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As you’ve no doubt read, there’s been a terrible earthquake in Venezuela and American do-gooders are out in force trying to help these people. Believe me, I respect these well-meaning people, but I know from experience that most of the effort and expense they go through is of little or no help to the people, or in many cases, fails to reach them entirely.
I remember many such efforts over the years that I traveled to central America and the islands, and you could make a movie out of the disastrous results resulting from the very best of intentions.
One time a big ladies club, and I’m sorry but I forget the name, sent 500 refrigerators to the area around Cofradia, Honduras where the H.A.T.S.A. factory was, to be given away to the people living there, But it probably woulda been better if someone told them that none of those homes (really shacks) had electricity. So, the people who got the refrigerators hung their clothes in them. Another ladies group sent tractors so that people could till more land and grow more food, but each tractor put a hundred or more people out of work with no other job to replace it. HEY! I was guilty of similar stuff till I learned the lay of the land. I brought electric screwdrivers, sealing irons, shrink tunnels, etc. to the HATSA factory… and I remember the sorrowful looks these ladies working there gave me when they saw how fast a machine could take the place of ten of them.
These countries are all run by a small group of affluent men who are the grantors and the recipients of various forms of graft and favors. It’s never what you know down there, it’s always who you know.
For instance, I brought my daughter down to Honduras, and she was interested in seeing the Mayan ruins, but I was concerned about her safety. So the factory had their driver (the brother of the President of Honduras!) take her there and back!
You never know who’s gonna be in charge of anything tomorrow. Just who’s in charge today! For instance, Daniel Ortega has been the President of Nicaragua for quite a while, but you never know for sure whose gonna win the next election because unlike the USA, in Nicaragua the person with the most votes is the winner, and there have been times when we’ve donated to 7 or 8 different candidates… just in case of an upset.
Plus, in these countries you never ever know who the next important person is gonna be. I’ll give you an example—granted it’s an extreme example, but it’s the G-d’s honest truth…
Listen up: I go from my office in Fairfield, NJ at the time to this used fixture guy in Linden, N.J. that I used to buy shelving from for our big outlet stores down south. And I’ve been there at least a half dozen times before. The owner’s name is Mike something or other and he’s got this Haitian guy that works for him as a Go-Fer… who always goes and gets us coffee while we contract our business. Well, this time the Haitian guy is not there, and so there’s no coffee. I say to Mike: “where’s the Haitian guy?” … and Mike says (are you ready for this????)… “He went back to Haiti, he’s going to be the Prime Minister—Aristede is his brother!”
That’s the way it works in these countries. Other than Haiti, which is a total shambles, all the countries of Central America are far more developed than when I first went there in the early 1970’s, but the circle of people who essentially have the lions share of everything down there is pretty much the same.
So, if you’re asked for a contribution to help with relief down in Central America, be aware that the odds of your money doing any real good are kinda remote unless there’s a Catholic Church involved in it. That’s been the only successful way I’ve been able to do anything worthwhile.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Smoke Inn, its employees, or its affiliates.
