Shirley, you can't be serious?

I lashed out at Paul Shirley once in a tweet. He said Guns & Roses was better than the Beatles.

So one could say the recent news about Shirley is karma. Or it's bad voodoo (as his firing centered around Haiti). Such as it is, ex-NBA'er and blogger, Paul Shirley penned a tongue-lashing article regarding the aid that's being sent to Haiti and got fired today from ESPN (he was a part-time contributor). Makes sense. The firing, that is.

But what exactly did Shirley say in his blog post? Read it here. For those of you who don't like to click on links within posts, I've reproduced Shirley's fabricated "letter to the Haitians" which was the crux of Shirley's firing from ESPN:

Dear Haitians –

First of all, kudos on developing the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Your commitment to human rights, infrastructure, and birth control should be applauded. As we prepare to assist you in this difficult time, a polite request: If it’s possible, could you not re-build your island home in the image of its predecessor? Could you not resort to the creation of flimsy shanty- and shack-towns? And could some of you maybe use a condom once in a while?

Sincerely,

The Rest of the World

The people of Haiti are hurting. Even the collective IQ's of Heidi & Spencer, the cast of Bad Girls and Jersey Shore can ascertain that. The gist of Shirley's article - at least my take on it - was Shirley commenting on will the aid that Haiti's receiving help the country in the long-run. Since Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in 2005, levee and pump modifications have been addressed and I'm sure are still being addressed. Haiti, on the other hand and for lack of a better description, is a SNAFU (military acronym for Situation Normal All Fucked Up). I mean, besides the civil strife, government corruption, and an infrastructure that's - well, "infrastructure" is probably being overly generous - Haiti has been the poster child-country for Murphy's Law. Tropical Jean killed over 3,000 Haitians in 2004. Hurricanes Gustav, Hanna and Ike and Tropical Storm Fay caused $900 million in damages in 2008. It's almost a question of not if...but when's the next disaster gonna strike? Will it be a natural disaster or something generated from within the Haitian culture?

That's wonderful that the U.S. can contribute $100 million to help Haiti. It's inspiring that Hope for Haiti Now and Brad and Angelina and Leonardo DeCaprio and the NBA and the NFL donated money. It's makes me proud to be from the U.S. But if I were the U.S. government, I might have contributed $50 million instead of $100 million - save the other $50 million for our own economic turnaround...or are we back on our feet again? Take part of that extra $50 million and give some toward the Katrina clean-up in Louisiana and Mississippi. Five years later and we're still screwing around down there. Or how about the Cedar Rapids, Iowa clean-up after the 2008 flooding? I've seen the devastation - people are still living in trailers. There are entire blocks and blocks and blocks of homes standing empty and unlivable - forever.

Photo by JONATHAN TORGOVNIK/REPORTAGE FOR CNN

However people choose to chastise Paul Shirley for his "insensitivity", underneath that he's proposing honest questions. Will Haiti and the international community continue with the band aids each time a disaster stikes that country? Whose turn is it to build the house of cards this time?

A friend informed me that the U.S. is partly responsible for Haiti's long-term suffering due to our involvement years ago in encouraging the farmers to give up an agricultural-based economy in favor of an industrial economy and exporting. I read the article he sent me. Fine. But something's gotta be done with this country for the long-term...either Haiti does it alone or another country needs to step in.

'Cause the shit will hit the fan again if the status quo remains. You can bet on it. I'm serious - and don't call me Shirley. And don't call me insensitive. Or cruel. I'm thinking for the long-term welfare of Haiti and her people.

Shouldn't we all?