Too little, too late?

Okay...this annoyed me.

What of the relief effort? The government is doing its best, but it is not enough. The absence of a proper infrastructure, a dearth of reserve funds to deal with unexpected tragedies, and a total lack of preparedness despite annual disasters on a lesser scale, have cost innumerable lives. To watch General Pervez Musharraf on television bemoaning the shortage of helicopters was instructive. A few miles to the north of the disaster zone is a large fleet of helicopters belonging to the Western armies occupying parts of Afghanistan. Why could the United States, German and British commanders not dispatch these to save lives? Is the war so fierce that they are needed every day? Three days after the earthquake, the US released eight helicopters from “war duty’’ to help transport food and water to isolated villages. Too little, too late. (bold my emphasis)

Okay, let me get this straight: Earthquake happens Saturday, helicopters are there Monday...too slow? [And they were there Monday, not Tuesday: 2 days after the earthquake, not three....reporter has his facts wrong].

Planning and coordinating such a mission isn't something like sending firetrucks off to a fire. It's not just, ooops there was an earthquake, send us some helicopters. Supplies had to be collected and packed. Routes had to be planned. Weather conditions and fuel consumption had to be considered. And crews had to be put together.

Too little, too late? Another case of an arrogant reporter opining on something he has no idea about. Although this reporter still seemed to find a way to turn this incredible humanitarian effort into a way to paint America and Co. in a bad light, most articles have nothing but praise for international aid efforts.