Fifteen years ago, I was in the middle of a deployment in Haiti.  A couple of months before that, I was helping keep a jubilant crowd calm while they awaited the return of a loved, democratically elected president.  The people were happy, kind and pleasant.  Everywhere I went, the people were surprisingly open and generous.

The children were not above begging for chocolate.  The adults, however, possessed a proud, independent spirit that I find reminiscent of an America over a hundred years ago.  They did not want our help in improving the infrastructure.  They wanted to be able to buy shovels and pick-axes to do it themselves.  They wanted to be able to purchase heavy equipment to make the country a first-class destination.

The city of Port au Prince is too densely populated.  There are not enough local resources to feed the population.  People continue to move there in search of money and end up starving (sounds a lot like New York or LA).  The countryside is rich with fruit trees and grazing for small livestock.  As a result, Port au Prince starves regularly and the countryside cares very little about politics, as it does not affect them.

Recent events have brought the poverty of Port au Prince (not the entire country) has been made painfully obvious.  We, as Americans, feel obligated to help out in our own back yard.  We should.  These are human beings and their needs should not be ignored.  They also have a need for pride in accomplishment.  They do not need the Americans to rebuild their country.  They need our help, right now, to bury their dead and treat their injured.  After that, the people need to be taught to select building sites and materials to survive another earthquake.  After that, they need to be left alone.

The news has been full of reports from Port au Prince.  We have heard nothing from the smaller cities.  We haven't heard anything of the condition of The Citadel.  The first free black nation in the world has much to be proud of.  It's history and it's people are something I feel privileged to have experienced.  At this point, I am hoping to find a relief organization that is willing to put me to work in order for these people to get back to building a life.