Tsunami must be fault of the US

Don't you wish the conspiracy theorists and America haters would make a New Year's resolution to get some therapy? Meanwhile, in the midst of all this nonsense, the American people are pouring out more money from their own pockets to help the suffering than they did after September 11. It's way past time for the America haters to shut up and do something unusal for them: give money to help instead of gripe!

The Australian: Gerard Baker: Tsunami must be fault of the US [December 31, 2004]: "In the past three days I have been impressed by the originality of the latest critiques of the evil Americans. The earthquake and tsunami apparently had something to do with global warming, environmentalists say, caused of course by greedy American motorists. Then there was the rumour that the US military base at Diego Garcia was forewarned of the impending disaster and presumably because of some CIA-approved plot to undermine Islamic movements in Indonesia and Thailand did nothing about it.

To be fair, even the most animated America-hater, though, baulks at the idea of blaming George W. Bush for the destruction and death in southern Asia. But the US is blamed for not responding generously enough to help the victims of the catastrophe. A UN official this week derided Washington's contribution as stingy.

It is a label that fits the general image abroad of greedy, self-absorbed Americans. They neither know nor care much about the woes of the rest of the world, do they? Did the tsunami even get a look-in on US TV news between the holiday schmalz and the football games, I have been sneeringly asked once or twice this week by contemptuous British friends. "