The author of this article really needs a good B-itch-Slappin.
Can anyone say 'KATRINA"
By Alex Spillius
5:19PM GMT 12 Nov 2013
There are other countries in the world prone to natural disaster, but what distinguishes the Philippines, and has made the delivery of aid even more problematic after Typhoon Haiyan, is the prevalence of guns.
The archipelago of 7,000 islands has the geographical misfortune to be affected by 20 or so tropical cyclones a year.
The Philippines is also bedevilled by harsh poverty and weak central government - despite the best efforts of the current president Benigno Aquino.
But there are few disaster zones in the world where nightfall is punctuated by the sound of gunfire and aid agency convoys need to wait for the army to restore a semblance of order before leaving their warehouses.
There are 3.9 million guns - legal and illegal - held by civilians in the Philippines, or about 4.7 per 100 people, which isn't that high in global terms. But people are prepared to use them. The murder rate is among the highest in Asia and three times that of the United States, at 8.9 homicides per 100,000.
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Illegal guns are not just carried by criminal gangs and insurgents. They also belong to civilians and politicians who keep private armies. Earlier this year the president boosted his credibility by winning top prize in a shooting competition, even as television reported a major shootout between police and thieves on a motorway.
Guns are so common that shops, restaurants and malls in cities commonly display signs asking customers not to bring their weapons inside. All private security guards carry either handguns or shotguns, or both.
Analysts tend to blame the colonial history of the Philippines for becoming a gun-happy independent nation. It is said that three centuries of Spanish machismo were followed by 50 years of American preaching on the right to bear arms, making for a volatile mixture.
Whatever the causes of the pervasive gun culture and high murder rate, the reports of armed looting that emerged two or three days after Haiyan struck surprised no one. Even if some reports were exaggerated, the Philippines' reputation for poor law and order preceded it.
He probably dated Piers Morgan in prep school.
Could somebody get this guy a diaper?
