It never occurred to me that Jamaica would feel the quake. I checked carefully to see if they were mentioned as under threat from tsunami, but no. My sister reports that people in taller buildings did and evacuated. No damage done, though.

Typo Boy, thank you so much for making those connections.

If there is a God, Pat Robertson will burn in hell.

"[S]omething happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heal of the French. You know, Napoleon the third, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, 'We will serve you if you will get us free from the French.' True story. And so, the devil said, 'Okay it's a deal.'

"And they kicked the French out. You know, the Haitians revolted and got themselves free. But ever since they have been cursed by one thing after the other. Desperately poor. That island of Hispaniola is one island. It is cut down the middle on the one side is Haiti, on the other is the Dominican Republic. Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, etc. Haiti is in desperate poverty. Same island. They need to have and we need to pray for them a great turning to God and out of this tragedy I'm optimistic something good may come."

I'm envisioning a million Pat Robertson Voodoo dolls . . .

Not to mentions U.S. actions over the years in overthrowing attempts at democracy.

I'm not sure how much this piece ties to poverty in Haiti specifically. The U.S. has a long history of interfering in the internal affairs of Caribbean nations. The Platt Amendment re Cuba and the long-term control of customs in the Dominican Republic come to mind.

On the other hand, there's a lot of severe poverty all over the Caribbean. So maybe foreign interference is a factor all over the region.

Pat Robertson doesn't seem to realize that Haiti became independent in 1803, and Napoleon III didn't come to power until 1848.

Anyone who gets such a basic fact wrong isn't the most credible commentator on the subject.

Of course, being Pat Robertson, he pretty much starts out with negative credibility.

Among the highlights: part of the debt Haiti still pays today are reparations to France for the loss of French property in freeing slaves.

Are you sure? I couldn't find any cite that Haiti still pays this amount, rather that it was paid a century ago and Haiti is currently asking for reparations from France.

You know, Napoleon the third, or whatever.

I think he's confusing Haïti with Mexico. Among other things.

On the other hand, there's a lot of severe poverty all over the Caribbean. So maybe foreign interference is a factor all over the region.

This. Plus Haiti was the first place we interfered in without taking over. Plus it got the double whammy of joint French/U.S. intervention. A lot of the intervention was malicious and punitive rather than direct looting which also makes a difference. U.S. was determined that Haiti would not be bad example that encouraged slave results. France was determined that Haiti would not be a bad example to colonies who might consider revolting and winning independence from France. So there was a lot of deliberate focus on keeping Haiti poor and miserable. It was not put that way, but policies included cutting off trade, imposing debts that obviously could not be paid and so on. And then by mid and late 19tch centuries this shifted more to normal imperialism, but against a nation already damaged by earlier deliberate immiseration.

Are you sure? I couldn't find any cite that Haiti still pays this amount, rather that it was paid a century ago and Haiti is currently asking for reparations from France.

To be exact it was paid, but via refinancing. And then that debt was refinanced. So Haiti borrowed to pay that debt (along with others) then borrowed again to pay that debt. So yeah, part of Haiti's current debt is in fact for slavery. It is just indirect. Maybe the current government phrases it as "reperations" but Aristide referred to it as an end to Haiti paying reperations.