Obama's Weekly Address: Recovering and Rebuilding After the Storm

In this week’s address, President Obama thanks the brave first responders and National Guardsmen for their tireless work following one of the worst storms in our nation’s history, and reassures the millions of Americans affected by Hurricane Sandy that their country will be there for them during the long road to recovery.



Our blog joins in the prayers for those families impacted by Sandy.

BP Oil Disaster Relief Efforts

The brown pelican is Louisiana's state bird, only recently removed from the endangered species list. Like much of the wildlife along the Louisana coast, these birds are now in danger.

A number of community foundations in the area have established relief funds to help the people, wildlife, and environment in the Gulf Coast.

For more information, please visit:

• Baton Rouge Area Foundation
• Community Foundation of South Alabama
• Greater Escambia Community Foundation (Pensacola area)
• Greater New Orleans Foundation

Please let us know if any villagers are negatively impacted by the BP Oil Spill.

Am I Not Human? BP Oil Spill

We support the 'Am I Not Human?' blogging campaign that lights up the 27th of each month. I encourage all villagers to find a way to support this effort to shine a light on human rights abuses taking place all over the world.

The BP Oil Spill is the major human rights abuse on my mind this month. I watched the president's press conference today. The vast majority of the questions were about the oil spill. It has been more than five weeks since an oil rig leased by BP exploded and sank in the Gulf, and only now does there appear to be progress in plugging the massive leak. Speaking in a more than hour-long press conference in the East Room, President Obama defended his administration’s performance and said he was “angry and frustrated” by the spill.

“This notion that somehow the federal government is sitting on the sidelines and for the last three or four or five weeks we've just been letting BP make a whole bunch of decisions is simply not true,” Obama said.

President Obama doesn't usually get very personal when he speaks to the American people. However, this BP Oil Spill is personal for many villagers in the Gulf Coast ... and it was good to see that it got personal for President Obama as well:

"My job right now is just to make sure that everybody in the Gulf understands this is what I wake up to in the morning and this is what I go to bed at night thinking about – the spill," he said.

On Thursday morning, he said, when he was shaving, his daughter Malia peeked her head into the bathroom and said, "Did you plug the hole yet, Daddy?"

"I think everybody understands that, you know, when we are fouling the earth like this, it has concrete complications not just for this generation but for future generations.

"I grew up in Hawaii, where the ocean is sacred. And when you see birds flying around with – with oil all over their feathers and turtles dying and – ... that doesn't just speak to the immediate economic consequences of this. This speaks to, you know, how are we caring for this incredible bounty that we have?"

ABC News went underwater off the Gulf Coast to see first-hand what the Deepwater Oil Disaster looks and feels like. It looks like a nightmare.




We’ve seen the oil start to wash up on shore, and we’ve seen satellite images of the slick. But that’s only the tip of the iceberg: You need to take a look at the underwater impact of the oil geyser and the dangerous chemicals BP is using to “disperse” it — effects that could last for decades, even if the risky “Top Kill” maneuver to plug the well works.

This is some nasty shyt. I hope that we can see some positive movement in a few weeks. What are your thoughts on the BP Oil Spill?

Wordless Wednesday: Haiti Earthquake ... 2 Weeks Later

Wyclef Jean Responds to Critics of Yele Haiti

Wyclef returned to his native Haiti at the Port-au-Prince airport the day after the thousands upon thousands were killed in a lethal 7.0 earthquake. The entertainer then began clearing the dead bodies of his country’s inhabitants off of the streets. Among other matters, he’s issued a plea to the President, started to plan telethon with George Clooney and continued his tireless lobbying on behalf of the Haitian people.

Unfortunately the entertainer/activist now must contend with allegations of misappropriated funds from his Yéle Haiti Foundation.

"It seems clear that a significant amount of the monies that this charity raises go for costs other than providing benefits to Haitians in need," said Dean Zerbe, national managing director of Alliant Group, a tax services company.

Wyclef responds to his critics in the following video clip:





Hugh Locke, President of Yéle Haiti, countered the notion as well:

"Wyclef Jean, the founder of Yéle Haiti has never profited from his organization. It’s a shame that during this international emergency, we have had to divert resources away from our response efforts to address these allegations. I think people should be very comfortable that any money given to Yele Haiti is going 100 percent to emergency relief."

The Yéle Haiti Foundation had raised over $2 million in contributions, largely through texted donations.





Yéle Haiti provided these 'financial facts' to counter allegations raised by the Alliant Group:

1. Fact: Yéle Haiti, originally called the Wyclef Jean Foundation, filed a tax return in 2000 and then suspended activities until 2005 and so was not required by law to file a tax return until it resumed operation.


2. Fact: Yéle Haiti received a clean bill of health in independent external audits conducted in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 by the firm of Tempesta & Farrell


3. Fact: Yéle Haiti was guided by the firm of Grant Thornton LLP to ensure that all transactions involving board members Wyclef Jean and Jerry Duplessis were conducted to fully comply with both the spirit and letter of the law governing such matters.


4. Fact: Yéle Haiti offices are located in Platinum Sound, the recording studio owned by Wyclef and Jerry Duplessis in order to save money. The organization pays only $2,600 a month for the space and a shared reception service, instead of considerably more for the same arrangement in midtown Manhattan.


5. Fact: Wyclef Jean was paid $100,000 in connection with a benefit concert in Monte Carlo in 2006, which was organized by a for-profit organization. The vast majority of that amount went towards costs related to the performance, including the hiring of backing musicians and other costs related to the production.


6. Fact: Yéle Haiti purchased $250,000 of airtime on the commercial television station Telemax in Haiti that is owned by Wyclef and Jerry. We have documentation allocating the hundreds of hours of Yéle programming, over several years, that addressed a wide range of development and social issues in Haiti.

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Villagers must make their own choice about where to donate money in support of Haiti Earthquake Relief. For my part, I'm leaving Yéle Haiti on my list of options that we have to support Haiti.

What say u?

Haiti Earthquake: How Can You Help?

The news isn’t good: Officials fear the death toll will reach 100,000. Thousands upon thousands are injured. Port-au-Prince has been flattened. There are millions of Haitians who need help NOW.

Here are three tips for you to consider as you find a way to help:

1. Donating cash to established relief organizations is the best way to help because it allows professionals to get exactly what they need and does not use up scarce resources such as transportation, staff time or warehouse space.
   
2. If you decide to donate supplies and not cash, contact an established relief organization before you collect anything. If you have already collected items, donate them to a relief organization within your community or sell them at a yard sale or charity auction and donate the proceeds.
   
3. People who want to volunteer should have previous disaster or international experience or technical skills and should work through a relief organization. More information is available from the Center for International Disaster Information.

Villagers can also help immediately by donating to the Red Cross Haiti relief effort. Contribute online to the Red Cross, or donate $10 to be charged to your cell phone bill by texting "HAITI" to "90999."

Find more ways to help through the Center for International Disaster Information. Families of Americans living in Haiti are encouraged to contact the State Department at (888) 407-4747.

Here are organizations that villagers can contact if they want to help the people in Haiti:

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DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS USA/MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES (MSF)
333 7th Avenue, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10001-5004
Traditional, yet innovative medical providers spread across the globe.

L'HOPITAL DE LA COMMUNAUTE HAITIENNE
Hopital de la Communauté Relief-G. Diederich
Routing number 061000104
Account number 1000103902598
Suntrust Bank
11333 South Dixie Highway
Pinecrest FL 33156
Raising funds to be able to offer completely free services and still have the capacity to pay the personnel.

LE FLAMBEAU FOUNDATION
1172 S. Dixie Highway, #203
Coral Gables, FL 33146
(305) 596-2819
Foundation established by BMDC member, Brother Jean Gervais of Miami, who is also a native of Haiti

OXFAM AMERICA
226 Causeway St., 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02114-2206
Charity devoted to stopping hunger and providing nutrition to communities in crisis.

PARTNERS IN HEALTH
P.O. Box 845578
Boston, MA 02284-5578
NGO run by Paul Farmer providing health resources to Haiti since 1985.

SAVE THE CHILDREN
Haiti Earthquake Children in Emergency Fund
54 Wilton Road
Westport, CT 06880
Children-focused relief agency with a special earthquake fund.

THE SALVATION ARMY
615 Slaters Lane; P.O. Box 269
Alexandria, VA 22313
Church-based coordinator of health and family services.

U.S. FUND FOR UNICEF
125 Maiden Lane
New York, N.Y. 10038
Charity specifically targeting children—providing educational materials, food, water and medicine.

WORLD VISION
Haiti Earthquake Relief
P.O. Box 9716
Federal Way, Wash. 98063-9716

YELE HAITI
Text 'YELE' to '501501' to donate $5
Charity operated by Wyclef Jean

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Please let us know if you are aware of other ways that villagers can help the people of Haiti as they cope with this disastrous 7.0 magnitude earthquake.

From the Rubble We Build Paradise, See Haiti Rise -- We Gonna Be There For You!

Villagers all over the diaspora are doing what they can to support the relief efforts in Haiti. International recording artist Tajh uses his musical talents to encourage Haitian earthquake relief and support.



If you do not have a way to support a Haitian family directly, then we encourage you to donate thru Wyclef Jean's organization. Wyclef has been an informal ambassador for Haiti for many years. He promises to assist directly with efforts on the ground through his Yele Haiti Relief Fund effort.




What are your thoughts on the situation in Haiti now that you've had a few days to see what is happening?