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RachelWatch: Grants, Not Loans

Today: Rachel looks at the Senate race in Massachusetts and the worsening medical crisis in Haiti.

Earthquake in Haiti: Rescue

Rachel led off with the frustrations over the bottleneck in getting aid to Haiti and then moved on to the harrowing story of the hundreds of earthquake victims who need amputations.

NBC’s Dr. Nancy Snyderman joined Rachel for a segment that involves frank and graphic discussions of the medical crisis. It may be difficult to watch.

Earthquake in Haiti: Supply Line

Rachel moved on to the problems in delivering aid to Haiti. The airport is up and running, but overtaxed. Haiti’s port was severely damaged by the quake, and debris that fell into the water is now a potential hazard for relief ships.

Commander Mike Glander, Commanding Officer of the US Coast Guard Cutter Oak, spoke with Rachel by phone about the logistics of getting the port operational.

Bay (State) Watch

Rachel moved on to today’s special Senate race in Massachusetts between State Senator Scott Brown and Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley and, wow, is Brown skeevy.

Many pundits have suggested that Coakley has been too complacent with her campaign, but I really think they’re ignoring the capacity of the American people to vote for loud, unprincipled, “dynamic” dingbats instead of the less socially adept smart person who actually gives a rat.

Just because it led to disaster the last 367 times in a row doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try it again! Go get ’em, Massachusetts!

Ms. Information

In the latest round of grim news from Afghanistan, Rachel reported on an attack in Kabul just as the newly re-“elected” Hamid Karzai was swearing in his cabinet.

Two coordinated suicide bombings left twelve people dead and a “profound psychological effect” on the city.

And in the Not Helping at All department, it turns out that a company named Trijicon has been engraving Biblical chapter and verse citations on the rifle sights it supplies to the U.S. military. No, really.

In addition to being potentially offensive to our own soldiers who are atheist, agnostic, believers in other religions, or Christians who don’t want Biblical citations written on things they’re going to use to kill people and quite probably offensive to the Iraqui and Afghan troops who may use the rifles for training, Rachel pointed out that creating the impression that this is a modern Crusade is a very, very bad idea.

A spokesman for the company, rather than trying to see the big picture or even just other points of view, said that the complaints came from people who are obviously “not Christian.”

Rachel had an excellent, adult response.

Me, I’m just quietly and childishly dedicating my life to figuring out how to sneak Pagan labels into Trijicon executives’ underwear.

Earthquake in Haiti: Grants, Not Loans

Rachel toyed with us with a little good news/bad news by noting that Italy pledged to cancel Haiti’s $57 million in debt and France is calling on all of its creditors to do the same.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund is offering Haiti a $100 million loan.

Jeez, IMF, are you going to offer them rent-to-own furniture next?

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rachel finished off with the news that Senator John Kerry (D — Massachusetts) wants to create a Martin Luther King archive, including the files from the extensive surveillance our government charmingly carried out on him. Because they were looking for role models, maybe?

At least the archive is a possibility, and at least we got to finish off with a rare clip.

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