Haiti Catastrophe Requires Action and Reflection

Ray Walser / January 15, 2010

In Haiti three days after the earthquake, the terrible reality of death and destruction settles upon the nation and the world.  The preliminary estimates of fatalities appear to be range between 45,000 and 50,000.  Three million Haitians, one-third of the countries population, appear severely impacted. Access to clean, uncontaminated water and food is increasingly difficult. The principal port is ruined and the one international airport is overwhelmed.  The U.S. and all others are truly in a race against time.

In his first major leadership challenge in the Americas, President Obama has launched an all-out, “whole of government,” effort to dispatch relief.  He has pledged $100 million in immediate aid.  A veritable armada of ships and aircrafts along with troops of the 82nd Airborne, the U.S. Marines, and civilian search and rescue teams are already on the ground or on the way.

The generous response of the American people especially given through cell phone donations and the transforming effects of social messaging networks are being fully demonstrated. Often maligned U.S. companies have been invited by the Obama Administration to assist with food and other stocks and will surely help.

The immediate response highlights the magnificent marriage between U.S. capability and compassion in the face of massive human catastrophe.

Yet, as the immediate help is dispatched, Washington policy makers must grapple with what comes next.  Several questions already loom large. (more…)