A quick and unscientific glance at what it is that seems to carry more weight; the care and comfort of the people, who by no fault of their own, are victims of natural disasters, or the protection of property held in private, and to a lesser extent, government hands.
While I have been subject to the vicissitudes of mother Earth, we had three hurricanes literally cross through my backyard a few years back, it was nothing compared to the damage my family endured when Andrew decided to” come a callin’”. My folks huddled for five or six hours in the only corner of the house that remained relatively intact; along with, if memory serves me right, my sister and her husband, a couple of dogs, a cat and a parrot named Cuca,who still suffers from the anxiety of that time manifested by plucking all her feathers when there is any sort of tension in the air.
When they emerged, what they saw would be permanently etched in their collective memories; the destruction and devastation was legion. Tubs on top of autos on top of roofs on top of swimming pools. Then as now, there were reports of looting and the state of Florida wasted no time in calling out the National Guard to primarily protect property, the food aid came later. We knew Andrew was coming, just as we know today, almost ad nauseum, when the next one is going to hit and where.
Having that information comes in handy, because we can generally agree on what actions we need to gather in order lessen as much as possible, the oncoming storms.
Earthquakes are very different; preparations on the individual level is limited to stocking up on water, candles, canned foods, emergency medical supplies and the like. In terms of infrastructure it is the responsibility of federal, state, and local municipalities to impose strict guidelines in earthquake prone areas. While it is true that some builders and contractors will try to game the system, it is also true that in those areas where natural disasters are not unexpected these highly enforced building plans are more able to withstand the natural course of events than those that do not. A cursory look at building codes after Andrew, Oakland and the Bay Area after the World Series quake, Los Angeles, Japans’ urban areas are good examples of positive reactive measures now being transformed into proactive actions on the part of government and the private sector.
What the hell does that have to do with the title of your post?
This morning, the headlines screamed how thousands of troops are headed to the quake ravaged region of Concepcion to stanch the outbreak of looting that some say is running rampant throughout the area. I watched some very interesting videos and still photos of some of the damage. Apartment buildings leaning in precarious positions; waiting for the next aftershock to finally bring them down; reminiscent of the buildings in the Marina District in San Francisco and throughout Los Angeles.
There were signs that some “looting” was\had been going on, but to place it in its’ proper, I don’t know that you or I would not have done the same. I don’t remember the bloggers’ name, but she\he made a very cogent argument for looting in the face of starvation or shelter.
It is without question that while the best of humanity can be measured by its’ actions in the face of adversity, the inverse is also true. The sharks circle the prey during these difficult times, if water is a dollar a bottle, it will climb to five dollars a bottle. If gas is $2.50 a gallon, the predators will make a killing with inflated prices. That seems to be the nature of the beast, and all the “We Are The World” videos are not going to change that.
However, as in Haiti, the Chilean governments initial action is to protect property first, and then to see to the needs of the people. The case in Haiti is a bit different because of the historical disregard the various iterations of ‘government’ ruling Haiti had and still has towards its’ people. That example actually worked to the advantage of the people of Haiti, since the ‘government’ was a sham, its’ inability to respond militarily was sporadic at best. The focus seemed to center on the humanitarian aid; with the occasional report of shootings by police guarding chain locked supermarkets and pharmacies, although we were not shown what was going on outside of Port-au-Prince.
The imperative to survive is central to any species, if your children are cold, you must provide shelter, if they are hungry, you must provide sustenance and if they are ill or hurt, it is your duty to seek help, even if it means breaking into a locked pharmacy, or a bodega covered with plywood.
Looting historically has been the way kings and queens paid their vassal troops after invading this or that nation state, tribe, and so on. Loot took different forms, most looting in the past has been for monetary gain; whether it was in gold, silver or human cargo, it did not seem to matter.
I have seen firsthand, the hooliganism, the riots in Harlem and the Bronx, in the early and mid sixties; and while the inequalities of justice and opportunities were at the forefront, the seamier side of humanity reared its’ ugly head. Shops were broken into; people were assaulted by the police and their fellow neighbors, fire and rescue personnel were attacked while trying to save what they could. That was looting pure and simple; for material gain and not as a tool for survival. Much has been written about these and other instances. The riots and looting in L.A and Detroit had no survival construct; and although the political reasons for these actions may be debated the actions themselves were unforgivable.
That was looting in one of its’ ugliest forms, destruction for the sake of destruction.
In Haiti, there was a photo of a man shot dead by the local constabulary in front of a store; clutched in his fist was the apparent evidence of his crime, a plastic bag with what seems to be three of four bottles of water. Which is the bigger crime, the need to provide for ones family or the need to protect private property?
In Chile, thousands of troops are being deployed to stop what the government and the media described as ‘rampant’ looting. The media and the government of Chile use words like ‘ransacked’ and ‘rampant’, as if the need to make it to the next day is a villainous act. As usual, the people most impacted are the indigenous people of Chile although an earthquake doesn’t give a damn who you are of where you’re from. I mention it because as a matter of demographics, if you live on the periphery of any society chances are you’re going to get the short end of the stick. I have seen the pictures; I have watched the videos and what I see is nothing more than the imperative to survive in full bloom. There was an AP photo on Huffington Post of what seems to be a pharmacy, the shelves bare of water and other things like bandages, medicines and water; prominent displayed in the very front of the store was a full shelf of productos íntimos; apparently these so-called looters were less interested in condoms than in emergency supplies.
The pictures are different in Haiti, what was already horrific, became more so; the years of corrupt governments aided and abetted by the West will not end with this outpouring of aid. Haitian children will still be eating mud the next news cycle begins. Haiti was pushed aside by the Olympics, and will be pushed aside again, this time by the tragedy in Chile or Tiger Woods.
The protection of property should never be at the cost of human beings trying to make it to the next hour, or to the next day. The media behaves like most corporate entities behave; they are not here to provide a service, they are here to protect their interests.
Governments on the other hand, have a moral duty to its’ citizens, and they should be shamed when they do not.
Oh…and if I’ve pissed anyone off…oh well…
