Last weekend, a typhoon dumped a lot of rain on Manila and caused major flooding. Hundreds of thousands of people have been affected and so far, over 200 people have died. The photos of people struggling in the flood waters are heartbreaking. My sister Leslie lives in Manila and thankfully, they live in an area not affected by the flood.
I donated to the Red Cross right away, feeling like that was really the only thing I could do from where I am. I phoned my other sister who lives in Richmond, BC and asked her if she had donated. She said no because the last time there was a calamity in the Philippines, it was revealed later on that a lot of the donations from overseas were pocketed by corrupt government officials and never reached the people who really needed the help. How anybody can stomach doing such a thing is beyond me. I am now hoping that my donation will actually make a difference, reach the people they are meant for, and not end up in someone’s Swiss bank account.
Which is the bigger tragedy - that thousands of people have lost their homes or that the trust we have in our own brethren has been lost?
1 comment:
Which is the greater tragedy? It is a very good question. I am tempted to say that not believing in our brethren is just an idealistic issue and not a real tragedy. However, in many cases like your sister's, she was unable to make a donation because of that lack of belief and unable to provide assistance.
I think the lack of trust we sometimes feel makes us unable to work together to solve problems and we could avoid a lot more sorrow if we were able to trust. So I would have to put my vote with the lack of trust. The loss of life was an isolated incident and I don't feel is as far reaching as the lack of trust.
If asked, would you rather save these people or restore trust in the world, I would unreservedly say save the people, but I still say the trust is a bigger issue.
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