Violence Erupts on Desperate Caribbean Islands: All the Food Is Gone

[brooklynite]

Source: New York Times

MARIGOT, St. Martin — At dawn, people began to gather, quietly planning for survival after Hurricane Irma.

They started with the grocery stores, scavenging what they needed for sustenance: water, crackers, fruit.

But by nightfall on Thursday, what had been a search for food took a more menacing turn, as groups of people, some of them armed, swooped in and took whatever of value was left: electronics, appliances and vehicles.

“All the food is gone now,” Jacques Charbonnier, a 63-year-old resident of St. Martin, said in an interview on Sunday. “People are fighting in the streets for what is left.”



Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/10/world/americas/irma-caribbean-st-martin.html?mcubz=0&_r=0

[turbinetree]

1. You know the petro-chemical corporations of the world and there users need to be held

accountable for this.................in some ways it reminds me of Mad Max.

Because like my wife's niece said, if people don't see climate change or the planet getting warmer then they are idiots ....................

A storm that was 400 miles across, that covered the entire state of Florida, and engulfed these islands..............

[Lurks Often]

2. The veneer of "civilization" is a lot thinner then most think

and most of the islands lack the depth of resources (people and infrastructure) that the U.S. has, so even if FL or TX may not have enough resources, the surrounding states and the Federal government will step in to help.

[FLPanhandle]

3. How is looting appliances, vehicles, and electronics going to feed anyone?

When law enforcement is too busy dealing with saving lives, it doesn't take long to see what people will do.

[SweetieD]

10. Because you can sell that stuff to make ends meet. When events like this hapoen people lose jobs

Instantly. Tourism has immediately stopped. That is both sides dutch and french economy.

[FLPanhandle]

12. That's a pretty lame excuse for overlook looting

If there is no food on the island, it doesn't matter how many stolen TV's they have. That is just lawlessness and greed.

People breaking into stores for food, water is excusable.

People looting electronics, cars, etc is indefensible.

[brush]

13. Have you thought that there is food somewhere on that island being hoarded that may be able...

to be bartered for if somebody still gives a damn about electronic goods when the entire island and peoples' way of life is destroyed?

There are more extremely pressing matters to attend to, like staying alive, than some looting.

[LanternWaste]

17. Why avoid the more accurate "looting for food and water" with "breaking into...?"

Why avoid the more accurate "looting for food and water" with "breaking into...?"

I took a guess. Most likely correct.

[FLPanhandle]

18. It's not looting to me to get food and water

I have no idea of your guesses, but that's your issue. I would not call people getting food/water looters even if you do.

[CottonBear]

20. During Katrina, white people "found food" & black people "looted food."

There were news photo captions at the time that said exactly those words.

As far as Irma is concerned, the "looters" are on devastated islands in the middle of the ocean. There are no supplies, no infrastructure, no jobs and the authorities are most likely overwhelmed with the scale of the disaster.

The British, French & Dutch armed forces need to step up the relief efforts immediately.

There will have to be a Marshall plan for the affected island nations.

[jpak]

25. After Harvey in Port Aransas Tx - white morans that didn't evacuate looted the local liquor store

The local press stated that they did this to endure their sorry situation.

If a black man had done this - he would have been shot - and it would have been "justified"

[CottonBear]

31. I had not heard that account, however, I'm not surprised.

Sadly, the double standard still exists.

[jpak]

33. here

http://www.statesman.com/news/state--regional/thought-were-all-going-die-port-aransas-still-locked-down/6skNy885uVpCCFs3Uek4GJ/

<snip>
Slowly the survivors managed to find one another, walking stunned through their ruined town. When bottles began floating away from nearby Snappy’s Liquor Store, whose top half was blown off in the storm, they drank, and that helped make the unimaginable situation tolerable.
<snip>

[JonLP24]

24. When people are desperate they're going to do what they have to do

It doesn't matter if we excuse it or not it's still going to happen.

[marybourg]

27. I didn't see see the poster you responded to

advocate overlooking looting. S/he merely explained factually why looting of items other than food and water may take place.

[Doreen]

14. Who do they sell it to?

Most everybody is just as poor as they are and I am sure the rich people are somewhere else safer. If there is no food it does not matter how much you have because you just are not going to be able to get it.

I think people do it because they can and when things like this happen it either brings the best out or the worst.This type of thing reminds me of "Lord Of The Flies" because that movie shows how humans can really be in bad situations and it does not matter what age.

[dembotoz]

22. trade for this and trade for that...barter when you need to

and then ebay when the post office gets back up and running

[Sunlei]

4. I posted 2 cell phone videos from 9/9 & majority of people are orderly. yes, the few stores were

cleaned out. some homes were looted.

Their military & police keep order, a few people are causing trouble but they'll get them under control. Planes can fly supplies in, medical help is on the ground, some people have been evacuated off the island and other islands are very close.

Here's one of the overview vids- remember French and Dutch control and they are helping. Check out the returning families, the young girl selfie in her car is an awesome 'reporter' . some of the store looters are shown and how orderly people are.

[Blue_Tires]

5. holy damn i'm in love...

who that is?

[Sunlei]

7. adorable girl with her family. 185MPH winds, its amazing buildings remained standing.

This video at 30 seconds shows what the 185mph looks like- trees shredding and the wind howls. also has some footage from Puerto Rico a bus flipped over and people went out in hurricane and helped bus passengers.

[Stuart G]

19. Thanks for posting this video...

[dalton99a]

6. +1

[Javaman]

8. welcome to a preview of the rest of the world in about 40 years. nt

[FLPanhandle]

9. Too many people for the island to naturally support

The island was sparsely settled and was able to support a small group or Arawak and Siboney people.

Now, the the population is near 100,000. The only way that can happen is to ship in a lot of food from other locations continuously.

As the worlds population balloons, this is a what is in store for us all one day.

[procon]

30. LOL You've just rolled back civilization to the hunter/gatherer stage.

The Caribbean Islands are not farmland any more than than New York City or Los Angeles, or Hawaii. Should we just turn everything back to the indigenous populations of prehistory who lived off the land, rather than ship in food to all the major population centers in the country?

[Delphinus]

32. I had no

idea the island contained nearly 100,000 people! And that's not including tourists, right? Wow.

[jalan48]

11. Climate change will bring about the migration of people.

People who are starving will do whatever it takes to stay alive. Here in Disneyland America I don't think most see what is coming.

[maxsolomon]

15. the Dutch will probably be there with relief shortly

but lets all flip out about looting and act like looters deserve to be shot on-site. it's so american.

[dembotoz]

21. operative terms are probably and shortly

as in not now

[0rganism]

16. the new normal

it won't be long now
climate change is going to drop the hammer hard over the next century
we could have done this to ourselves in 1 week of nuclear war, hell we still might, but it looks like we opted for a somewhat slower extinction event to take place over a couple centuries. doesn't make a lot of difference on the geologic time scale.
in a million years archaeologists from the sentient beetle population will be digging up our bones and discussing our swift rise to dominance and catastrophic decline to nothingness in their universities. i hope they learn something useful from our mistakes.

[FakeNoose]

26. Future archaeologists will know all about us

We're leaving behind mountains of plastic garbage and trash that will never decompose.

[0rganism]

28. of course, our evolutionary replacements might regard it as food

"hey hand me that plastic thing over there would you Xhtiackckck?"
"sure thing Yyyfffckckck."
*nomnomnom* "delicious! these humans sure left behind some tasty records!"

[FakeNoose]

29. OK

[jpak]

23. Deja Vu