This is my first post on the subject, because I have very little to say. I am not a student of the region, and what can you say about a tragedy like the cyclone and its associates storm surge.
This story, where authorities in Myanmar seized aid supplies from the UN, puzzles me.
I am aware of the paranoia and xenophobia of the military dictatorship there, but I’m not clear why they would not allow in aid workers in a time like this.
It was in Waukegan, near the IL-WI border.
No word as to cause.
If you want to donate to help the victims, I would suggest contacting the Salvation Army, not the Red Cross.
There is a bit of family history involved: My family was in Anchorage for the Good Friday Earthquake (9.5 on the Richter scale), and it was related to me (I was less than 2) that the Salvation Army did much better than the Red Cross, which was bureaucratic, and charged for things that the Salvation Army did for free.
Generally, I favor the secular solution, but considering the Red Cross’s direct role in killing most of the hemophiliacs in the US by fighting testing blood for AIDS, and their top heavy management, they are not on my giving list.