Frustration-Sadness

Trip Start Jul 23, 2005

Trip End Jul 25, 2006

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Flag of Japan Kitana, Japan
Monday, September 5, 2005

In light of the recent tragedy that struck New Orleans and the Gulf Coast last week, I feel it is necessary to take a few moments to digress from the main point of this blog (my travels) and vent about the situation taking place in America right now. I am obviously not getting the constant stream of media information about it that most of you have been, so I apologize if anything I say is plagued by ignorance. I have however, been trying to get my dirty little fingers on as much information about it as I can, when ever I can. Most of this has come from the Internet, other JET's, and this TV station that I get most of the time a little fuzzy- called AFN (American Forces Network). Of which, AFN is highly censored and the information is pretty limited. So most of the information has come from my own searching on the internet.

I was first made aware that there was a hurricane in the U.S. from my supervisor. I looked into some things, and found out that it was pretty severe. That was on Tuesday here. A day went by, and I didn't really pay attention to it, it seemed to me to be "just another hurricane". The next time I heard of it, I think it was on Thursday here when the vice-principal of my school, a woman of pretty high power, and very few English words, came rushing up to me in the gym. After a few minutes of gesturing and mumbling I figured out that she was asking me if the hurricane had hit my state. I assured her that no, it was far away, and that I thought everything was fine. The way she approached me, and her concern had caught my attention though, and as soon as I had a chance I was on the internet looking for information that obviously wasn't that hard to find.

I sat there amazed at the pictures I was seeing and the information that I was devouring as fast as I could. It was so hard to grasp, being so far away- how devastating the damage really was, and how grave the situation could be. Even from the information I read on-line I asked my mom, can it really be that bad? I was shocked. I surfed through articles and pictures as much as I could. One that I found from Minnesota Public Radio made me a little upset. It quoted the governor of Mississippi comparing the damage done from the hurricane, to what Hiroshima must have looked like 60 years ago. Being in Japan, and being the semi-informed person I think I am, I first thought this statement was ridiculous and I was thoroughly annoyed by it. How could he compare a natural disaster to a man made tragedy? Along with this, many of the pictures I found on-line were of people looting stored. I thought how can this be? Why are people looting stores? It seems as if they are only thinking of themselves and being completely selfish in such a situation. It made me disgusted that this was happening. I was extremely disappointed at the way Americans were representing themselves in a time of crisis. I was ashamed of what was going on. Why weren't people helping each other?

As the situation continues, and I keep getting more information my opinion is obviously changing. I understand now, from the news I have gotten that this disaster is in fact as devastating if not more so that the tsuami that wrecked havoic on parts of Asia and Africa last Christmas. Part of me can understand why people were looting stores- they were obviously desperate for supplies. Some of the pictures and reports included that people were stealing jewlry and such as well though, which I cannot understand.

I am extremely frustrated by this situation. I know that others have the same questions, how- why are people not getting the help they need? Why did it take so long? I am extremely disappointed, when I hear the reports of the gangs forming and the violence that is happening. Why is this necessary? The relief efforts were interrupted by the fact that the people trying to help couldn't do the job they were suppose to do because they had to focus on crowd control. Is there no sense of community left in America? Aren't those people concerned for the safety and health of others? I think that their actions are representative of the complete dissatisfaction of their lives they have felt for a long time. From what I understand, the people creating the problems are extremely poor, and it seems that they feel they did not receive immediate aid because they were not valued in society. What I mean is, perhaps they are expressing a frustration that was building for a long time due to their poverty.

It is still difficult for me to comprehend this tragedy. More people are dying every day and it doesn't seem fair. My heart goes out to all of the people that are dealing with this devastation right now. I realize that it is going to take a very long time to recover from this. This entry seems to express a lot of frustration at the situation, which is I think understandable, because I know I am not the only frustrated one. But I would also like to give some light of optimism and hope, that the people in the south are strong people, and that they will be able to pull together and get through this. I have to believe in the innate good of human nature and people and think that with the help of others and the rest of the world, the people will soon receive the help and support they deserve.

As I write this, we are actually in the middle of a typhoon warning, which supposedly has already blown by. The teachers all told me on Friday that it was going to be a really bad one, and that school would probably be cancelled, but I don't think that will be the case. But, I have been sitting in my apartment for the majority of the day, a little frustrated because I don't have a good source of news, but none the less trying to figure out what is going on over there. It kind of puts things in perspective, or at least makes me think about life differently for a while. What would I be thinking about this if I were at home? Anyway, I am going to stop rambling for now. If any of you know anyone or have relatives dealing with this, please let me know right away, so I can keep them in my prayers, and also let me know if there is anything I can do.

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