21769: O'Brien RE: 21765: Walton: RE: 21746: erasmus: Re: 21738: anonymous: Re:21730: Fenton: Reeves: Haiti's Disappeared (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Martha O'Brien <mmcpeob@earthlink.net>

Although Mr. Walton's points about the importance and efficacy of personal
agency certainly have merit, his specific suggestions leave me wondering
how he is picturing the particular "slums" in question.  From what I have
seen, no one *has* a yard in which to bury *anything*.  And I wonder how
many of the desperately poor in these areas actually do "have access to a
shovel."  My guess is that a certain amount of burning of trash *does* take
place, but extremely crowded conditions, even that is not always a safe or
practical option.

And when you are literally starving, finding the energy to take on any such
task might just be beyond your strength.

Martha O'Brien