Tsunami Thoughts

I am sickened by the Indonesian tsunami disaster. More than that I am disgusted with our government's response (or lack there of). The few millions of dollars the President has offered are laughable. Daniel Shore on NPR a few minute ago quoted some politican (Patric Layhey?) that we spend more than $36 million in Iraq before we get out of bed each day. Shore half heartedly suggested that this was partisan rhetoric but the first thing I thought when I heard the financial offer was "damn that's cheap."

I couldn't sleep last night, mostly because I had images of the tsunami from the paper and internet floating through my head as well as my own mentally constructed video of bodies in water. I think it is the weight of all the lost souls weighing down on me.

Anyhow, here's my idea. What if we pulled half of our troops out of Iraq and sent them to the various countries along the Indian Ocean to help in the relief effort. Hell, send all the troops in Iraq. That's probably not very patriotic of me to suggest but it is decidedly more humane. We'll just tell the Iraqi people that the peoples around the Indian Ocean need up more and we'll be back after we help them. Of course, with the help we've given the Iraqis they tsunami victim nations might not want our help.