21333: Raber: A Child's solution fo Haiti's problems (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: P&M Raber <raber@valkyrie.net>

Tonight, a friend asked me why Haiti was still in such bad shape after so
many years of everybody always helping Haiti.  He wondered if the country
was just a sinkhole where every humanitarian and church group is pouring
money without improving the future.   Since it is not making a difference in
the big picture, shouldn't people quit helping he asked?

  I answered that most of the relief work by NGO's is related to health
care, elementary education and food.  The population continues to grow, the
environment degrades, and the people still are not able to work due to bad
leadership , no infrastructure and no investment.  If we quit humanitarian
effort in Haiti, we would be giving up on children or letting them die with
the excuse that they then would not grow up into literate unemployed adults.

My friend answered that he thought he could move to Haiti with his
knowledge, start a business and be successful in a few years.

I answered that he probably could due to his background but that some in
Haiti may hate him for moving in the country and becoming successful.  He
would probably also have to put up with theft, extortion and sabotage along
the way.

The entire time, my 9 year old was sitting "anba bouch granmoun" listening.
She chimed in with the perfect solution:  Why don't  a few million Haitians
move to the USA to get a job and a few million Americans who want to help
move to Haiti to invest in it?   They can just trade places.

How about that?  A simple solution from the mouth of a child.  Should we
start a sign up sheet and swap citizenship?  There are millions of jobs in
the US snubbed by Americans that Haitians (or Mexicans) would be happy to
take.  At the same time, there are thousands in the US who think they now
how to improve things in Haiti.   Let's start moving!