Bookmarks: Global Stratification/Development

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Global Wealth Report 2017: Where Are We Ten Years after the Crisis? - Credit Suisse

An Economy for the 1% | Oxfam America

A Call for Immediate Disaster Response

The events of the past week in Haiti have been unbelievable. The complete destruction wrought by the earthquake has made an underdeveloped nation rely on far less than nothing.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, I watched in agony the incredibly slow response of national and international assistance to a human population in need. Many of us throughout the world are witnessing and reliving the agony of a slow response to a human population that is desparate and strugglng to survive.

There are two projections that I'd like to call to our attention: 1) the global population is expected to rise from 6.5 billion to near 11 billion in the next 100 years; and, 2) global warming is expected to result in a highe number of catastophic events and with greater intensity and impact.

Our state, national, and international responses need significant attention and investment, a new strategic focus is in order to meet the needs of an evergrowing global population that will continue to fall victim to an increasing number of powerful disasters.

A legitimate reponse time of 7 days is unacceptable. The international community, while it's ciizens and institutions come to help in times of desperate need, has to get immediate response organized, distributed, effective: now. We must start thinking about waves of response. Emergency medical care, water, and food must arrive within 36 hours of the event. Necessary equipment and so on arrives 48 hours after, 3 days, etc. We do not seem to be prepared for what will become more and more common: natural disasters.

The work of groups such as the Red Cross and others is not in question. It is time for both the public and the private to step up and better organize a response strategy to address what the future holds for people and the planet: an increasing number of disasters which will require more resources, quicker response, in the efforts to adequately meet the coming tidal wide of human need during times of crisis.

The global population is expanding, and our planet is sick and getting sicker. How will we plan and respond?

Haiti: poverty and disaster

Just completed a blog post over at the Social Lens.

Haiti: poverty and disaster � The Social Lens

Email: chad.gesser@kctcs.edu

Disasters, whether man made or natural, have a dramatic, everlasting impact on people and where they live. In the blink of an eye, a disaster turns everyday normalcy into chaos, survival, and despair

Not only are property, buildings, and physical structures destroyed during a disaster, but the social relations of the people are too. People are creatures of habit, and when disasters strike, the cultural fabric is ripped apart, leading to panic, hysteria, and organized chaos.

The reason that the earthquake in Haiti (January 2010) is particularly significant is due to the lack of infrastructure. As documented in this report by the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting, Haiti appeared to have been making slow, but some progress prior to the earthquake.

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. This translates into a substandard built environment. As a result of the earthquake, not only do we see buildings destroyed, but entire neighborhoods and communities. The availability of services such as medical care and emergency assistance were minimum prior to the earthquake, and we find now that they are virtually non-existent. Basic necessities such as food, water, and shelter prior to the earthquake were hard to come by: now victims are living in parks, on the streets, with no food or water. Transportation grids were haphazard at best prior to the earthquake given the lack of resources and equipment to build and sustain these networks. After the earthquake, with no equipment, the rescue operations were led simply by Haitians using their bare hands and makeshift tools to lift tons of concrete and debris in efforts of finding and freeing survivors.

Understanding the impacts of natural disasters on human populations allows us to better address more effectively and efficiently the needs of the victims. The study of collective behavior is about understanding and addressing the social and psychological dimensions of individuals and groups during times of crisis, when the social structure and normalcy are compromised.

The Haitian earthquake is what I call a complete disaster. Traditional services to meet the needs of the citizens were substandard. Because of the substandard nature, the natural disaster completed destroyed existing infrastructure, leaving survivors with no means to begin recovery.

In normal times, medical care is sought after, sometimes scarce; when the entire population all of sudden needs medical attention, it is very easy for medical services to be overwhelmed with the need of survivors. At current we are seeing medical camps being established to provide basic and emergency medical services. In cities and countries on the coast, we have seen organizations like the Coast Guard set up mobile hospitals due to the difficulty of travel and mobility in the area of devastation. In Haiti this is being done initially at the airport in Port-au-Prince, and likely will follow suit in some fashion in Bay of Port-au-Prince.

During times of normalcy law enforcement serves the purpose of keeping the peace and to provide public safety. During a complete disaster, establishing and/or assuring law and order is desirable. However, law enforcement is asked to meet a variety of community needs, and they too can become overwhelmed. In the days and weeks following a natural disaster, an increase in crime is a concern as survivors work to deal both psychologically and sociologically with the slowly improving situation.

How can emergency personnel address the needs of the families, the community, and the society that is stricken by disaster? What personal needs should be addressed? What group needs should be addressed? What has to be done to help survivors return to a sense of normalcy? Is the response of the international community quick enough? Does it last long enough?

Industrial production: Great Depression vs. Great Recession

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/the-story-so-far-in-one-picture/

Champagne Glass Distribution of Wealth

...found from the Graphic Sociology Blog at Contexts.org

Another good visual of global distribution of income

Conley, D. (2008) You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist. New York: W.W. Norton and Company. p.392.