Recent Devastation

A split building in Concepcion, Chile

Two large Earthquakes have struck the Earth since the beginning of the new year. Many Earthquakes occur every day, but most of them cannot be felt. First in Haiti and then in Chile, residents have very much felt the power of Mother Nature.

Saturday morning an 8.8 magnitude on the Richter scale quake shook Chile, followed by a tsunami which did not turn our to be destructive. This earthquake was more than 500 times stronger than the 7.0 Earthquake in Haiti. Yet the damage is much less than that of Haiti, and Chile's death toll is exponentially smaller. So far there have been around 400 deaths in Chile, and over 200,000 in Haiti. So then you might ask, Why was the damage so much greater in Haiti if the Earthquake was weaker?

Chili was prepared. The government has mandated building earthquake proof structures. These buildings use more flexible materials such as rubber that will bend and sway during an earthquake instead of cracking and breaking. This building was required because Chile knew of the destruction that could be caused. In 1960, the largest earthquake known to man struck Chile, a 9.5 magnitude.

Also, Haiti was not prepared. The infrastructure there is very weak, and the economy very poor. Enough money was not available to build earthquake resistant buildings. So then, the lesson to learn from this is: preparing pays off, the danger of nature cannot be ignored.


More on the Chilean Earthquake

Over the Top Celebration?

After winning the gold medal in women's hockey, the Canadian team had quite a celebration. The team defeated the United States 2-0, and came back on to the ice 30 minutes later to celebrate. The women drank beer and champagne, and smoked cigars. In the picture above, players were pouring champagne in each others mouths. Marie-Philip Poulin, who scored both of the goals in the game, was seen holding a beer can. She is only 18, and the legal drinking age in British Columbia is 19. Inevitably, this event created controversy.

The IOC, or International Olympic Committee, is not happy with the Canadian women's actions. The IOC is going to "investigate" what happened, and then make the proper actions. Personally, I think this celebration went overboard, but serious punishment should not be given. I thought it was a poor showing of class and of Canada, but much disciplinary action is not necessary. Banning the team from the closing ceremonies would be going too far, the girls were just trying to have fun. After all, the team blew away all competition in women's hockey, they deserved to have a little fun.

But, what do you think? Did the women take their celebration too far?