Singapore's efforts, in the mainstream blogosphere (UPDATED)
Having read my remark that Singapore's relief efforts have received scant coverage by the international press, you might say: forget the MSM (Mainstream Media)--that's so Ancien Regime. The pajama-clad Blogosphere revolution (see e.g., this) has come.
There is something to this: after all, this blog has as many hits originating from the US on the first day of its inception only because Chester posted a link; and not only that, he posted a previous email of mine and encouraged me to start my own blog (bless his soul!). Furthermore, Chester quotes PACOM briefings (here and here) at length, and Singapore makes honorable mention in them. The link from Chester also prompted Machias Privateer to link here.
(Scroll to the end for the latest updates)
* * * * *
What about the rest of the blogosphere? Ok, so let's take the excellent Diplomad, which has the most extensive coverage of the tsunami relief effort in the mainstream blogosphere (and often cited by other blogs with their own coverage, e.g., Belmont Club, Chrenkoff, Powerline...).
Note that the Diplomad is run by a career US Foreign Service officers of Republican Persuasion. They are about as friendly to Singapore as you can expect Americans to be. In a post dated Dec 21, 2004: "Top Ten" in which they give "top-ten list of allies we admire and appreciate", Singapore ranks 5, just after UK/Australia, Israel, Japan and Demark. The reason--"Dynamic business center and sensible, pragmatic foreign policy, with leaders openly rejoiced over the US victory in the Cold War." (See also the entry dated Dec 15, 2004: "The World and The Diplomad")
Searching in the Diplomad's archives, I found the following 4 items to date:
Jan 2, 2005: "The UN Begins to Act..."...Along with the US military assets, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Japan are among the core of nations contributing ships or planes and helping plan relief operations.
Jan 3, 2005: "Almost fUNnny..."...The relief effort continues to be a US-Australia effort, with Singapore now in and coordinating closely with the US and Australia. Other countries are also signing up to be part of the US-Australia effort; citing this AP Report.
Jan 4, 2005: "More UNreality...but the Dutch get it"...Aussies and Yanks continue to carry the overwhelming bulk of the burden, but some other fine folks also have jumped in: e.g., the New Zealanders have provided C-130 lift and an excellent and much-needed potable water distribution system; the Singaporeans have provided great helo support; the Indians have a hospital ship taking position off Sumatra. Spain and Netherlands have sent aircraft with supplies.
Jan 11, 2005: "Some Good Guys in Tsunami Relief"...That said, The Diplomad does not want to get a reputation as just a bearer of very bad news. There are some people out there doing a lot for the victims of the December 26 quake and tsunami. We've already repeatedly mentioned the Australian and American militaries, and we can add the armed forces of Singapore, Malaysia, and New Zealand to that list.
As I said: honorable mentions...
* * * * *
On the other hand, The Diplomad also has this post dated Jan 10, 2005: "Death in Nasty Places: Who Cares?" It does not mention Singapore at all. (The post is also cited and/or discussed with some approval in American Digest, Powerline and American Future.)
Rather, it compares the response in the western countries, where governments and private citizens pledge "sizable sums of money", provide military personnel "who led the way in the massive relief effort underway" at "great monetary cost and personal risk" with the response in the rest of the world.
In contrast, he finds "no outpouring of support in most of the world's countries". He asks, "The oil-rich Arabs? Where are they?" He expresses his greatest frustration and anger at the "lack of concern exhibited by average and elite members of the societies most directly affected". Citing Indonesia as the example: "At least 120,000 of their fellow countrymen are dead, and Indonesians hardly talk about it, much less engage in massive charitable efforts. The exceptionally wealthy businessmen of the capital...haven't made large donations to the cause of Sumatran relief; a few scattered NGOs have done a bit, but there are no well-organized drives to raise funds and supplies."
The author ends with the following "un-PC" (as one commentator puts it) conclusion:
Begging the pardon of the cultural relativists, but might we not be allowed to raise--ever so gently, of course--the possibility that these differing reactions to human suffering, show Western civilization as the best we have on the planet? Maybe, just maybe Western civilization is morally superior.
* * * * *
I am not a cultural relativist. In addition, I would disagree completely with those who think that the West (especially the Anglospheric West) is corrupt, evil or in decline. I even admire many Western practices--not because they are Western, but because I think they make good sense whether one is Western or not. And I have often found Westerners--Americans, epecially--to be warm and full of compassion for suffering people of the world.
But I cannot help but wonder if the moral superiority that is so apparent to Diplomad is the result of selective evidence. Has he forgotten Japan, which has pledged US$500 million and is now sending 1,000 troops to the disaster zone--overcoming constitutional barriers and risking the re-igniting of historical enmities? Or that "the Western countries" overlap to a large degree with "the wealthy countries of the world", countries in which ordinary citizens live way above the poverty line, have good access to news about world events and possess large disposable income--countries with well established mass-communication that facilitates large-scale coordination by private citizens? And conversely, does not the relatively paltry contribution of China vis-a-vis the West only demonstrate its weakness in ability to project power far from its shores, and the long way it still has to go in economic developmental terms?
If the billionaires of Jakarta really did fiddle while their countrymen suffer, then they stand condemned. But for those of us--that includes us Singaporeans--who have been favored with fortunate circumstances, I would plea that we not confuse what our circumstances make possible for us with any intrinsic moral standing on our part. To whom much is given, much more is required.
* * * * *
(UPDATE)
Singapore's contribution made a few honorable mentions in this post, dated Jan 9, 2005, at The Command Post; I like this bit best: ...Singapore (whose efforts are unsung and amazingly valuable).
There is something to this: after all, this blog has as many hits originating from the US on the first day of its inception only because Chester posted a link; and not only that, he posted a previous email of mine and encouraged me to start my own blog (bless his soul!). Furthermore, Chester quotes PACOM briefings (here and here) at length, and Singapore makes honorable mention in them. The link from Chester also prompted Machias Privateer to link here.
(Scroll to the end for the latest updates)
* * * * *
What about the rest of the blogosphere? Ok, so let's take the excellent Diplomad, which has the most extensive coverage of the tsunami relief effort in the mainstream blogosphere (and often cited by other blogs with their own coverage, e.g., Belmont Club, Chrenkoff, Powerline...).
Note that the Diplomad is run by a career US Foreign Service officers of Republican Persuasion. They are about as friendly to Singapore as you can expect Americans to be. In a post dated Dec 21, 2004: "Top Ten" in which they give "top-ten list of allies we admire and appreciate", Singapore ranks 5, just after UK/Australia, Israel, Japan and Demark. The reason--"Dynamic business center and sensible, pragmatic foreign policy, with leaders openly rejoiced over the US victory in the Cold War." (See also the entry dated Dec 15, 2004: "The World and The Diplomad")
Searching in the Diplomad's archives, I found the following 4 items to date:
Jan 2, 2005: "The UN Begins to Act..."...Along with the US military assets, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Japan are among the core of nations contributing ships or planes and helping plan relief operations.
Jan 3, 2005: "Almost fUNnny..."...The relief effort continues to be a US-Australia effort, with Singapore now in and coordinating closely with the US and Australia. Other countries are also signing up to be part of the US-Australia effort; citing this AP Report.
Jan 4, 2005: "More UNreality...but the Dutch get it"...Aussies and Yanks continue to carry the overwhelming bulk of the burden, but some other fine folks also have jumped in: e.g., the New Zealanders have provided C-130 lift and an excellent and much-needed potable water distribution system; the Singaporeans have provided great helo support; the Indians have a hospital ship taking position off Sumatra. Spain and Netherlands have sent aircraft with supplies.
Jan 11, 2005: "Some Good Guys in Tsunami Relief"...That said, The Diplomad does not want to get a reputation as just a bearer of very bad news. There are some people out there doing a lot for the victims of the December 26 quake and tsunami. We've already repeatedly mentioned the Australian and American militaries, and we can add the armed forces of Singapore, Malaysia, and New Zealand to that list.
As I said: honorable mentions...
* * * * *
On the other hand, The Diplomad also has this post dated Jan 10, 2005: "Death in Nasty Places: Who Cares?" It does not mention Singapore at all. (The post is also cited and/or discussed with some approval in American Digest, Powerline and American Future.)
Rather, it compares the response in the western countries, where governments and private citizens pledge "sizable sums of money", provide military personnel "who led the way in the massive relief effort underway" at "great monetary cost and personal risk" with the response in the rest of the world.
In contrast, he finds "no outpouring of support in most of the world's countries". He asks, "The oil-rich Arabs? Where are they?" He expresses his greatest frustration and anger at the "lack of concern exhibited by average and elite members of the societies most directly affected". Citing Indonesia as the example: "At least 120,000 of their fellow countrymen are dead, and Indonesians hardly talk about it, much less engage in massive charitable efforts. The exceptionally wealthy businessmen of the capital...haven't made large donations to the cause of Sumatran relief; a few scattered NGOs have done a bit, but there are no well-organized drives to raise funds and supplies."
The author ends with the following "un-PC" (as one commentator puts it) conclusion:
Begging the pardon of the cultural relativists, but might we not be allowed to raise--ever so gently, of course--the possibility that these differing reactions to human suffering, show Western civilization as the best we have on the planet? Maybe, just maybe Western civilization is morally superior.
* * * * *
I am not a cultural relativist. In addition, I would disagree completely with those who think that the West (especially the Anglospheric West) is corrupt, evil or in decline. I even admire many Western practices--not because they are Western, but because I think they make good sense whether one is Western or not. And I have often found Westerners--Americans, epecially--to be warm and full of compassion for suffering people of the world.
But I cannot help but wonder if the moral superiority that is so apparent to Diplomad is the result of selective evidence. Has he forgotten Japan, which has pledged US$500 million and is now sending 1,000 troops to the disaster zone--overcoming constitutional barriers and risking the re-igniting of historical enmities? Or that "the Western countries" overlap to a large degree with "the wealthy countries of the world", countries in which ordinary citizens live way above the poverty line, have good access to news about world events and possess large disposable income--countries with well established mass-communication that facilitates large-scale coordination by private citizens? And conversely, does not the relatively paltry contribution of China vis-a-vis the West only demonstrate its weakness in ability to project power far from its shores, and the long way it still has to go in economic developmental terms?
If the billionaires of Jakarta really did fiddle while their countrymen suffer, then they stand condemned. But for those of us--that includes us Singaporeans--who have been favored with fortunate circumstances, I would plea that we not confuse what our circumstances make possible for us with any intrinsic moral standing on our part. To whom much is given, much more is required.
* * * * *
(UPDATE)
Singapore's contribution made a few honorable mentions in this post, dated Jan 9, 2005, at The Command Post; I like this bit best: ...Singapore (whose efforts are unsung and amazingly valuable).
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