The earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12 and the resulting destruction has exposed the inadequacies of the Haitian government and the living conditions of the Haitian people to the world. None of it is shocking to me since my parents were born and raised in Haiti; I’ve heard of stories from them and their friends of how bad it’s been over there for decades before the quake.
Right now, Haiti is the current fad for the U.S. media (until another vapid A-list celebrity or politician gets caught in a cheating scandal). But long after Haiti has become ‘soooo 2010′, Haiti will still be picking up the pieces.
Why Haiti is so broken up
As much as I hate the encroachment of the government on personal liberties, even I would be crazy to say that we don’t need a government at all. Haiti is an example of why an inadequate, nearly non-existent government results in total chaos and a devastatingly low standard of living. The Haitian government puts up a great facade of strong leaders who willingly undertake huge dilemmas, but underneath all that, there is corruption and incompetence. It’s been (un)lovingly termed a ‘hollow government’ for that reason.
Basically, Haiti is indirectly run by everyday criminals who roam the streets. The government makes laws it cannot enforce. Criminals have so much power that the police force is practically useless. Both the government and the police exacerbates the problem by giving up all together and taking whatever they can get in form of money and other bonuses, instead of giving it back to the community.
Here are a couple of examples. My parents recently had a family friend who was kidnapped and murdered in Haiti. A year has passed so far and they never found out who killed him or the motives for murder.
Two years ago my mother had another friend who went there with her daughter to visit family. At the airport, the daughter got kidnapped and was held in a closet for 5 days for ransom. The mother ended up having to fly back to Canada, get a second mortgage on her house for tens of thousands of dollars, all to get these people to release her daughter. The daughter was fortunate she got out of it unscathed.
In both examples, the police never found out who did it and they aren’t going to try too hard either. The logic here is that if people get arrested, other gang members may retaliate by killing more people… so it’s better to just have one person robbed/kidnapped/killed than 2 or 3 or 10 more people.
All of that is just the speck of ice on the tip of the iceberg.
Haiti needs more than food and handouts
When you get down to it, Haiti suffers because no one wants to invest in it or do business with it. It is a vicious cycle. Why would anyone want to do that when they know who really is in control over there? Why would you want to go there if you know there’s a good chance something will happen to you? My own parents are afraid to go back to their own country and they haven’t been there since 1997. The remainder of my immediate family finally left in 2004 because of death threats.
My intention is not to rip Haiti apart or demonize its people. Far from it. However, I’m a huge fan of the saying “the truth will set you free.” Too many people, including the citizens themselves, are unaware of extent of the problem, don’t know what to do and so they do nothing, or choose to ignore it all together. Too many Haitians just get comfortable with the way things are and are satisfied with scraping by on what other people are willing to give them.
Underneath all its problems, Haiti really is a beautiful country (if you look past all the nasty, desolate images the media chooses to portray). I know plenty of people who continue to visit and live there because they love it there… the culture, the sense of community. To them, the price of dealing with political instability is worth it. Haiti is not like America. At heart, they value the simple island life and community, like most other Caribbean nations. At their best, Haitians really are a loving, friendly, and fun-loving people… like any human being. I believe honest, hard-working Haitian people have a desire to change, they just don’t know HOW.
Do I think the aid currently going into the country is pointless? Absolutely not. You can’t fault the government or the people for the earthquake and the resulting destruction. However, all of these countries who continue to pour money and food into Haiti and other impoverished nations like it over the long term need to think harder about the impact. Just giving food and ‘free’ money will never be enough. Blindly giving hand-outs just perpetrates the cycle of dependency and poverty; it doesn’t fix the root of the problem at all.
Instead of giving people the fish, we need to teach them how to fish
As a country who has enjoyed great successes, despite our gripes with healthcare, the economy, the national debt, the socialist Democrats, and the fascist Republicans, we (and other industrialized countries) owe it to other nations to show them HOW to be successful, not to temporarily pacify them with a few shiny trinkets here and there.
Haiti and other countries like them need business connections. They need investors. They need people willing to teach them how to provide for themselves instead of relying solely on the government and the international community. In other words, they need more than one or two options. The government and the international community have their place as a support structure… not as a blank check. Until the people can learn that, they will continue to vote for and be influenced by people in the government who are more than happy to take advantage of them and not actually enforce basic laws and human rights.
It’s a complex issue that will never be completely solved because there will always be ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ when it comes to being rich or poor. I don’t believe in equal distribution of income or GDP, nor does everyone need equal distribution of income or GDP. It seems to me that most people just to be happy and comfortable; no arbitrary dollar amount will fix it. Why? Because standards of happiness and comfort will vary depending on the country and its cultures. Hell, it varies from person to person.
The truth is, like many people, I don’t know exactly how to achieve stability for Haiti. But I truly believe it starts with the Haitian people taking a stand as well as the international community collectively getting conscious about how it handles impoverished nations like Haiti.
What does this have to do with you and your personal development?
There are so many things to be taken away from all of this. But I’ll stick with two general points.
For one, as I’ve said so many times throughout my blog, real change starts with you deciding to make a change. This is the WHAT: what are you going to change? No amount of money will ever help you beyond a superficial level until you make the conscious decision to change what is not working by changing your actions. So many people in history have suffered in one way or another. It’s nothing new. They either had no money, they moved to a completely new country with no knowledge of the language, they had no education, they only had one penny to their name, or all of the above and more. The people with the most determination and sufficient knowledge (and I don’t simply mean book smarts) to change their circumstances, no matter what it is, are the ones who get further in life. Criminals in Haiti get further than honest citizens because they have the determination and street smarts (or the desire to learn it), even if they’re going about it in a destructive way.
If you are a citizen of an industrialized nation, you have it so much easier than the typical person living in Haiti and hundreds of millions people the globe over. These people have far more obstacles and a much longer way to go. I know you are sick of hearing it, it’s comparing apples and oranges, blah, blah. There’s still no excuse for you to incessantly whine, constantly expect handouts from the government, and avoid taking personal responsibility.
To top it off, most Americans in general don’t have enough problems, so they create problems that are non-issues in the grand scheme of things. Gay marriage… celebs parading around in ugly $10,000 dresses… White Man keeping us down… immigrants taking over… my nail broke… Are you freaking kidding me? Get the freak outta here with that bull isht. And you know what? The issue isn’t really even the complaining itself. The point is dwelling on any problem, no matter how bad (or trivial) they are, is a big distraction. Wallow in them for too long and you’ll never see the point of deciding to change.
Second of all, even after you’ve made the decision to change, there’s only so much you can do on your own. Connecting with other people is the HOW. As humans we are all interconnected and we do rely on each other for support. Often, we expect other people to solve all our problems before we decide we want to change. Other people and communities are necessary, as it does take a village to raise a child, so to speak. But they have their place and can only help so much… only after you’ve made the decision to change and get educated about your options. After that, connections and relationships with people can uplift you and the human species as a whole. At the end of the day, it’s about people, building strong relationships with them, and consciously uplifting them that matters.
**If you’re new here and enjoyed this post, be sure to subscribe for future posts and updates. And feel free to share this post … I’d really appreciate it! Don’t forget to introduce yourself in the comments. Don’t be shy … I don’t bite. 
You can also add me on Twitter (@valeriemondesir).**
Related posts:
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree with the fact the handouts won’t solve the problem, but you cannot expect these people to do it on their own.
Government functions only when their is fear in the people. The people do what they are told. The moment its the other way around, people get what they want like in France.
Their is blame for the Haitians in my opinion if you know that you are settled on fault lines which may cause earthquakes…
I have to disagree with you on the topic of teaching “Hatti” how to “fish”. North americas great prosperity came because of a lot of oil. Many products that use use come from hydrocarbons. Cars, tires, pesticides, fuel, toothpaste and so on. The problem is that oil is a finite resource, and many people have with the data on the oil reserves realized that America is Dependant heavily on foreign oil and natural gas. (You can do extensive research by typing in Peak Oil, End of Suburbia, Collapse, Mike Ruppert)
Combine that cheap oil which aloud America to pretty much dominate the markets is know having problems. As well as the amount of debt they got, the reality is America will be in a crisis as well.
Great post though, keep it up!
Hi Mac, and thanks for your comment. My reply is going to be long, but you asked for it
I have a couple of issues with what you’re saying and here they are:
1) Americans were not always as dependent on oil as they are now. We’ve been around much longer than cars, and we were already a self-sustaining nation well before cars and oils were the major influence that they are now. Yes oil did have a part in getting us to where we are now, BUT it is definitely not the only factor. I’m willing to bet if oil ran out tomorrow, some smart people will find a way around it. I don’t buy into the doom and gloom at all. Sometimes people need a rug pulled out from under them before they start thinking of other options. Up until now, we’ve never had to seriously think about other options.
2) By the time America won independence from Britain in the 1700s, the citizens/colonists already had a basic but sustainable economic foundation laid. They had business connections, they had business owners, they already had a stable system of government in place. Contrast that with Haiti, which in my opinion, broke away from France too soon. So now you have a new nation with mostly newly minted ex-slaves who aren’t accustomed to sustaining themselves outside of working on someone else’s plantation. They didn’t have a whole lot of connections then and they aren’t much better off now. They didn’t have a lot of business skills then and they aren’t much better off now. Back in the 1800s they promised France millions of francs in order to get France to recognize them as a nation. With what money? Using what business model? Ever since then Haiti has been bankrupt.
3) Re: not teaching Haitians how to fish. What do you propose then? You’re saying that America has too much dependency on foreign oil and that it will cause a crisis. Wouldn’t we be creating a dependency with Haiti if we just keep giving them food and money without showing them how to get it on their own? We’ve been giving aid to Haiti for decades and they aren’t really that much better off than they were before.
4) I don’t understand your logic behind blaming the earthquake on Haitians because they choose to live over a fault. It’s like blaming Canadians for living in subzero temperatures and if they die from frost, its their fault. Or blaming people in Florida for choosing to live in Hurricane alley so if they die, it’s their fault. Maybe it is their fault, but what difference does it make? Every place has its dangers, where do you suggest we move? Pluto? And who knows what dangers await there? I’ve never heard of a place that is completely free from natural disaster or bad weather. If you know of any, please let me know so I can move there.
Valerie, very well written and thoughtful post. I do feel like our involvment is more of a fad. It’s easy to be involved when everyone’s looking, quite different, when you’re not in the limelight anymore. And i love your line about “made up problems”. That’s rampant in our society. We think drama = importance. Whenever I see someone going off on something small, I laugh. REally? You’re getting upset because of THAT?
hahahaha
AnywaY, none of this is to underscore what is a really great thought provoking post.
PAPA
Heya Papa! Nice to see ya! That rhymed… sorta
Yea it is a fad, and it saddens me. As for the created problems… I just know I have to remind myself everyday that my problems really aren’t that big. One thing that really pissed me off (I just remembered), and it was a while ago since I last heard about it, was cankle surgery. CANKLE surgery. Really, now?
I don’t want to spam your blog with lengthy arguments, so I think we can debate elsewhere like some instant messenger or whatever and then post a summary. (Just an idea)
Just a quick note America prospered after WW2 because it destroyed(physically) it’s competition in the war. Those nations where rebuilding, like Japan, Germany, now those very country’s threaten the US industry to the point that it needs tax payer bailouts…
Mac´s last blog ..Unheard Advice…
amazing, thoughtful and well written. You hit it on the head, and I love the way you tied this in with our own personal development and making changes. I’m bookmarking your blog and exploring it more.
Oh and Mac, stop reading the conspiracy theories. Peak Oil is as big a myth as man made global warming. It’s as real as the tooth fairy.
@ Mac: It could be debated until we’re blue in the face about how America prospered, but at the end of the day America DID indeed prosper and it did so with the good business sense and the right business connections. That’s how it works… successful businesses and nations are interconnected and symbiotic by nature. The point I’m trying to make here is the relationship between Haiti and the international community is NOT symbiotic… it’s more parasitic, and that’s why Haiti is losing economically and politically.
@ Mike: Welcome and thank you for your comments! I think we are all connected and we can see ourselves in so many different people and situations — it’s fascinating to me. I’ve also checked out your blog… it’s great stuff as well! Looking forward to more articles.
teaching a man to fish is a great philosophy that everyone should be following, but majority of people today seem to be relying on others to take care of them such as government.
Now with Haiti, I have been reading up quite a bit on it recently and the reality in the situation. There are reports claiming US is trying to occupy the country and they are after uranium and oil that it has. Other reports talk about the military being put there on purpose to further bankrupt the nation and lend it more money to further enslave its citizens forcing the country to give up their natural resources in return for the debt they owe.
The point I am making is that people seem to quickly make assumptions and believe anything the media tells them when in reality the media is filtered and is used as a communication tool to alter our perceptions and obviously not for our benefit but for others, those at the top.