Thread: What exactly is wrong with helping haiti?

If I were to post 88 links of Christian Missions around the world, there are some on the left who would say that the only reason Christians help others is so that they can spread their religion.



When the government gets involved in the compassion business, several things happen. People get on board, very quickly. People expect the government to move fast. If it doesn't, those who run the government are attacked vigorously by those who want a change in government.



So compassion has become a primary value in our politics.



Since we have apparently lost our ability to discern when balance sheets do not balance, my response to your question is that there is nothing wrong with helping Haiti or Iraq or Afghanistan or any other country in need as long as there is a tangible reason for doing so. That reason must be something more than "spreading our religion," simply because it's not constitutional or legitimate for us to spend the people's money in this way.



The people are totally capable of spending their own money. There are many, excellent relief agencies they can approach for such a purpose. And they will. We are a generous people.

[quote name='nickcuse' date='16 January 2010 - 02:54 AM' timestamp='1263632095' post='100193']

i'm reading all these articles and seeing all this footage of the rescue effort going on in haiti, and its truly remarkable. there are rescue teams and aid workers and doctors from all over the world. so far i've seen people from los angeles, fairfax county (my home town!), spain, russia, guatemala, belgium, france, the phillipines, chile, and brazil...and i'm sure countless others. and all these people are there, helping, doing what they can, risking their own lives, to help in a horrible disaster.



and yet, there are still some people who think its wrong for america to send money, to send aid. why? why exactly is that wrong? because that money could go towards our military, to "keep us safe"? thats like saying a person can't throw change in the salvation army bucket because they should be saving that money for a home security system.



and what of all these rescue teams going to help? a lot of them are funded with tax payer dollars. should my parents have stood in front of the fairfax county fire department, and demanded they not send their search and rescue team to haiti?



during such a crisis, how can EVERY person in a country such as ours, not have the first and only reaction of "what can we do to help"??

[/quote]



Because some people in this country need help themselves and can/will use any issue, like this one, to say so. I'm not sure I see anything wrong with our efforts or the people who are against the efforts.



This is a case where you have to act first and debate it later. We are acting while debating whether we should.



All I know is you can't control the affections or the will of anyone, so don't sweat the small stuff, and everything is small stuff.

[quote name='Dr.Knuckles' date='16 January 2010 - 06:00 AM' timestamp='1263639642' post='100195']

Cause they're black Nick, cause they're black.

[/quote]



It's odd you never heard a peep from either political party about GWB's contibutions to Africa AIDS effort though.

I don't think it's because of the blacks there, I suspect it's the one here.

[quote name='kmiller1610' date='16 January 2010 - 06:23 AM' timestamp='1263641011' post='100197']

If I were to post 88 links of Christian Missions around the world, there are some on the left who would say that the only reason Christians help others is so that they can spread their religion.



When the government gets involved in the compassion business, several things happen. People get on board, very quickly. People expect the government to move fast. If it doesn't, those who run the government are attacked vigorously by those who want a change in government.



So compassion has become a primary value in our politics.



Since we have apparently lost our ability to discern when balance sheets do not balance, my response to your question is that there is nothing wrong with helping Haiti or Iraq or Afghanistan or any other country in need as long as there is a tangible reason for doing so. That reason must be something more than "spreading our religion," simply because it's not constitutional or legitimate for us to spend the people's money in this way.



The people are totally capable of spending their own money. There are many, excellent relief agencies they can approach for such a purpose. And they will. We are a generous people.

[/quote]





If the "most powerful" (still?) nation can't do secular humanitarian missions, then what's the point?

Nothing's wrong with helping Haiti. We have always helped nations that suffered natural disasters. And we should.



I think the only valid argument against it would be that we have our own sick, starving, needy, citizens that are owed our help first. I can understand the idea, but personally believe that we should be resourceful enough to help both.

I wonder what the T-Party has to say about it.