[AmericanInTokyo]

No, I disagree...because we have seen much worse human disasters such as in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, or Kobe Japan, Hiroshima, Japan etc. where far more people died and far more destruction and chaos was visited, and the people did not turn on each other in this cruel way or freak out due to lack of a value system and social structure in place before their disaster.

Kobe, Japan experienced 3,000 dead in one earthquake alone and had tens of thousands in refugee camps for five years if not more, and there were only a few extremely isolated cases of looting dealt with harshly by the Japanese police; people had an attitude of right vs. wrong, and social 'shame' were they to do wrong. No such value system is in place in large segments of the New Orleans permanent underclass...and we (should have) known that even before the disaster, just driving through parts of the town and observing general life.

[Lessismore]

No, I disagree...because we have seen much worse human disasters such as in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, or Kobe Japan, Hiroshima, Japan etc. where far more people died and far more destruction and chaos was visited, and the people did not turn on each other in this cruel way or freak out due to lack of a value system and social structure in place before their disaster.

The stone-aged types in the Indian Ocean islands acted in a far more civilized fashion.

[Palladin]

That's amazing about the people of Kobe. Aren't the Japanese mostly Shintoist and Buddhist? Maybe their religion has something to do with the way they handle crises. They are a very disciplined people.

[Cedar]

Good post - #1608

[rwfromkansas]

good points