Haiti was struck by an earthquake.  A devastating one.  It has likely killed hundreds of thousands of people, but no one really knows because victims are trapped under rumble – babies, children, toddlers, teenagers, women, men, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, grandmothers, grandfathers…

Natural disasters have no target.  Earthquakes know not whose lives they take.  There is no political motivation.  There is no motive of revenge.  It is not tactical or strategic.  It is science – plate tectonics and other things that I have a lot of interest in, but very little clue about.

I have heard unsettling responses in the aftermath of the quake – and I am not going to dignify any idiotic, racist public figures by talking about theirs.  I am thinking of people I know, people I follow on Twitter, people I overhear in public.

The most striking response I’ve heard has been the we have problems here at home, why should so much of our money leave the country.  Really?  People are dying.  People are buried alive.  People are suffering with no food, water, shelter, or infrastructure.  And, you are making this about money?  Really?  You are worried about national identity and taking care of our own?  That degree of nationalism scares me.  To think that sharing citizenship with someone makes them more deserving of your care is frightening.

Don’t resent that attention is being given to Haiti in the media, on Twitter, by celebrities.  Don’t make this about you.  Don’t make this about your country.  This is not about you – it is about the people of Haiti.

Take a second and think beyond your borders.  Think beyond what is happening in your country.  The people of Haiti deserve your attention because they are suffering.  They may not be the only ones in the world, but that doesn’t mean they suffer any less.

When in doubt, love (and give… time, money, whatever).