A Tale Of Two Countries

Last year, there were two very powerful earthquakes, one in Haiti about a year ago and the other in Christchurch, New Zealand in September. Let's look at the difference between the two countries:
Haiti: From the air they form a neat patchwork of grey and blue, nestling between rundown factories and crumbling slums.
But on the ground these sprawling tent cities are a fetid mass of humanity where cholera and crime run rife.
A year since a cataclysmic earthquake levelled much of Haiti, little has changed for the 1.2million residents still scraping an existence in these squalid refugee camps.
Survivors have been further blighted by an outbreak of the deadly water-borne disease cholera. The illness has struck 155,000 since October, killing 3,651.
Astonishingly, salvage crews are still prising bodies out of the rubble even as the country marks the first anniversary since the catastrophe.
Haiti will hold two days of mourning beginning with government officials gathering at a mass grave outside Port-au-Prince where more than 220,000 victims are buried.
There will be an open-air mass in Port-au-Prince's cathedral, still a denuded ruin like much of the island.
Then, at 4.53pm, silence will fall to mark the exact moment the quake struck before mourners release dozens of white balloons.
The international community pledged some £7bn Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1346195/Haiti-earthquake-year-Dead-remembered-millions.html#ixzz1AmCo6Vg3
It is undeniable that Haiti has had to depend on foreign governments to do most of the work for the people of Haiti and all the help has not helped the Haitian people one little bit.

Now, let's look at Christchurch, New Zealand which had even a more powerful earthquake than Haiti. The earthquake happened on September 3, 2010.
The earthquake isn't even mentioned in the daily paper, The Press: http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/
Auckland and regional tradesmen are considering sending teams to Christchurch to take part in the estimated $2 billion cleanup - but one South Island industry leader says they are not needed.
A survey of Auckland plumbers, builders and contractors yesterday found many were thinking of sending staff but none had actually committed to the process. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10671625
There were calls to our radio station toward the end of this week indicating some people were suffering from "earthquake fatigue".In other words they were sick and tired of hearing about the quake. Well, just get used to hearing about it, because as we as a country support the Canterbury region and its people to come back from this horror story, we will learn a lot.We will learn about the acts of kindness and courage. We will learn about how better other parts of this country can prepare for the unimaginable destruction wrought by a major event.We will learn how better to plan our urban areas and infrastructure. Above all, we will learn to support our fellow Kiwis not just to get over these following weeks but to rebuild our second largest city to its magnificent best.We will do this in our own way and without any offshore assistance. As has happened in our parents and grandparents time when major adversity has struck, whether it be by war, depression or natural calamity, we want our grandchildren to look back and say: "Didn't they do a great job in tough circumstances."
http://www.radiolive.co.nz/New-Zealand-can-be-proud-of-how-we-coped-with-quake-/tabid/466/articleID/16953/Default.aspx

One country is dealing with their earthquake by dealing with government and relief agency bureaucracy and fraud, crime, disease and a feeling of helplessness. They also have an attitude dependency or that they are owed something.
The other country says we don't need much outside help. We can handle the disaster ourselves and no one owes us anything. Very little whining and an attitude of self reliance.
Which country is handling their problems and which is not?
Christchurch and New Zealand should be proud of what they have accomplished in the 4 months since the earthquake. Can Haiti say the same? Nope, they just have their hand out.