a week

a week has passed since the earthquake/tsunami calamity in Japan.

there has been a lot of charity events locally and internationally to help Japan.

although, there is still a lot of needs to be met.

another of their concern is the meltdown of the nuclear power plant.

despite all these, the japanese, based from what i see or hear from the news, are coping quite better compared if it happened to other countries.

those who are affect are suffering, that is true, but there seems to be no "abuse" (well maybe it's not reported) by their fellow citizens (robbery, etc.)

here in the city, i have witnessed a robbery during a fire (it's not even a national calamity).

this is very disappointing.

but at the same incident, when the neighbor realized that the victims were taken advantage of,

they dragged the robber and beat him up.

though violent, i think that would be what was needed given the situation.

back to japan,

the people calmly wait in very long lines just to talk to their love ones on the public phone.

they would patiently wait for their turn to be able to pass the very narrow highway with all the cars wanting to be far away as possible from greater damage.

i saw some pictures were they comfort and hug each other even if they are total strangers.

happy that they are still alive.

though i have heard of "hoarding behaviors" in shops, i have not heard (again, maybe it is not reported) of a stampede or a rumble because of desperation to get immediate needs.

there was a foreigner who said that "the japanese are calm given the situation they are in."

and another who said "that we should watch japan in the coming weeks and maybe we may learn from their calmness, stoic behavior and ability to cope despite the calamities they face."

i agree with what they said.

we could really learn a lot from them.

their calmness and stoic behavior may be a way for them to move on and continue to move forward.

other foreigners who are in japan are panicking which i think worsens their situation.

this is obviously in contrast to the way the japanese are handling the situation.

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within this week,

the recent news i've heard about Libya is that there is an immediate ceasefire because the United Nations Security Council had approved of force being used to help those who are greatly affected by the uprising (foreigners i assume).

i have also heard from Médecins Sans Frontières Hong Kong (International Medical Humanitarian Organization) that they have been having difficulty in tending to those who need medical assistance because they are being blocked by military.

maybe now that there is an immediate ceasefire, they can now attend to those who need help.

also, within this week, the country of Bahrain and Yemen have announced a state of emergency because there is an attempt of an uprising.

locally, there is the landslide and the very heavy rains in the Visayas and Mindanao islands.

a lot of things happening within a week.

charity help, financial help and emotional help are being asked and given.

but most of all prayers are what we all ask and what we all can give right now.

prayers for everyone.

amen.

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i would like to make it clear that everything mentioned about are based from what i have read so far.

this is from my point of view.

as i have mentioned earlier, others may not be reported or i may have not read about it.

there could be others "point of views" to consider.

i would be open and be respectful to other views or comments about what i wrote.

but also please respect my point of view.

thank you.