Fast Wave, Slow Crawl

Here is what friend and occasional contract co-worker Jim Tilden, who lives in Thailand near the beach (and whose wife's family owns a small hotel) had to say last Tuesday regarding the Indian Ocean tsunami, in response to a worried query by another co-worker:

Things by the beach got hit pretty bad. Min and I were in Takua Pa at the time. Things there got hit even worse. Estimates are that about 1000 people have been killed along the Thai coast. Fortunately for us the hotel is fine. Its got more guests now, the top floors are especially popular, and all my in-laws are OK. Thanks for your concern.

I'm still perturbed how slow the U.S. Government response was, and I've been struck how few others have commented on the matter. I assume that that Bush et al. must really disdain emergency aid to those in need. Others have noticed that the Christian Right is all but silent regarding emergency aid for tsunami victims. In the clash of civilizations, who are we to care about Muslims, Buddhists, and others, eh?