# Won't somebody PLEASE help lil' ol' us? ! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 31, 2005, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494 "2005-08-31T22:06:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/21 "2005-09-01T07:16:01Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > Like I said in the thread in question, Canada did everything we could when 9-11 happened, and we will do whatever we can now. The Las Vegas Review is full of shit. If you think Canadians haven’t been watching coverage of this and crying along with you, you don’t know us very well. The donation boxes will be going up soon - I’m surprised I haven’t seen one yet. Our medical and other necessary trained personnel are volunteering for the Red Cross as we speak. We will be there, and I don’t know why any Americans would question that. **featherlou** , **Little Nemo** , **Northern Piper** , **RickJay** , and any others… friends help friends, and good people everywhere will help _anyone_ that they see in need of assistance. I know that, most people know that, and we thank you and yours for whatever aid you give. The assholes at the LVRJ, as I said, are so prideful, so self-righteous, so irrefutably and unrepentantly divisive that they will let no opportunity go if they can breed hatred… even when lives depend on the goodwill of our neighbors. Lies come easily to some people, especially when it comes to their “beliefs”. I’m not a big fan of beliefs. I like ideas. The people at the LVRJ, and those like them, have no ideas… just a crapload of “beliefs”. Fuck 'em. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/22 "2005-09-01T07:18:27Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > I don’t understand this. Is it some sort of criticism of the building codes that exist in Louisiana? > > **C3** , unfortunately there’s been plenty of experience in Australia of the damage that cyclones (hurricanes) can do. I’m assuming that the effects in the southern US states at the moment are much like what Cyclone Tracy did to Darwin in 1974, though on a larger scale. Yeah, I know there are cyclones in Australia, but like you said, the last really bad one happened decades ago and cyclones in Australia really don’t hit where most of the population is based. I’ve actually been through several hurricanes - evacuated from some of them, ignored mandatory evacuations for a couple others. It’s even hard for me to really \*get \* how bad this is just from news reports. I think it’s perfectly understandable that this isn’t getting as much attention here as some other recent disasters and tragedies. I think the softwood crack was a comment on the tarrifs and trade blocks on Canadian wood in the U.S. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/23 "2005-09-01T14:06:08Z")
The softwood crack was in regards to the U.S. refusing to drop tariffs on softwood imports from Canada even after 3 (IIRC) separate rulings by tribunals “forcing” them to. I just popped in here to say that a local paper, the Winnipeg Free Press on Tuesday already had a page with a list of charities that were collecting donations for New Orleans. ---
**Author:** ![rayh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@rayh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rayh)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/24 "2005-09-01T16:41:40Z")
The USA has asked for [aid](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4204066.stm). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/25 "2005-09-01T17:25:22Z")
> [@](#): > > Really? Huh, I hadn’t heard that reported here. [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16459654-29277,00.html](http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16459654-29277,00.html) I also found that New Zealand has offered assistance. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/26 "2005-09-01T18:57:03Z")
Fucking VENEZUELA offered assistance, shortly after a friend of our president called for the assassination of their president. Dozens of countries have stepped up. So much for self-pity. > **[The latest from the StarTribune](https://www.startribune.com/)** > > Follow the StarTribune for the news, photos and videos from the Twin Cities and beyond. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/27 "2005-09-01T19:06:34Z")
> [@rayh](#): > > The USA has asked for [aid](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4204066.stm). According to that, US _relief agencies_ are asking for help from American citizens. Not the same thing as an appeal for foreign aid. Although I’m sure non-Americans can contribute the same way, and I’m sure many of them wil 🙂 . ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/28 "2005-09-01T19:11:23Z")
How many words of contrition will **lk1932** offer us in light of this? Does the number “0” sound about right? **betenoir** , from **cricetus** ’s link: > [@](#): > > With offers from the four corners of the globe pouring in, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has decided "no offer that can help alleviate the suffering of the people in the afflicted area will be refused,’’ State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Thursday. Also not the same thing as _asking_ for aid – but at times like these nobody should have to ask. ---
**Author:** ![hildea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ebca7d/32.png) [@hildea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hildea)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/29 "2005-09-01T19:30:11Z")
> [@UN](#): > > UNITED NATIONS OFFERS TO HELP HURRICANE VICTIMS IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE > > Regarding Hurricane Katrina, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that it has been in contact with the United States Government. > > Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland, in a letter to Ambassador John Bolton of the United States, has offered to help in “any way possible.” > > Egeland has also been encouraging donors to contribute to non-governmental organizations active in helping the hurricane victims. > > In addition, the UN Staff Union, in both New York and Geneva, is working to raise money for hurricane survivors. > > Asked if there were any other plans to help the United States, the Spokeswoman said that the United Nations would like to help in any way possible, but has not been asked to do so by the U.S. Government. If the United States asks for help, she said, the United Nations could dispatch a Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team to the area, as part of its standard response to determine needs. ([Link](http://www.un.org/News/ossg/hilites.htm).) I seem to recall a pit thread dedicated to Egeland some time ago, when he criticised rich countries for not giving enough aid when needed. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/30 "2005-09-01T20:46:48Z")
Another dog to pile on **lk1932**. [http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050901/ts\_nm/weather\_katrina\_foreign\_dc](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050901/ts_nm/weather_katrina_foreign_dc) “WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 20 countries, from allies Germany and Japan to prickly Venezuela and poor Honduras, have offered to help the United States cope with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.” I hope that little punk-ass has the decency to express some heartfelt gratitude for their offers of assistance, but I doubt it. He really sounds like just another 'Merican who doesn’t like fer’ners. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/31 "2005-09-01T21:21:39Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > I hope that little punk-ass has the decency to express some heartfelt gratitude for their offers of assistance, but I doubt it. He really sounds like just another 'Merican who doesn’t like fer’ners. From the article linked: > [@](#): > > Earlier, President George W. Bush said in a television interview that the United States could take care of itself. > > “I’m not expecting much from foreign nations because we hadn’t asked for it. I do expect a lot of sympathy and perhaps some will send cash dollars. But this country’s going to rise up and take care of it,” Bush told ABC’s “Good Morning America.” **lk1932** must not have got the memo. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/32 "2005-09-01T21:40:00Z")
> [@ramesh](#): > > And there is no way the US will let foriegn aid workers on its soil. Security, military intelligence, etc. etc. This includes the UN aid workers. Am I being whooshed here? You’re really sure there were no fire and rescue and so on people from the U.K. (and I shoul think from Canada etc) helping in NYC re. 9/11? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/33 "2005-09-01T22:23:04Z")
[We are getting help](http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/wwl090105usgetshelp.16cbe69d.html) > [@](#): > > Offers have been received from Russia, Japan, Canada, France, Honduras, Germany, Venezuela, Jamaica, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Hungary, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, China, South Korea, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, NATO and the Organization of American States, the spokesman said. ---
**Author:** ![wolfstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@wolfstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfstu)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/34 "2005-09-01T22:48:41Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > Am I being whooshed here? You’re really sure there were no fire and rescue and so on people from the U.K. (and I shoul think from Canada etc) helping in NYC re. 9/11? Cite for foreign troops patrolling in the USA: My friend’s wife, an officer in the Canadian Forces, spent a few weeks on the streets of affected US cities in September of 2001, deployed by the CF at the request of the US government. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/35 "2005-09-01T23:01:05Z")
> [@wolfstu](#): > > Cite for foreign troops patrolling in the USA: My friend’s wife, an officer in the Canadian Forces, spent a few weeks on the streets of affected US cities in September of 2001, deployed by the CF at the request of the US government. The comment wasn’t about troops, but about aid workers (which we can surely take to mean all forms of search & rescue?) ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/36 "2005-09-01T23:02:20Z")
Sorry, I realise I misread, and saw a question mark where there was none…_stays quiet_ ---
**Author:** ![RyJae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@RyJae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RyJae)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/37 "2005-09-01T23:10:20Z")
I hope we are not to proud to take the help that is offered. We are a great nation, a powerful nation, but even the the strong can use some help sometimes. - Being a great, powerful person myself, I was still a little emotional when I seen this. > [@](#): > > Even Honduras and Jamaica, which have suffered hurricane damage themselves and been the recipients of U.S. aid, have offered to help the residents of the Gulf Coast. If that isn’t like having only a loaf of bread to eat, yet sharing it with your neighbor I don’t know what is. ---
**Author:** ![HeelB4Zod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e19adc/32.png) [@HeelB4Zod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeelB4Zod)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/38 "2005-09-02T00:01:47Z")
To anyone in the world who is helping out, either by sending prayers/good vibes or by sending money, aid, lifesavers, etc., as an American, I thank you for helping my countrymen and women who are suffering. Seriously, I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I don’t care what political differences we have as nations, I just appreciate anyone reaching out to people in need. This is just killing me to see this. Some of my best memories are of times in New Orleans, and watching the big N.O. drown is excruciating. Again, to everyone in the world who wants to help, as an American, I thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/39 "2005-09-02T03:21:45Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16459654-29277,00.html](http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16459654-29277,00.html) > > I also found that New Zealand has offered assistance. […yes we have.](http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=79397) Also, Canada really wants to send Vancouver Urban Search and Rescue to help out the rescue effort… [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20050831\_katrina\_template\_050831?s\_name=&no\_ads=](http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20050831_katrina_template_050831?s_name=&no_ads=) …but unfortunately they can’t get permission to fly into the country. > **[US won't let Canada help Katrina victims](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2005/8/31/143163/-)** > > "Things that make you want to scream" for $500, Alex... > Okay, first this article: > > A specialized urban search and rescue team from Vancouver will be joining the rescue efforts in Louisiana in the w... :: sighs :: ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494/40 "2005-09-02T03:38:42Z")
> [@Raygun99](#): > > Wow. That one cuts to the bone. Why would it, or am I being whooshed? Nobody thinks it’s cynical if the insurance industry jumps into action in the wake of a disaster. I would think it was Good Business Sense, usually a trait Americans appreciate, as well as preparing to help people in need to start checking if you have enough lumber they can spend all that insurance money on. It’s gotta be spent on someone’s lumber and you guys have the most. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wont-somebody-please-help-lil-ol-us/319494.md?page=3)