Red Cross response:<p><a href="http://www.redcross.org/news/press-release/Red-Cross-ProPublica-Response-10-03-17" rel="nofollow">http://www.redcross.org/news/press-release/Red-Cross-ProPubl...</a>
Nor was FEMA, or at least its "FEMA Tech Corps".<p>And the incredible civic hackers who started w/ Harvey and are STILL at work now as Nate makes landfall? The big tech companies couldn't make time or money to give them a hand. See <a href="http://www.xconomy.com/texas/2017/10/05/as-relief-moves-to-recovery-questions-about-femas-tech-corps/" rel="nofollow">http://www.xconomy.com/texas/2017/10/05/as-relief-moves-to-r...</a><p>(Also see <a href="http://www.xconomy.com/texas/2017/09/08/harvey-techies-pass-baton-and-apis-to-florida-peers-as-irma-nears/#" rel="nofollow">http://www.xconomy.com/texas/2017/09/08/harvey-techies-pass-...</a> and <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2017/09/06/houston-techies-build-apps-for-harvey-and-irma/#2a4995106001" rel="nofollow">https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2017/09/06/houston-t...</a> for context).
The Red Cross is a charity. You're not entitled to them swooping in and making everything okay again. It's your local governments job to ensure there's public emergency relief.
I donate to local charities because I can see the results and I can trust the administration to give the majority of the funds to the people/purpose who need it.<p>Usually it's run by volunteers or a religious organization (provided their mandate is to provide help regardless of the receivers religion).<p>Are there any charity organizations with totally transparent accounting? I don't need nor expect charity organizations to be run by volunteers, and I'd prefer them to pay their administrators/employees a reasonable wage. But I have no idea which organizations user their donations efficiently.
I’m torn on the one hand, even at its most effective, how could a private organization do as much as a government that effectively has unlimited resources? On the other hand, this government with its current leadership has been anything but effective and we are better off depending on private organizations.
I'm totally pro-transparency; but to me this is just trying to push the NGOs for doing the job and giving the money that the government do not wants to spend on USA people. At the same time that all the money goes for the design of the new "vietnam 2.0, lets try it again"<p>"Do my job, because I don't care, or I will start a publicity campaign against you". Very sad.
Not sure why the IRC is even needed in the, at least on paper, wealthiest country in the world.<p>I thought NGOs like that were reserved for 3rd world countries.<p>When there's an earthquake in Japan does the Red Cross fly in? In my opinion disaster relief is something the government should deal with. I'd consider it a point of pride as a nation. It would be shameful if my country had to beg for outside help.