Royal Caribbean cruise ships have resumed docking in Haiti, a few miles north of the worst devastation caused by the earthquake. Passengers can "enjoy jetski rides, parasailing, and rum cocktails delivered to their hammock," taking in the "picturesque wooded peninsula," and shop "for trinkets at a craft market."

It sounds ghoulish and I can't image anyone enjoying themselves so close to such death and agony.

However, Royal Caribbean defends their position, saying they also deliver food aid and are "generating economic activity for the straw market vendors, the hair-braiders and our 230 employees helps with relief while being somewhere else does not help." They argue that "these 500 people are going to need to support a much larger network of family and friends."

Maybe.

I see their point, but Jesus, I just couldn't.


Royal Caribbean's decision to dock ships at Haitian resort creates controversy
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/20100119/ ... ews_ts1063

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"Go out and run 'em."
- Lindy Ruff, 23 Feb. 2007

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"Go out and run 'em."
- Lindy Ruff, 23 Feb. 2007

i see no problem with it. you can't just shut down businesses for weeks because of this. how long was wall street down when the twin towers fell? one day. things need to continue on as normal as they can. unfortunately, since it seems very difficult and impractical to change docking areas to stop, business must resume because if it doesn't, there will be more cascading effects to other economies.

they are generating revenue and helping at the same time, so i see no issues. could i personally be in a hammock in haiti? no. but i don't think it's immoral for everyone.

yeah, doesnt bother me any. but im dead inside, so...

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"Go out and run 'em."
- Lindy Ruff, 23 Feb. 2007

I think that's awful.

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"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hockey Night in Buffalo

I am completely in agreement. Despite my position in another thread regarding huge amounts of US aid going outside of the country when we need to take care of our own, I am not without a heart or conscience, or able to turn a blind eye to such unchecked suffering and death----bodies still strewn about the streets, bloated and decomposing in the Caribbean heat simply because of the sheer volume of corpses and the lack of resources to gather them and properly, respectfully identify and bury them. The dead deserve dignity and some modicom of respect, and to have people blithely enjoying themselves a short distance away just insults my sense of human-ness and turns my stomach.


That is brilliant. I have also heard of this; is there a way to direct a grass-roots campaign-writing to a congressman, or is there a national director of tourism in government to pitch this to? Or perhaps go directly to the cruise lines themselves? Aren't most of the cruise lines based in Ft. Lauderdale/Miami and Port Canaveral despite most of the ships are of foreign registry?

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I think it's beyond obscene.

I have no doubt that the folks on the cruise ships would be screaming bloody murder if that happened while their country was in the middle of cleaning up a natural disaster.

I think if you don't believe it will help the economy there, you've got blinders on. Second, the cruise passengers aren't frolicking through Port au Prince. Third, the first-hand accounts of the devastation there from your "average joes" isn't going to hurt the cause when it comes to solicitation for donations.

I really hate seeing people advocate so much help abroad when there is so much more that could and should be done here. Don't take it as me not being able to see the forest through the trees; I realize the magnitude of the disaster. There are 3 million homeless people in America. Not to say that many of them aren't homeless by choice, but we do a LOT for the rest of the world, and we don't get a whole lot of return on that work.

I don't think our military should be in Haiti. I'm going to use a quote here, since I couldn't say it better myself:

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While it's a great reference, you've got to put more into an argument than that. You think business for Royal Caribbean should have stopped? You think that the people that paid for those cruises, scheduled vacation time, arranged for child care...you think all that should stop? Something that in ANY way supports the economy of a starving nation should NEVER stop. Like Pat said...Wall Street opened the next day.

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Two issues at play.

1. As an individual, would you personally go on a pleasure cruise stop to Haiti in the aftermath of this tragic earthquake?

2. As a business, is it wrong for RC to continue their cruise stop to Haiti?

My response to #1 is that it would be unconscionable to celebrate in the face of their death and despair.

My response to #2 is that's a business decision, and so long as nobody is being harmed than I see no reason to protest. However, IMO it's a pretty stupid business decision for RC to not at least acknowledge the suffering of the Haitian people, and show some discretion.

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

What discretion do you want them to make?

"The cruise company has pledged to donate $1 million in humanitarian relief, including emergency food supplies which were loaded on the ship during its call in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and have already been delivered. In addition, 100% of the company's net revenue from the destination will be contributed to the relief effort. "

And if I had already purchased my ticket, I'd probably go on my cruise.

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Thanks for that info. Now I have no problem with their decision. I would go on my cruise, too, only I would remain respectful and compassionate of the human suffering going on around me while docked.

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

The main economic benefit to Haiti from the cruise ships is people that get off the ship and spend money in the local economy.

These folks are not pumping money into the local economy. They are spending money on a guarded peninsula that is being leased from Haiti. Any money being spent there is going right back into Royal Caribbean's pockets.

This is no different than if ships were docking at private resorts in Southern Louisiana after Katrina in my eyes. I guess if you can deal with vacationing a few short miles from where thousands of people have died in the preceding days, good for you. I can't.



In my opinion, it shouldn't be about what you get out of it.

Then why don't you work for free? Show up for work, but don't bill your hours, do it out of the kindness of your heart. And don't do it for a day or two. do it over then next, oh, 100 years.

Money makes the world go 'round; it puts food in bellies and roofs over heads. There's going to be a silver lining to this disaster, we just have to wait for it.

Maybe I'm so polarized because I'm sick of hearing "Why aren't you here to help me? Where is our help? Where are you?" I'm a firm believer in if you need help, you need to be willing to help yourself, and put in 10x more work than anyone helping you.

If you re-read my post (and I'm not trying to be argumentative with you personally Squanto), you'll see (at least their statement says)

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No worries, I'm not taking it personally.

I don't work for free because that's how I make my living. However, when I help out others, via direct action or dollars, I don't expect anything in return. I do it because it makes me feel good, and I'd guess the person receiving the help does too.

The Haitian people are willing to work. They've done so their entire lives. However, they've been unable to get ahead because of the debt loads that the US government (and others) have hung on them over the last 100 years.

How would you feel if 45% of what you made went to paying off credit card bills that someone else rang up in your name? That's basically the situation down there. Over $500M USD of their $1.2B USD national debt is illegal loans run up by the former dictators of that country. They have no money for infrastructure improvements, education, healthcare, etc, because it's all tied up in paying back these illegal debts.

These people need help now because of the disaster, and for long afterwords because as a nation, we helped create this situation.

I can understand and respect that, and though the clear-cut answer is to absolve the debt, politics have kept us from doing so. For what it's worth, 45% of my income goes to my ex wife who decided not to work during the marriage, and then ended up with an amazing lawyer...

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Indeed. If anything, the silver lining in this disaster is that it's highlighted and accelerated the movements to wipe out a lot of the illegal loans and give them a fighting chance.

Let's hope.

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This answer sums it up

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