Well, 2010 has not wasted any time in delivering chaotic destruction. Before averting into the subject of this blog, I would first like to send out my condolences to anyone who was directly or indirectly impacted by this horrific natural disaster. Any type of donation will help with relief efforts, so if you're feeling generous I strongly urge anyone who can to donate here.
As bad as the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti was, what's perhaps even more deplorable is the response from the American news media. Pat Robertson was quick to jump on the bandwagon, stating that there was justice in the Haitian disaster due to a pact made with the devil back when they were under Napoleon's rule. Let's examine this statement for a minute. Is Pat Robertson really crediting the success of the Haitian Revolution to Satan? Yes he is, but certainly the public wouldn't adopt this rendition of history, would they? This question is harder to answer. As the founder of the CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network), Robertson reaches roughly one million viewers each day worldwide. Following Robertson's comments, the CBN released a statement on the matter, "countless scholars and religious figures over the centuries believe the country is cursed." For a second, let's ignore any rationality in ourselves, and pretend that Robertson is right, that the earthquake happened because of the Haitians pact with the devil. If we are to observe the event in this manner, there are still several problems with this line of logic. The only reason the Haitian people ever revolted, and so presumably made a deal with the devil, was because they had been slaves under oppressive rule in their own country for the past 30-40 years. If it took faith in the devil for the Haitians to succeed in their rebellion, why should we inherently regard this as negative? If slavery in the name of God is more valuable than rights, liberty and freedom in the name of Satan, I certainly know which side I would opt for. Next, if we are to believe that Haiti was cursed by God, how would we explain for the 200+ year time differential? If God were truly vengeful on the revolters of 1791, why would he wait until the year 2010 to demonstrate his wrath on 50,000 innocent descendants? If we are to accept Pat Robertson's statements as valid, this seems to reveal that God is an immoral sadist that holds illogical grudges and punishes innocent people. Gee, maybe Pat Robertson had it right all along...
Hopefully anyone with half a brain would dismiss the nasty statements by Robertson, and this leads to my next criticism: the media encourages this behavior. I'd like to think that most of the networks and media outlets are reporting on Pat Robertson in order to show his repulsive nature, but the fact of the matter is that people are reporting on him. (I suppose I'm also part of the problem with the publishing of this post.) What aggravates me is not the nature of the media's reporting on Pat Robertson, it's the fact that they are wasting valuable space and time on these moronic comments. Imagine if places like The Huffington Post and MSNBC took all the coverage devoted to Pat Robertson, and instead reported on the efforts that are currently being done, as well as ways we can help at home. The truth is that it's embarrassing what qualifies as news in this country, and Pat Robertson is a minor cause of this larger, critical problem. If we lived in a country that valued news, the Pat Robertson story would be a minor blurb in light of a global epidemic. Instead, Pat Robertson occupies a far greater portion off coverage than he deserves, and as a result people get worked up about his comments as opposed to the actual problem of the earthquake itself. Let's try and not be hypnotized by evangelical nonsense, and instead focus on relief efforts, and things that really matter.
Clearly the twisted mind of Pat Robertson does not speak for all Christians or Evangelicals. It's a shame that he's been given the spotlight, casting belief in God in this light. In reality, many churches have launched tremendous fundraising efforts to support those harmed by the earthquake. These gestures, unfortunately, have been overshadowed by the idiocy of one man. Pat Robertson is a distraction, and a successful one at that. Who knows whether he actually believes the things he says, or if he just does it with the knowledge that it will cause a stir amongst morally sound individuals. Regardless of his intent, the result is a manipulation of religious belief and a mockery of American news media, which does nothing more than continue to fuel Pat Robertson's engine of hatred.
