Vultures! F#%KING Vultures!

[sAsLEX]

You forget to mention he had both Swiss and American Citizenship, and my point is that who knows what the future holds - saving a single life today may save 1,000s later

and the fact that he left Germany as he couldnt get in to the uni that he wanted so went to another in Swi.

Somehow I doubt saving the life of someone over there without the easy access Einstien had to learning institutes is going to see us with a new Theory of Everything or a cure for aids.

[The_Dover]

Ahmed Zaoui - Just like L&P.

World famous in New Zealand.

[ManDownUnder]

Nelson Mandela!!!!

Do I win??

Classy - a refugee in his own country. Never thought of that!

[ManDownUnder]

and the fact that he left Germany as he couldnt get in to the uni that he wanted so went to another in Swi.

There's a wee difference between him not being able to get into uni, and him (along with the wider Jewish community) having their career options limited by the state. He saw the wiriting on the wall, was given a lifetime tenure at Princeton in the US (not the average offer given to a uni drop out) - and took it.

Somehow I doubt saving the life of someone over there without the easy access Einstien had to learning institutes is going to see us with a new Theory of Everything or a cure for aids.

To quote my learned friend - what about Mandela? He's "over there" and his rise to power will see 10's of millions of black South Africans educated and contributing to science, education, the arts...

[Sniper]

To quote my learned friend - what about Mandela? He's "over there" and his rise to power will see 10's of millions of black South Africans educated and contributing to science, education, the arts...

Only if he was still in power. Mbeki has fucked all that up. He has a closet following of Mugabe and that means bad things.

[XP@]

What's on at Puke today?

Sadly it was real sick, ie throw-up. I saw things 15 years ago, which still make me physically sick today.

The point most are trying to make is that it is inhuman to not do what you can in situations like this.
Would the photograph have had any less impact had the girl been saved?
Not to most human beings.

I see what you are saying, that it why I am defending the photographer. It is not inhuman, under the same circumstances you would do exactly the same.

Life was different where he was, very different.
Ask yourself: How many more babies had he seen on the road that day? and how many of those were still alive?

I challenge you to spend more than a few hours in a refugee camp where kids are dying of malutrition or a large scale disaster and you will do the same, you will even see the doctors doing the same.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triage

It is easy to criticise from our easy chairs in our easy lives. This guy had already seen too much to remain sane. I have not seen a fraction of what is out there. But I have seen enough to know sometimes there is nothing you can do...

[terbang]

It is easy to criticise from our easy chairs in our easy lives. This guy had already seen too much to remain sane. I have not seen a fraction of what is out there. But I have seen enough to know sometimes there is nothing you can do...

Same here and totally agree. Obvious that most of the loud ones here, have at best, only seen the third world through tourists or CNN or BBC eyes which makes it even harder to stomach their drivel..

[NC]

I'd like to add AIDS into this.

Yes, I find this photo offence, and it takes alot to offend me.

The population of the African 3rd world poverty stricken areas are doomed to die in mass graves due to the fact that they refuse to stop fornicating. We all know that a high population in a small area spreads disease rapidly there for wiping out the people in the area. Hence the bubonic plague, and people which got the plague and had the delta 32 gene had the right mutant gene to not die or show any symptoms of the virus, as with the AIDS virus. There are prostitutes in Africa that have the Delta 32 gene and spread the AIDS virus knowingly!

My point, they do it to themselves. And hurt innocent childen.

[terbang]

My point, they do it to themselves. And hurt innocent childen.

Sure do but is it because of ignorance or indifference.?

[Macktheknife]

Sadly it was real sick, ie throw-up. I saw things 15 years ago, which still make me physically sick today.

I see what you are saying, that it why I am defending the photographer. It is not inhuman, under the same circumstances you would do exactly the same.
.

First, sorry to hear that you also have lived hard times in bad places. Sadly many of us have.
My point is that NO I would not do the same and am able to say this with confidence due to past experiences. I would not leave a child to die knowing that my intervention could have saved it from a horrific slow and painful death.
If my intervention only prolonged the inevitable, and the child died later in a UN camp with someone there to supply whatever could be done... so be it. But to leave it for the vultures to pick apart .... never.
Even if I have to carry the child on my back I would do so, her weight would be so little anyway. I would not leave another human being to suffer in this way unless perhaps they had murdered my family or something truly abominable, and even then I probably wouldnt.
Remember all it takes for evil to win is for good men to do nothing.

[James Deuce]

Ahh, the old conundrum about whether or not a reporter reports on what he sees and experiences, or whether he gets involved.

As others have said, you couldn't help in the way you would want to, nor would you be welcomed at an aid camp if you turned up with a literal truckload of near dead babies.

One of my Wife's Nursing bosses was originally NZ Army trained and was in Vietnam for the duration of NZ's involvement. She subsequently volunteered for extensive placements with Red Cross in every crisis requiring outside aid, from Africa, to Europe, to Melanesia, and South America that I can think of. The fact is you can't save them all, and preference is given to children brought in with family members. Orphans compound the post crisis problems for a country in ways that mean that children keep dying when the aid is withdrawn.

The world isn't fair, the choices you have to make in those environments are about as rational as justifying dwarf tossing as a legitimate sport, and if you don't walk on by some of the time, you will end up dead, like that reporter that you can't muster any sympathy for. That photo op represents millions of children and vultures in the same plight, since the reality of post-colonial life hit home in Africa.

It's an emotive topic, and people see it as black and white. Fair enough. It's tough to look at. Talk to anyone who's worked in those environments and they are much tougher than you or I, but also vastly more compassionate, and much more connected to life in general. They tend to have sympathy for the smallest problems that people experience without reservation, or placing caveats on your personal situation, rich or poor, irrespective of ethnic background.

I'm often up in the early hours of the morning and I love watching BBC World. I've seen several articles of late about journalists and their experiences, and the overwhelming impression I got was that they all have regrets about things they haven't done, and the ones that have reported on starving or epidemic struck child populations all suffer from a huge amount of self-loathing.

As admirable as your sentiments are Mack, you would be mad within an hour if you took your convictions with you to an African famine and refused to adapt.

[Macktheknife]

As admirable as your sentiments are Mack, you would be mad within an hour if you took your convictions with you to an African famine and refused to adapt.

Jim2, I accept that there are differences in the environment, but my point remains the same. I have held people as they have died on many occasions, both known and unknown to me. I have seen and done things that I would rather forget and cannot. I have not been to Africa for famine relief and it may be somehow different to every other thing I know. But I know this, I cannot just walk away from someone who will die without my help. Even if doing so is dangerous to me, I will do what I can to ease their situation at least, and fix it if I can. Perhaps that makes me crazy, or weak, or foolish, but not doing so would drive me mad too.

[James Deuce]

Try to understand. For every person in the aid camp, there are a thousand outside. You have the resource to help those in the camp. If you take those outside on, everyone will die. Everyone.

That is at the core of the rationale behind triage, behind driving past dying children. You literally have to choose who lives. There is no other magic option available to you. Talk to someone who has been in that situation and they'll either refuse to talk about it, or you'll end up with a clearer picture of how life works for most of the rest of the human race.

[Korumba]

Think about the possible bigger picture here!!!

Yes I agree, if it was as the facts were presented he is a bastard for not helping the wee tot.

The cynic in me would suggest there would be a number of other refugees about possibly family. Who would not let him intervene?
Has this guy composed the photograph as we see it and written the spiel to tug at the heartstrings and help it along on the road to infamy…

[sAsLEX]

To quote my learned friend - what about Mandela? He's "over there" and his rise to power will see 10's of millions of black South Africans educated and contributing to science, education, the arts...

His father was Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand and qualified in law in 1942.

Again not a refugee like the one in the pic but from a higher background, sure he had a hard life and time due to his actions and appearance , but not one of these people.