I've skipped through this, particularly the squabbling and finger pointing, and note that I will have to go read some news stories, since I didn't read about Kohl's experiences.

This came from Leadfingers on Dec. 28:

The last Tsunami of any size in the Indian Ocean was (I Believe) in 1836 . It is hardly surprising that there was NO Tsunami early warning system in place in the Indian Ocean as the last people who actually experienced this died the best part of a hundred years ago . An interesting side effect of this catastrophe is that there is wide coverage on the American Media . A Terrible way to give so many Americans a Geography Lesson !

We had an extremely interesting lesson on the news today about what happens when cultures aren't so interfered with or colonized that their experience of their land is allowed to be handed down, generation after generation. One small island about 50 (? I think) miles north of Bande Aceh had relatively little death, though there was material destruction. Why? Because almost 200 years ago there was an earthquake, and afterward a tidal wave killed a lot of people. The elders got smart and have handed down a cultural practice, through all of those years, that when there is an earthquake, all inhabitants should immediately head for the high ground. They did that, and very few died.

Now, for the main reason I scanned this thread, to highlight some photos. ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) has a page of photos here. I call your attention to this particuarly obscene shot. I can't get the photo itself to load here, but find this thumbnail on the other link, and follow it to the Euro couple on the beach. The alt text says "Foreign tourists sunbath on a Thai beach as local workers clear the debris from the tsunami."

The man is looking up at the workers as they begin to clear the debris of the tsunami. Are there bodies in this wreckage, do you think? Is he thinking "fuck what she says, I'm going to help" or is he merely wondering if they have any cold Diet Coke around somewhere? And what in hell is wrong with this woman? If you found yourself in a place like this and you were able bodied in the face of such disaster, could you blow it off and go lie on the beach? There is no label here, except their white skin, to say that they are foreigners. Are they Europeans or Americans (and does it make a difference if both are now considered colonizers)? A Belgian friend who was here for dinner tonight said he thought they were Europeans, that they are scrambling to the area as fast as they can go because vacations are so cheap. And he said he thinks these folks left their consciences at home. Don't they know you should never leave home without it?

SRS