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Japan
Mar 18, 2011 13:15:21 GMT -5
Post by BegToDiffer on Mar 18, 2011 13:15:21 GMT -5
I hope others are as concerned about what is happening in Japan as I am. I feel very sad for those folks. The news footage makes my heart ache. One disaster can change a person's life in a moment, and even for those who have survived, to have one devastation after another can destroy people for many years to come. Please consider a way you can help.
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dimarec
Silver Shield Investigator
Posts: 111
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Japan
Mar 19, 2011 13:27:25 GMT -5
Post by dimarec on Mar 19, 2011 13:27:25 GMT -5
Yes, indeed. On my opinion this is the biggest disaster ever, thank God it happened in Japan and not elsewhere. Casualties could be multiplied by 1,000 if somewhere else. I am worried that they are taking so much press time for the nuclear reactors compared to the disasters Japanese are facing. They do need help. I am not a praying person, but I am doing it for them these days. I wish we could do more. www.scientificamerican.com/gallery_directory.cfm?photo_id=C524E617-BCFD-9891-2C248AA0C83655F9nuclear reactor maps.
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Japan
Mar 19, 2011 23:49:46 GMT -5
Post by alliehalliwell on Mar 19, 2011 23:49:46 GMT -5
What's going on in Japan is horrible but I'd like to point out something that many people haven't mentioned. The great people of Japan are being very good about what's happening. They're taking everything in stride even when everything's so horrible. There hasn't been mass hysteria, they're dealing with everything the best they can. I think, that if something as bad as the Japan-situation were to happen here in North America I bet there'd be mass hysteria, looting, riots,etc. I know that just a couple days of people dealing with conflicting opinions in Toronto (for the G8 summit last year) the city had to deal with looters and riots even for a short while. If they had an earthquake, flooding, a volcano, and a nuclear threat, I feel confident in saying that it'd be mass chaos. The Japanese people are showing us their true colors and it shows just how many good people live there. To them, it probably seems like the apocalypse but they're not lashing out at anyone, they're just trying to get by and survive. Also I'd like to mention that I've heard many American news stations blowing the nuclear threat to the US out of proportion. Not all, but many of the news stations here have been purposely trying to scare viewers. Nuclear threat? Well to the American people, I'd like to say that a few researchers have stated that if there is any radiation that makes it to the US, it'd be about as much radiation as what's in nature. Plus, when radiation comes, it will rain (just like acid rain) and in doing so some of the radiation will dissipate. I asked a doctor and he told me that the radiation will only be very minor, like the kind you get from a microwave. I think its disgusting that many members of the media are either not doing their research, or they're purposely trying to scare people. www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1627219.php/US-sees-miniscule-radiation-from-Japan-but-no-concernI'd also like to point out that people are panicking about this 'one-millionth of the dose rate that a person normally receives from rocks, bricks, the sun and other natural background sources.' Sure, maybe the levels have changed since this article was written but my point is that people are panicking about THIS while there are people handling themselves very gracefully in Japan. I couldn't imagine what it would be like them but I do think we've got it pretty good. A friend of mine sent me a link about some of the footage of Japan, online, and we were both disgusted by some of the comments people made. Some said that it was payback for what the Japanese had done at Pearl Harbor and that they all deserved to die. I'm sorry but NO ONE deserves this. It was disgusting and I really hope those people feel ashamed of themselves for saying such things. Sometimes in times like these we really get to see who people really are. Good or bad. Some celebrities I have to say were already trying to raise funds to help Japan on day one of the disaster and it makes me happy to see this. If you want to donate, I'm posting a link to the 'Random Acts' organization that Misha Collins (from tv show Supernatural) has set up. He raised over $20,000 for the Haiti crisis within a couple weeks, just from fans donating. It is a legitimate organization and you can watch some of the videos on the site to see what they use the funds for. www.therandomact.org/wordpress/
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Japan
Mar 20, 2011 13:39:41 GMT -5
Post by jeffan on Mar 20, 2011 13:39:41 GMT -5
The miraculous news today is that an eighty year old woman and her sixteen year old grandson were rescued from the rubble of their home. They had spent the last nine days trapped in their kitchen surviving on yoghurt.
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Japan
Mar 21, 2011 13:06:54 GMT -5
Post by BegToDiffer on Mar 21, 2011 13:06:54 GMT -5
I know the radiation threat was made more than it was. (This time) But I'm of the thought that you can never be ready enough. The general public has the attitude that "nothing is going to happen where I live". I know, because I teach people about disaster planning. If it gets people thinking about what could happen in the U.S., then maybe its not so bad. And if people become more prepared for a disaster as a result of this critical incident, then that is a very good thing.
Re: Those who say its payback to Japan--read your history books. Japan was already paid back. And I for one am not very proud of that.
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Japan
Mar 21, 2011 23:21:17 GMT -5
Post by idget on Mar 21, 2011 23:21:17 GMT -5
Even my father, who is a WW II veteran who fought in the Pacific and lost a brother in the Pacific feels sorry for Japan. He told me that 95% of those people weren't even alive during the war and that he hopes things get better soon for them. Believe me this was something I thought I never would hear from him. I am also amazed at the response of those people to this disaster. Just compare and contrast their response to the peoples' response to Katrina. It certainly puts us to shame!
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dimarec
Silver Shield Investigator
Posts: 111
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Japan
Mar 22, 2011 11:44:29 GMT -5
Post by dimarec on Mar 22, 2011 11:44:29 GMT -5
Just compare and contrast their response to the peoples' response to Katrina. It certainly puts us to shame! I agree that response to Katrina was incredible slow, but I would never feel ashamed of the US and I am very very grateful for all the help you give in case of disaster. US is always there helping when there is a disaster and doing things that really matter. Who helped the US when Katrina stroke? You should feel proud of your country. Its response to disaster is not always prompt, but you are essential to disaster response, and since Andrew you have changed the way we respond to disasters. Now, Japanese are such a special culture, we will learn from them. This is the worst disaster in history, and Japanese are handling it in extraordinary ways. (I say biggest disaster, because despite the fact there have been stronger earthquakes, they have not involved the quantity of people in this case, and this is also a complex disaster that has the absent alert of an earthquake and the huge devastation of a flood, plus a man made disaster caused by nuclear plant leakage.) Usually with this magnitude of disaster a population would be devastated, unresponsive, and helpless, this is not the case for Japan.
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Japan
Mar 22, 2011 18:06:50 GMT -5
Post by idget on Mar 22, 2011 18:06:50 GMT -5
Actually I am very proud of my country and feel very blessed to have been born here, but like all country's there is room for improvement. Hopefully one learns from their mistakes. When I was talking about Katrina I was not only meaning the slow response from the government but the way some people of the city responded to the crisis. I don't see mass looting or hysteria going on in Japan.
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dimarec
Silver Shield Investigator
Posts: 111
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Japan
Mar 23, 2011 3:37:42 GMT -5
Post by dimarec on Mar 23, 2011 3:37:42 GMT -5
I don't see mass looting or hysteria going on in Japan. Yes, I agree, and I admire Japanese for that. Extraordinary isn't it? I agree, you have been blessed being born in the USA. Still, I can say, there are no words to thank the US for their help during disasters.
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