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"I hardly ever watch the news on TV distressing delays) the international
anymore," my colleague said the other community reacts. It may take time, but
day. "All you hear about is killings, wars, these problems eventually make it on
crimes ... I'm tired of sad and depres- to the international agenda.The media
sing news." It may be a general trend, be- are alerted. Politicians are made to face
cause the same phenomenon has been their responsibilities. Money is found.

observed in France, where one of the And the situation improves: people re-
comedy shows, Scenes de manage, on turn home, the guilty ones are caught,
theTV channel M6 has higher audience killed or flee and, who knows, the si-
ratings than the 8 o'clock evening news. tuation may be even better than before.

My colleague continues: "Every day I How come, better than before?
get hundreds of emails, many of them Communities who have been chased
coming from NGOs, development or- from their homes by armed conflict
ganizations and aid associations and may eventually reach "roclc bottom",
often requesting increased funding for that is to say they find themselves lost

this or that crisis. However, what I do and alone in the wilderness with no

not lilce," he said, "is always this ne- food, no shelter and very little hope.
gativity in the messages: 'there is not But it is a tribute to human ingenuity

enough funding'; 'national governments that sometimes these communities
do not do enough', etc.Would it not be have turned deficiency into advantage.
nicer sometimes to hear about a glass Through pure necessity the whole
half-full instead of always hearing about community has formed a single body

the glass half-empty? There are many to build shelters, clear the land, plant
ways to present an issue, and it would crops, open a medical centre, find tea-
be nice to read something a little more chers and start a school.There are even
positive, at least sometimes." cases where, after a few months, they

have been sufficiently strong to refuse
Yes, we all know that the world is in cri- the help of international aid agencies.

sis, that multilateralism is almost non- They have decided that they have confi-
existent, that we will have our baclcs dence in nobody but themselves-
:gf" l) '-, ',jl
to the wall if something is not being and who can blame them?When they

done to reshape our world and make return to their homeland, they are
it better for everybody. True, there are strong, self-sufficient and, dare we say it,
humanitarian disasters and natural ca- wiser.Their glass is half-full.
tastrophes and ruthless dictators that
murder their own people.Villages and On these positive notes we wish you all
towns may be attaclced, the people a wonderful day
massacred, the children abducted the
women raped, but eventually (after John and Marit