Without any doubt, the Puerto Rico humanitarian crisis not only exposed the fraud of Mr. Trump’s “Make America Great Again” nationalist slogan but it also uncovered the criminal offense against the victims of the Hurricane by the U.S. “leaders”. Regardless of any excuses, either because of an old “law” from 1920’s or because of a clear case of negligence and incompetence -either way- the authorities in the White House and Congress have already committed a crime in this regard and they have to be brought to justice.
On top of these criminal acts, the cover ups by the Trump Administration and the corrupt media which minimized the dire situations in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands right after the disaster should be seen as an insult to the injury.
During the recent hurricanes, the rating driven media sent their best “reporters” to the different areas to foolishly stand in the middle of awful rain and wind to inform us that the impending hurricanes are dangerous and will cause heavy rain and destruction! However, as soon as the rain stopped, the reporting about the hurricanes stopped with it. The ladies and gentleman of the media immediately found NFL news more interesting, while the hurricane victims were dying under blockade and in darkness.
Only after the desperate cries for help from the hurricane victims which slowly and against all odds surfaced and only under the pressure of national and international condemnation, did the media first and then the administration start to reflect only a glimpse of the misery and suffering.
The fact is today Puerto Rico is re-occupied by the U.S. military power again not for the benefit of the victims but only to be contained from a potential civil unrest. Thousands are practically homeless and desperately are in need of water, food and medical care. Babies are thirsty and hungry. The militarization of the relief efforts in Puerto Rico is just a repetition of the U.S. disastrous Haiti experience.
Only a planned economy based on the working peoples’ needs can make Puerto Rico prosperous again. An economic system that puts PROFIT over PEOPLE only nurtures the capitalist evil.
Informative Fact: In the late 1990, during “Operation Desert Storm” the U.S. military transferred enormous quantity of heavy equipment of mass destruction to Saudi Arabia in a short period of time against Iraq. In 2017 the U.S. government is unable to deliver water to its own citizens in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands!
Massoud Nayeri is an independent Peace and Justice Activist and Freelance Graphic Designer in Houston.
