To the Editor:

Jan. 12, 2009, a devastating earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale hit the poor island of Haiti. Reports coming out of Haiti claim more than 100,000 people have died as a result of the earthquake.

In the days that followed, evangelist Pat Robertson proclaimed the reason for the earthquake was voodoo. He went on to explain 200 years ago the Haitians wanted freedom from the French and made a pact with the devil. This earthquake was punishment for making a pact with the devil.

I, on the other hand, believe this earthquake has a silver lining to it. Port-au-Prince was a sprawling unplanned city, with its century-old downtown buildings surrounded by shantytowns and houses made of cardboard. With Port-au-Prince now in rubble, the Haitian government now has a chance to rebuild Port-au-Prince from the ground up, laying out the city better, putting in new roads, sewers and water lines. Baring Haiti doesn't get anymore dictators like "Papa Doc" and "Baby Doc," they might be able to bring tourism back to Haiti, also maybe entice some industries to build plants in Haiti.

I'm not the only one who believes this earthquake had a silver lining to it. The Haitian ambassador to the United States stated recently on the PBS news hour that the city of Port-au-Prince was made for 500,000 people, but at the present time there are three million people living in Port-au-Prince. He went on to say when they do start to rebuild, careful planning will go into the development of Port-au-Prince.

In closing, there are two ways to look at the catastrophe that has befallen the island of Haiti. The pessimist theory, which is touted by Pat Robertson, or the optimist theory, upon which I and the ambassador to Haiti seem to agree.



CONNIE BROWN

Sheridan