Rwanda was a man-made tragedy which, as horrible as it was, one might not know where one's money was going, i.e. was there a legitimate outlet of 'humanity' there, at the time. I recall a CBC broadcast indicating that the plotting of the Rwanda genocide occurred in churches. NOT to condemn religion, simply to state that finding a 'good guy' in that maelstrom of murder would be a genuine problem.

If the ranting from the mosques re: Tsunami is happening, it's a sad commentary on what passes for religion in those parts. To say those were drowned were martyrs, to say it was Allah's actions due to alleged immorality and evil investors....sounds like Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell who said similar things about 9/11.

Using weather as a justifiable 'act of God' on sinners is beneath contempt. It brings to mind the poem about the San Francisco Quake (and fire) of '06:

If God had meant to toast the town
for being over-frisky,
Then why'd he burn the first church down
and leave McCullough's Whiskey?

Voltaire made a lot of anti-zealot hay out of the destruction of Lisbon on All Souls Day in 1755 (Earthquake and tsunamis both).

That being said, before we leap on anyone for their national response, let's give the area some time to recover. They're going to need help for some time to come, and in six months or so it might be more obvious who arrived in time, who stayed the course, who met their obligations and who beat the drums of blame and obfuscation.

The death toll is steadily creeping up, but I haven't heard about any post-calamity epidemics. If people are getting water and being cleaned up, this does the world credit and we should be encouraged by it. Up till now it seems that as many people die after the event as from the event itself.