Meant to add a description for my above link: apparently money donated is not actually going to Japan, because Japan has not requested assistance as yet. IF they do, the money will be used for that but if not it will just go to some other cause. Even if this is true, it's still great to donate to good causes, of course.
"And if you're not so keen on The Red Cross... basically you're an idiot who's still swallowing debunked 2003-era propaganda from the Bush administration. But hell, it's not like Doctors Without Borders can't use the money."
What @6 and @11 said. There is no good reason to send money to Japan or earmark money to Japan when donating to an NGO. Don't donate to NGOs that don't do pre-disaster mitigation. I do the disaster thing for a living. It's much better for you to urge electeds to fund disaster research, hazard mitigation, monitoring systems (NOAA's west coast system is not adequate) and warning systems (WAEMD's system is good).
Japan HAS gratefully requested help. From the Red Cross:
"Officials from the Japanese Red Cross have indicated they would be grateful for donations from the American Red Cross to support their earthquake and tsunami response. (The American Red Cross aided the Japanese during the Kobe earthquake in 1995, and they, in turn, sent us support after September 11 and Hurricane Katrina.) Those who want to help can go to www.seattleredcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. People can also donate $10 by texting REDCROSS to 90999 to support our disaster relief efforts in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. "
PS - I am truly sad about the loss off life, but maybe it's a good opportunity for Japan to consider the value of life. All life. Am I the only one who hopes their whaling ships sank in the tsunami?
@21 If not money, repost accurate news, raise awareness. Lots of foreigners in Japan who aren't that hot with the language are lagging behind blackout info, etc. and rely on foreign news that's a) slower, b) sensationalist, and c) full of shit. They need new info that's translated to be shared. Twitter is a hotbed of important updates being spread between the Japanese, so RT like your life depends on it.
I'm happy that there are avenues for this, but I'm ashamed that we aren't more prepared. It's a testament to how utterly useless our governments are. I know the time for bickering isn't now, but this makes me really worried. If we got something half that strength here, really anywhere in the US, the devastation would be much worse. We're so obsessed with tax cuts for billionaires and weak heath care oversight we forget that mother nature is a dictatorship. We wouldn't have a viaduct, and all those people on it and around it would be dead. It would be our fault too, totally our fault for not listening to all the warnings. We're so obsessed with fake paper money that we don't care about what matters most. Human life.
I am a funeral director and have several body bags to donate but cannot find how or where to send them? I also get a damn automated system when I call the redcross? How and where do you send them?
Besides, when you have hundreds of bodies washing ashore and a third nuclear reactor about to melt down, you need all the help you can get!
http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/jap…
http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/jap…
"And if you're not so keen on The Red Cross... basically you're an idiot who's still swallowing debunked 2003-era propaganda from the Bush administration. But hell, it's not like Doctors Without Borders can't use the money."
"Officials from the Japanese Red Cross have indicated they would be grateful for donations from the American Red Cross to support their earthquake and tsunami response. (The American Red Cross aided the Japanese during the Kobe earthquake in 1995, and they, in turn, sent us support after September 11 and Hurricane Katrina.) Those who want to help can go to www.seattleredcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. People can also donate $10 by texting REDCROSS to 90999 to support our disaster relief efforts in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. "
No, I am NOT making that up.
Timeout Tokyo has a good guide for in-Japan folks to help: http://www.timeout.jp/en/tokyo/feature/2…