriousness and tragedy of the situation, and I want him to personally assure me and the world that we're going to be doing something about it. That's part of what makes me proud to be an American, and what makes our country the best in the world. What's so difficult to understand about that?
I knew you were picking on Bush but I was trying to stay away from accusing you of that. That's why posted in terms of America as a whole including the Prez.
I guess we disagree on the importance of words. I don't care what Bush has to say about the tragedy. The truth is anything he says will be the typical political bullshit that any Prez would say in his place. What I DO care about is action and getting shit..oops sorry,things done as far as getting the right aid to the right people.
That to me is far more important than some stupid press conference at "The Ranch".
I hope you could follow the above semi- or even fully ignorant post with much understanding....
#288
Member
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: The Center of the Universe
Posts: 206
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by Heat
Sure, I could spare $50, but I'm not going to.
Originally Posted by Heat
Remember the fiasco over Red Cross donations following 9/11?
Originally Posted by Heat
And what the heck is the Salvation Army doing in Asia anyway?
Originally Posted by Heat
I thought they were supposed to help people here?
Originally Posted by Heat
There is such a thing as having too many charities vying for donations, thus diluting the charities that are really doing something.
I was not solicited. I happen to know that this is one of the "charities that are really doing something" and has low overhead. I went looking for the link to donate.
It seemed that there were many people on this thread that expressed the desire to help. This is an opportunity to do something other than cast blame or wring your hands. It doesn't have to be the Salvation Army. There are many similar organization with low overhead.
#289
Enormous Genitals
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: a small cottage on a cul de sac in the lower pits of hell.
Posts: 37,280
Received 589 Likes
on
337 Posts
Originally Posted by logrus9
This can help you evaluate non-religous charities. Religious charities don't file the tax/business paperwork used to evaluate.
http://www.charitynavigator.org
http://www.charitynavigator.org
#290
Administrator
Originally Posted by Giantrobo
That to me is far more important than some stupid press conference at "The Ranch".
#291
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Columbia, MD
Posts: 8,173
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by Giantrobo
I knew you were picking on Bush but I was trying to stay away from accusing you of that. That's why posted in terms of America as a whole including the Prez.
I guess we disagree on the importance of words. I don't care what Bush has to say about the tragedy. The truth is anything he says will be the typical political bullshit that any Prez would say in his place. What I DO care about is action and getting shit..oops sorry,things done as far as getting the right aid to the right people.
That to me is far more important than some stupid press conference at "The Ranch".
I hope you could follow the above semi- or even fully ignorant post with much understanding....
I guess we disagree on the importance of words. I don't care what Bush has to say about the tragedy. The truth is anything he says will be the typical political bullshit that any Prez would say in his place. What I DO care about is action and getting shit..oops sorry,things done as far as getting the right aid to the right people.
That to me is far more important than some stupid press conference at "The Ranch".
I hope you could follow the above semi- or even fully ignorant post with much understanding....
#292
DVD Talk Legend
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Capitol of the Empire! Center of all Commerce and Culture! Crossroads of Civilization! NEW ROME!!!...aka New York City
Posts: 10,909
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Could we divert this thread back to the issue of the tsunami, instead of arguing over the response of the single largest donor of humanitarian aid on earth?
#295
DVD Talk Legend
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Illinoyze
Posts: 10,513
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by Tommy Ceez
Could we divert this thread back to the issue of the tsunami, instead of arguing over the response of the single largest donor of humanitarian aid on earth?
Well you took care of all the dial-up arguers, that's for sure
#297
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Hong Kong
Posts: 3,797
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Well, the biggest single-person donation so far seems to be Li Ka-Shing, Hong Kong's (and Asia's) richest man. He's given around US$3.5 million from his own pocket, which is more than many Western countries already.
#298
DVD Talk Godfather
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 1999
Location: Gateway Cities/Harbor Region
Posts: 63,376
Received 1,859 Likes
on
1,150 Posts
BTW, how come those satellites "Just happen" to be on that area? Did they belong to those countires? Was somone spying?
That proves it! Someone's government KNEW the Earthquake and the tsunami were gonna happen. Where's Matt Drudge's email addy....
That proves it! Someone's government KNEW the Earthquake and the tsunami were gonna happen. Where's Matt Drudge's email addy....
#299
Banned
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Democratik People's Republik of Kalifornia
Posts: 22,995
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by Grimfarrow
Well, the biggest single-person donation so far seems to be Li Ka-Shing, Hong Kong's (and Asia's) richest man. He's given around US$3.5 million from his own pocket, which is more than many Western countries already.
Calling Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Larry Ellison, or George Soros
#300
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Where are all the Dead Animals?
Weird story
Weird story
Giant waves washed floodwaters up to 2 miles inland at Yala National Park in the ravaged southeast, Sri Lanka's biggest wildlife reserve and home to hundreds of wild elephants and several leopards.
"The strange thing is we haven't recorded any dead animals," H.D. Ratnayake, deputy director of the national Wildlife Department, told Reuters on Wednesday.
"The strange thing is we haven't recorded any dead animals," H.D. Ratnayake, deputy director of the national Wildlife Department, told Reuters on Wednesday.