since both USA and Iran sell guns, train terrorists and develope nuclear technology, i could say:

my country offers help to other countries in times of crisis, even to countries like USA and Iran...

LOVE NOTE TO NEW ORLEANS
By Andrei Codrescu

http://www.corpse.org/

Yea, you could say that but it really means nothing. Putting the US and Iran in the same category is absurd and shows your simply trying to take away the fact that the US DOES help other countries in times of need, even their enemies.
Oh yea, Thanks for helping germany in WW2 while claiming neutrality.

This help is used for political motives. Be it from the USA, Iran, Cuba, etc...
But since this money comes from the people of these countries, we can safely say that it's the people from the USA, Iran, Cuba and so on that are helping.
We live in a dirty world. I just hope the Gods above channel these resources effectively

Indeed. And millions of years ago the Earth was a molten mass.
I´m glad that you know some history. And i wasn´t attacking you, i was just pointing out that countries are neither good nor bad. Since anything can be twisted around, it is not fair to judge other cultures unless you have first hand experience of them. There is so much propaganda floating around that it should be cut down and made into a bridge between nations in order to begin a new era of tolerance and co-existence.

This is more than a question of empathy and who does it better.

You see one disaster on TV, you've seen them all. TV has a great ability to reduce the scale down to bite size chunks with adverts between them.

TV also shows us how different people around the world express pain and loss. It doesn't however express the actual feeling of pure hoplessness that realising that your world will never be the same again. Some people are aware of this feeling and can empathise with those who suffer, however, many people have luckly never been there, and so the extent of their empathy is going to be limited.

We all deal with these kinds of issues in our own way, and a lot of it is cultural. As a very basic divider, people with a northern European background keep their feelings to themselves, others from warmer climates express it in a much more expressive way.

I feel for the people who have lost everything, but there is nothing I can do, so there is no point me becoming a hysterical sobber just to ease my guilt that I am ok or to show others that I care!

The point is that we all, feel for the victims of such disasters - its just that some of us cannot be as aware of the outcomes of these things because we don't have enough experiance. It shouldn't be seen as a weakness of others, just an indication that sudden loss isn't as common now as it used to be - which I guess is a good thing.

True, I ask people not to judge others also, unless they have experienced what others have. I know that the only reason that Finland assisted germany is because the Soviets were overwhelming them and it was basically a decision made to survive.
That was a cheap shot, and I am sorry, There is much anti american talk coming from all over because of the war in iraq, I am not a supporter of the war but this is still my country and I do get defensive when I hear outrageous accusations made against the US, not that the US doesnt have nukes, sell guns or train terrorists.........errr. freedom fighters, lol.