Friday, December 31, 2004

The calm after the storm

I just spent the last twenty minutes reading about the unprecedented wave disaster in the Indian Ocean and the international aid effort. In particular, I came across these two articles, one on the BBC News site and one on the Telegraph site, both of which left me feeling somewhat appalled, a bit proud and then ashamed.

I'm appalled because of things like the death table, and why I'm so fascinated by it. It's like some macabre version of the Olympics medal table. (And I can't help but wonder what the two people in Bangladesh or the one in Kenya, were doing that they were the only casualties in those countries.)

The hint of pride comes from the fact that Britain currently leads the donations table. Yippee, for all those Commonwealth ties I guess. Thirty million quid in four days is not bad going for Joe Public either. Then I start feeling ashamed that these sites publish, and I read, such things as donations tables. But they did publish them and I did read them, so I guess they've got me (and lots of others) pretty much figured out.

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