Devastation in dollars and cents
THE EDITOR: Mr Jan Egeland claims that the hurricane which devastated the southern United States is a worse disaster than the tsunami which hit Indonesia and several south east Asian countries, because of the cost of material damage to the United States. According to Mr Egeland one hundred and eighty thousand lives are less important than the cost of restoring the damaged areas of the US Mr Egeland would have us value devastation in dollars and cents rather than human lives. Or maybe he is saying that the US dollars are move valuable than Asian lives. He probably has a similar perspective as that of George W Bush whose attitude apparently is that poor people’s lives are not important enough to spoil his vacation. It appears that any disaster occurring in the United States, (have you noticed how many there have been in the last few years?) is of greater significance than calamities of far worse effect elsewhere, especially in the developing world. From the information coming to our attention about living standards in the Gulf States, they are the "developing world" of the United States. Increasingly, catastrophes are being measured on a scale of material damage instead of the loss of human life. But this statement by Mr Egeland brings the issue sharply into focus and emphasises the intensifying coarseness of our existence. It is no wonder that even in our society people who claim to have the welfare of people at the centre of their consciousness increasingly measure that welfare on a scale of material value. KARAN MAHABIRSINGH Chase Village
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"Devastation in dollars and cents"