Posted on 12/29/2004 7:47:22 AM PST by crushelits
The dramatic rise of the number of deaths came Wednesday as officials were finally able to reach remote regions -- like Indonesia's Aceh province, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the Maldives.
More than half of those deaths were reported in Indonesia, the nearest land mass to Sunday's undersea earthquake that triggered the deadly waves and flooding in about a dozen countries, from Thailand to East Africa.
Four days after the quake, Indonesian authorities said they had found mass destruction in Aceh. The capital of Banda Aceh, which was closest to epicenter of the quake, was described as largely destroyed.
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(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
WTF? Are you insane?
Just because there have been worse death tolls through various wars and holocausts in history doesn't make this a non-issue or us manipulated by the media.
I'm 34 years old and I cannot remember a time where so many have died at once in my lifetime.
This is in the ballpark of Hiroshima as far as death toll is concerned. I don't know what kind of freaking heartless sociopath one has to be to file this away under media manipulation.
"Take away the pictures and this is virtually a non-story."
Oh, My Gosh. What a horrible picture. Pray for these people and their families.
as huge a disaster as this is, the ONE fact to consider is this:
this horrendous loss of life was not brought about by war or malice: it was a natural disaster, not intentional mass murder, like 9/11. Maybe that was what he meant.
Sometimes you just can't see what's coming.
God bless you, maddie-- it's rough stuff to see, but the juxtaposition of that nice hotel and all those jumbled corpses- just reminds you of how frail life is. "In the midst of life, we are in death."
100,000+ people die within a matter of minutes and you call it a non-story?
My friend, I am ashamed that you are from Texas.
"Let's get things in perspective. As tragic as this is for the people involved, we are again being manipulated by the media. Take away the pictures and this is virtually a non-story"
There are possibly 20 times more people dead from this than died on 9-11. Was that a virtual non story? Or do you think the world lost all perspective on that one too? I suspect your trying to be controversial and fishing for a response.
Dear God, all those dead people. Pls watch over their souls. There must be 500-1,000 in that pic alone.
Each year, 300 to 500 million people develop malaria and 1.5 to 3 million–mostly children–die -- World Health Organization
The tsunami will probably end up killing 150,000 to 200,000 people directly and indirectly from wounds, infections and disease...
(34 * 3,000,000) = 102 million
It's a ghastly thing to see so many bodies packed up like a logjam- it makes you remember just how fragile life is.
Excellent point - thanks.
The vast majority of those Malaria deaths can be prevented by applying DDT. But since the media decided decades ago that DDT was BAD, it can't be used to stop the suffering.
An interesting, but little reported story on the WTC - there is a chance that the WTC could have survived the effects of the fires, had they used asbestos insulation over their steel framing - but the media decided that asbestos was BAD, and drove our government to outlaw it also, just as the bottom floors of the WTC were being built.
My only point - the media has so much blood on its hands that it offends me when they report a story like this - to this extent.
Bob:
I don't know you, but you are entitled to your opinion. I find it to be very annoying when people hiding behind internet anonymity lash out at others for sharing their opinion. Just my 2 cents.
I do feel for the victims, as we all surely do...I do have a problem with people already criticizing the USA for "not doing enough", etc. I feel that material aid should be sent, along with liberal tree huggers, to help those in need. I do, however, feel that what aid we send should be proportionate to the aid we have received relative to the War on Terror. Help our allies, let the UN help the rest. One prime example...India. India has refused to send troops b/c the UN did not support the USA.
I do not endorse sending financial aid to certain relief groups as that leaves room for corruption and abuse. See UN Food For Oil, United Way, and 9/11 funds for examples. After all, it is our tax money...and we are carrying the lion's share of the burden and risks in Iraq.
But that's my opinion, for what it's worth...
PS--how many American flags were torched this year in some of these countries?
Indonesia:
http://quickstart.clari.net/qs_se/webnews/wed/ar/Qindonesia-us-bush.RHRw_DOL.html
So true, b.
By the time the various diseases take their toll, this will surpass both of the Atomic bombs. This is the worst tragedy I can remember.
The amount of human grief and suffering is unfathomable. When its all done, there will hardly be a surviving soul in this region who didn't lose someone. So many of them children.
Heart-wrenching....(prayers)
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