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Could the Tsunami Disaster have been prevented?

RitalinKid said:
Cathy, please read my post if you haven't because i wasn't implying what you have posted about. What you have posted about does occur, and can be classified as racism, but it's not an ideal world, and we all know that favoritism goes on whether intentionally or subconsciously. I would continue on with my post, but that's for a racism forum if anyone feels like opening that bottomless can of worms.
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Uhm, the post was directed to Sun-SSS, so I'm confused by your reply, RitalinKid. My only comment was that religious bias is not now, nor has it ever been "racism". Racism has to do with actual racial differences, such as skin color or physical characteristics, as opposed to geographic location or idealogical beliefs. There can be many religions within a single race, and people in the affected area might be Muslim or Christian and probably Jewish, Buddist and Hindu too.
 
Sun-SSS said:
Nothing lame about it. I just don't want to talk to you. I consider it a total waste of time. And I'm sure that if everyone who doesn't want to waste time talking to you is lame, I'd better invest in the crutches industy.

I know there are other ways to see the world than mine, but I don't want to hear about all the silly ones.
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:D Seems that you are right that this discussion is a waste of time since we apparently never will reach a point we can agree on, and our "discussion" is turning quite nasty.
All the best to you. See you in other threads I hope.
 
Cathy C said:
Uhm, the post was directed to Sun-SSS, so I'm confused by your reply, RitalinKid. My only comment was that religious bias is not now, nor has it ever been "racism". Racism has to do with actual racial differences, such as skin color or physical characteristics, as opposed to geographic location or idealogical beliefs. There can be many religions within a single race, and people in the affected area might be Muslim or Christian and probably Jewish, Buddist and Hindu too.
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It's favoritism, and I was lumping it together with racism, but you're right religion has nothing to do with the color of one's skin. Our cultures are the main differences between groups of people. You're in the US; you know how stereotypes and biases pop up between the North and South and even between towns. How do we classify that discrimination if not classifying as racism? I just took the easy route and lumped them together, but I'm sure there's a better way.
 
hay82 said:
:D Seems that you are right that this discussion is a waste of time since we apparently never will reach a point we can agree on, and our "discussion" is turning quite nasty.
All the best to you. See you in other threads I hope.
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I think, indeed, it is a waste of time :) <--uh oh, it's one of those smiley faces! It's not a discussion it's going to go on forever.

Sun, you have been told by more than one person that you are argumentative, snappy, and seem to be unable to tolerate any viewpoint other than your own and when faced with said other view point you get nasty about it. Since you have been told by more than one person that this is so, do you not think their might be something to this? Why not have a think about it. Just because somebody sees the world other than you do does not make them an idiot. There is no one "truth" only points of view that are arrived to via memory, environment, genetics, knowledge, experience and so forth.
 
A discussion can happen here. This doesn't have to be an argument. Discussions have to happen about these type of incidents because we have to learn from them.

Major bump for the Wabbit. I want Sun's view in the discussion, but I don't want the dismissive mud slinging. It's important for everybody to remember that people see things differently. No one learns anything if the people who have different opinions dismiss each other as stupid without making their cases.

Maybe I should have kept in mind people's sensitivity to race-related comments before I made my post. Since people aren't really saying anything, I can only assume a lot of people must've read some form of racism or favoritism into my comments, but I can assure you that there was none intended.
 
Originally quoted by RitalinKid: discrimination if not classifying as racism
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How about "cultural preference?" The problem with lumping religious preference with racism is that it inflames the discussion. The term "racism" is such a trigger topic with so many people that any sort of preference, whether it's supporting one football team (either version of the game... ;) ) over another, or funding one charity over another, and choosing what amount to give, suddenly takes on a new aspect. For example, the incident of the English football team in Spain -- was that racism or merely an annoying and foolish manifestation of supporting their own team? It can be either, depending on your take. But when you slap on the label "racism," people who might normally let the incident slide can start to get their knickers in a bunch and storm an embassy.

Just a word of caution to consider when you're discussing politics or religion. It's quite possible to discuss whether or not Saudi should or should not give more to people of their own beliefs (but outside their borders) without adding inflammatory labels. :)
 
I dont believe that in the aftermath of this disaster that people are actually nit picking over "who said what and what they meant by it"!
Obviously some people enjoy a "spirited debate" and thats fine,but when people start introducing issues of racism it starts to detract from the debate as an intelligent way to learn and educate ourselves.
I agree with Ritalinkids opinion that Suns should be heard (as should everybodies),but to fair Sun-sss,you do come across as being abrasive.Pointless exercise really because the debate becomes about something else.
And in regards to the use of "smilies",I think I'm reasonably articulate and can express myself in written form,but I use them sometimes. :rolleyes:

Peace 2 all!!
 
gallagher672003 said:
True the tsunami couldnt have been prevented,but the disaster could have possibly been reduced with an early warning.
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What were the authorities going to do? Hire a plane to sky-write warnings? Sound a tsunami alarm across 11 countries?

The areas hit, while popular tourist spots, are also high in poverty meaning that the majority of those killed didn't have televisions, radios, telephones, or other such tools. Newspapers take too long to distribute - especially in one hour.

Save for the recognised guy flapping his arms creating panic alarm method there is nothing that could be done. If you announce that there's going to be some big bloody wave about to crash down on a location then it would create mass panic.
 
Guys, thanks for bringing back the original purpose of the thread. Stewart, I think almost everyone is in agreement that there was no way to prevent the loss of life without a previously prepared warning system in the Indian Ocean. I originally started the thread because Sunn-SSS didn't feel that way, and I wanted him to lay out why he and maybe others felt that the massive loss of life could've been prevented or reduced. Unfortunately, he got pissed and left the discussion.
 
Stewart said:
What were the authorities going to do? Hire a plane to sky-write warnings? Sound a tsunami alarm across 11 countries?

The areas hit, while popular tourist spots, are also high in poverty meaning that the majority of those killed didn't have televisions, radios, telephones, or other such tools. Newspapers take too long to distribute - especially in one hour.

Save for the recognised guy flapping his arms creating panic alarm method there is nothing that could be done. If you announce that there's going to be some big bloody wave about to crash down on a location then it would create mass panic.
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Point taken,but what I meant was that the death toll may have been reduced if people had been made aware earlier. I have just posted on the other thread regards to this and pointed out that even with early warning the toll could have even been increased with people leaving the relative safety of the upper floors of hotels out into streets clogged with people all heading the same way. Its a hard one to call isn't it?
 
gallagher672003 said:
Point taken,but what I meant was that the death toll may have been reduced if people had been made aware earlier. I have just posted on the other thread regards to this and pointed out that even with early warning the toll could have even been increased with people leaving the relative safety of the upper floors of hotels out into streets clogged with people all heading the same way. Its a hard one to call isn't it?
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Hmm. I'll agree that the death toll might have been reduced in SOME locations, gallagher672003, but where would most of the people have GONE? From satellite photos of the hardest hit areas, they are small islands with no high ground to climb to. A mass exodus probably wouldn't be possible, due to the lack of private transportation. Perhaps the government could have supplied small boats (that could float in shallow enough water to be boarded) in that short a time, but short of public drills that would educate people about what to do (and the money and time that would cost), and hard dollar purchases of sufficient transportation for 20-40 thousand people from the lesser islands, AND a place to put them when they were evacuated, there is little that can be done.

Keep in mind, it wasn't much better in the Florida Keys (a string of small islands connected to the Florida mainland by a single highway bridge) when the third and fourth hurricanes threatened this summer. Where do you PUT 50K people once they leave? The evacuation ITSELF was nearly a natural disaster.
 
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