We start the new year off on the sad note of remembering the thousands of lives lost in the December 2004 tsunami in Asia. As the phenomenal death toll soars past 123,000, it is unfortunate that it takes a catastrophic natural event like this one to humble millions to really internalize the earth's awesome potential to regain the respect it already deserves.
While man has no control over such natural events, despite the rantings of some opportunistic doom-sayers currently using this disaster and fear-based discourse to scare the vulnerable to submit to personal agendas, I am hopeful that this natural disaster will provide a platform for world leaders to look less towards war solutions and imperialistic initiatives. Thus re-directing their resources towards ending world pandemics like hunger, disease, and institutionalized racism, classism while promoting a fairer distribution of wealth.
Although my ideological rants sound unrealistic and pie-in-the-sky, I do believe they are attainable if people exorcise their tendancy to adhere to socially engrained stereotypes and perceptions guided by the ruling class and religious institutions who thrive on total submission of the masses for identity, social norms, and spiritual dependence.
We can go on for days about this (and I welcome your thoughts via postings or alternate public forums), but I want to call your attention to links where you can donate your resources to help out tsunami victims as well as other needy people--remember there are still flood victims, extreme poverty and hunger in Haiti, earthquake victims in Iran, etc.
You choose your cause by starting here:
Tsunami relief efforts
Haiti Relief Fund
Relief International
UNICEF
Red Cross
