The part that irked me was-
"xx,000 are killed-a lot of them children"
There is no doubt in my mind that many more will die from the sudden interuption of things like public plumbing,electricity,public sanitation,food supply,law,shelter,pharmaceuticals,etc.
It's too bad that no matter how much relief money anyone throws at it, and everyone down the food chain takes their cut, - those survivers who have been previously cast aside by society and live on the fringe of civilization, are now the one eyed kings in the land of the blind.
Suddenly, the life knowlege to eke out survival from the rubble and waste of others is an admirable high-academic and experiential-leadership qualification. That is, until the rest of the world governments trip oer themselves to pave a superhigway of good intention and "fix" it.
FCOJ by the cooler load. Warehouses of gum'mint cheese.Cases of "recently available" painkillers-pre expiration date even! Sea-tainers loaded with sixpacks of French/Swiss/American/bottled water. Googleplexbytes of Compaq and IBM laptops that work!(sort of) Ecto- tussin(sic) and wall-flue(sic) in the economy family size.
On the other hand, the contractors that speculated on lucritive contracts in the rebuilding of an "easily overrun" Middle East, and, now paid, are reneging as people are actually shooting at them, are in the best position to move their assets to where a more pressing need for humanitarian rebuilding is clearly evident.
It would be serendipitious(sp?) to hear THOSE "reconstructionists" roll up their sleeves and shout-let's get 'er done!
