So many dead in the last few weeks, so many hurt, so many homeless, so many in danger of disease in the wake of the cyclone in Myanmar and the earthquake in China. In Myanmar alone, at least 34,273 are dead and 27,838 missing — and the death toll could mount as high as 100,000, according to the United Nations.
So many dead in the last few weeks, so many hurt, so many homeless, so many in danger of disease in the wake of the cyclone in Myanmar and the earthquake in China. In Myanmar alone, at least 34,273 are dead and 27,838 missing — and the death toll could mount as high as 100,000, according to the United Nations.
It may mount even higher. On Wednesday, according to the Associated Press, the U.S. military’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center warned that "a significant tropical cyclone" could be forming "and head across the Irrawaddy delta area."
Of course, the military junta ruling the former Burma says it doesn’t need help from outsiders. Fortunately for the Myanmar populace, Israel is not on its non-grata list. A handful of aid workers, using Israeli passports, have been allowed in, and others are on their way. (See page 34.)
But they need money — money to buy bottled water or water purifying agents to ward off water-borne disease, money for food, money for medicine. The Jewish community, usually so giving in times of need, seems to be holding back.
It may be that we are seeking to "punish" the junta in some unconscious, roundabout way; if they reject us, we’ll reject them. It may also be, as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s Steve Schwager points out, that the press has not been allowed to do its job; it has not been allowed to tell the stories and show the images that move people’s hearts — and make them open their wallets.
Meanwhile, the death toll from Monday’s earthquake in the Sichuan province of China was 15,000 to 20,000 as of Wednesday, with at least 25,000 people missing.
Horribly, many of the dead were children. The photos of the poor small bodies, the weeping parents, are heart-rending.
Cyclones, earthquakes, war, misery and famine — we are in danger of becoming numbed by the sheer volume of reported disasters. And that, in a sense, is mortal danger. See page 34 for information about how to help.