...remember 911....the feelings are back...or is it a "Story about Poverty"?

Posted by C.Worring

The feelings when 911 happened are back ----the quake in Haiti last week, is truly a reminder! So many innocent people gone, in a matter of minutes.  Similarities...yes.. it's a massacre!  Bodies everywhere, with no such system to identify all the bodies...  unexpected... definitely unexpected and lastly it happened in an overpopulated area where there are not just hundreds, but thousands of people!!!  Hear me out...thousands!!!!


As David Brooks, NY Times columnists, writes that this is a "Poverty Story".  We know about the 7.0 earthquake in San Francisco in 1989...and with this magnitude, only 63 people died!  In Haiti at the same magnitude...thousands died !!


So, is it okay to say that it had something to do with poor construction, and corrupt public services?  Poor infrastructure?  Or just plain ignorance that a quake this magnitude will not affect the country as it actually did...


I am not only a bit saddened but very worried!  I received a call from a friend who is a Haitian national that migrated to Montreal, today. Him and his wife just built a home in Haiti a year ago.  They both plan to move back because of the weather and the lower standard of living.  His family and friends are fine.  He told me that the hardest, is seeing the faces of the Haitians that are left alone in the streets, the young children left without parents, the elderly that can't get a bed to lay in to sleep....and it goes on.


He said, "Our home is fine, just a few cracks, but it is ok!"  So, doesn't this tell me that proper building materials ARE available!  I am not an architect nor a contractor, but I have renovated a home in the past...I know that there are substitutable materials to reduce costs for one...but a good contractor will tell you that it won't last! Or was it just luck that his home was not completely destroyed?


In the developing and developed countries, the slums and/or the poor are the ones that seem to suffer more! Affected... but safer are the upper class ..... But, what happened to the city of Port Au Prince??  Hotels, buildings, etc.. did not make it either? They are still finding bodies under the rubble, missing people, missionaries, tourists...etcc.  Should I continue to question the construction? 


So after the food, water, and the cleanup ...what next?  I assume it would be to rebuild Haiti right? 


David Brooks, also mentioned... "The first of those truths is that we don’t know how to use aid to reduce poverty. Over the past few decades, the world has spent trillions of dollars to generate growth in the developing world. The countries that have not received much aid, like China, have seen tremendous growth and tremendous poverty reductions. The countries that have received aid, like Haiti, have not."



So my friends, it is going to be a long battle in trying to aid this country.  As Lawrence E. Harrison explained in his book “The Central Liberal Truth,” Haiti, like most of the world’s poorest nations, suffers from a complex web of progress-resistant cultural influences. There is the influence of the voodoo religion, which spreads the message that life is capricious and planning futile. There are high levels of social mistrust. Responsibility is often not internalized.


The late political scientist Samuel P. Huntington mentioned that cultural change is hard, but cultures do change after major traumas. This earthquake is no doubt a trauma. The only question is whether the outside world continues without change.

An Increase in Non-Profit Organizations ...

Posted by C.Worring

There seems to be a substantial increase in  non-profit organizations world wide.   I got a hold of  a Non-Profit Organization List and it looks like a PDR!!!! (Physician's Desk Reference)

Is it a reflection that the economy is just not getting any better that we as Americans have lost our hope that the economy will take more time to recover?  Or is it because it is so easy to start one?

I spoke to my dear friend, an Accountant in Texas, to list for me what I would need to start a non-profit organization.  Since I am in California, not in Texas --below lists 12 things you need to do to start one in the state of California:

1. Create a program plan.
2. Determine whether the project is really needed.
3. Look for an existing organization to adopt your project.
4. Decide whether you really need to be a nonprofit.
5. Determine the type of 501(c)(3) your organization should be.
6. Decide whether or not you will be a membership organization.
7. Write articles of incorporation and bylaws and file them with the Secretary of State.
8. Conduct your first meeting.
9. Seek nonprofit status from the federal government.
10. After your federal exemption comes through, continue your application to the State.
11. Become familiar with the annual forms your organization must file.
12. Seek technical assistance and support.

It is not rocket science but...it is not that simple either.  So, then how do we know if it will work...do we do an analysis? Do a 2-3 year forecast by using some financial information from a similar non-profit?

What gives us the urge to start a non-profit organization...is it to just do it "because it will make a difference?" I've heard that it is also a "Calling" or for "Good Karma" and/or for the "Church"...  Here's a good one--I am a celebrity, and I need a tax deduction?

But don't get me wrong because I am sure it is at least one of the above...or some personal reason...or just mainly from the "heart."

Or is it really for profit...due to tax exemptions and such??  I wonder...???

At times like this, people are very concerned because they want to make sure their hard earned cash goes directly to the ones in need.  With our unemployment still rising, we literally count our pennies now...

So, what does it take to have a successful Non-Profit Organization?  If you ask me, I think it's pretty darn tough!  It is just like opening a business or having a business idea...it is never as easy as it looks...

Let's think about it?  Do you think our nation, or even the world would benefit with less non-profits?  I can see non-profit organizations all coming together to decrease administration costs...but will it work?

Well financial organizations, airlines, a lot of major corporations are merging!  I wouldn't be surprised if

Special Olympics and the March of Dimes merge.

Just a thought....a simple thought...but does it all make sense??

Let's take time to step back and reflect....

Posted by C.Worring

It's time to step back for a few minutes and reflect.
It's time to say a prayer.
It's time to give thanks.
It's time to accept and feel the pain.

The world once again came together to help Haiti.  It will be a long journey....but as we step back and think, we came together again as brothers and sisters.

In every corner I turn, every store, website I visit, every person I speak to...not one but all are asking to "pray and help Haiti".

We have shown to the world again, that we are all in this together!  As humans, we are naturally compassionate and giving. We love and we care.

Let's continue to spread the word..."Let's take care of each other!"