Parallel response?

Mikaela says:
After hearing the horrible news of more natural disasters around the globe -- mudslides in Guatemala, earthquake in Pakistan -- I'm left wondering how the U.S. response will match the outpouring of aid for Katrina victims. The almost over-the-top reaction to Katrina was justified by many as coming from the largest tragedy to ever strike the U.S. Okay. But this earthquake that just hit Pakistan is the largest tragedy to ever strike them. What will be the response?

And as the effects of global climate change continue to strike country after country -- and they will -- how will aid be prioritized? I guarantee we will start to hear -- sooner rather than later -- that the U.S. can't bail out everyone, and our own citizens need to come first, etc. That's to be expected from our currently conservative-dominated country. But what about the rest of the world? As the U.S. loses dominance (which we will as the value of our dollar falls, as we slide into more and more debt, as we lose unwinnable wars in other countries, as we lose all credibility in the UN and in the global marketplace), how will the balance of power among countries decide to value need versus aid distribution?

Wish I was a political scientist. This is going to be one helluva ride. For those on top, anyway. For those on the bottom, I would guess it's going to feel more like a mudslide.

I'm taking a moment of silence this morning to feel the impact of the thousands of thousands of human beings that blinked out of existence this weekend. Just like that. Physics tells us there was an equal and opposite reaction. Let us hope it was a jolt of awareness of life that leads us toward radical change.