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ORIGINAL: Kirata

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ORIGINAL: LadyEllen

It was raised last night on the BBC news channel during the period it goes out on PBS in the US - that the incredible flooding in Pakistan is receiving little if any coverage, Americans are mainly unware of it and (presumably as a result) little in the way of donations are being made. Indeed aside from the invaluable assistance by way of US military helicopter flights running in food and water from Afghanistan, the US seems absent on this one.

I wondered if this lack of awareness is accurate? And if it isnt then how to account for the apparent uninterest in helping?

It's not accurate. It's been all over the news, American aid has been, errm, flooding in, and, at a time when millions of Americans are out of work and losing their homes, out of whose pockets, precisely, does the BBC think the cost of that aid is coming without a whimper?

U.S. Aid Reaches Flood-Ravaged Pakistan
U.S. Continues Aid to Pakistan Flood Victims
USAID Sends Additional Aid to Pakistan Flood Victims
More U.S. Helicopters Join Pakistan Flood-Relief Effort

Fuck the BBC.

K.

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ORIGINAL: LadyEllen

This wasnt meant to be a pissing contest - it was a simple question as to whether the coverage was, as had been mentioned, seriously lacking or totally absent and if so, what might explain that and the also mentioned apparent lack of aid coming from the US, purported to be falling short because of the apparent level of publicity. 25% of an admittedly small number of participants in the above poll said they had not heard of the floods in Pakistan.

The degree of hostility in some replies suggests to me a certain level of that which I suspected; that despite none having ticked the option "it feels wrong to give to Pakistan" there is such a feeling present in this instance and likely arising from the common knowledge, reported many times, that Pakistan as a state appears to not be doing all it can to assist and support the west against the variety of radical Islam that is promoted amongst its people, originally it must be said against India and more recently against us by way of its feed into Afghanistan.

I see nothing wrong with such discernment; if one is convinced that one's enemy is in trouble then one is under no obligation to assist him but every obligation to take advantage of his misfortune to support efforts towards his defeat. The only question in this instance is whether his defeat will be more likely if he is left to flounder or his disastrous circumstances might strengthen his resolve to renew the fight or our aid to him now might turn him into a friend or support his recovery and enable his next attack.

E

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ORIGINAL: thishereboi


Actually the hostility that I have noticed up to this post has been centered on the idea that most of the world has no problems telling the US how ignorant and self absorbed they are and then where they is a disaster somewhere, they stick out their hands and demand help. Nothing to do with feeling wrong about giving to Pakistan. Maybe you are projecting a bit?