www.halfthesky.org, a wonderful organization, has set up a fund to help with Earthquake. Please not in your donation it is for earthquake relief.

The Earthquake in Sichuan Province, China has resulted in almost 10,000 dead. The quake had a magnitude of 7.8, and was the biggest to hit China for a couple of decades. The San Francisco quake was approximately of the same magnitude. The Long Beach quake was only 6.25. The Long Beach quake destroyed many schools, but happened at 6AM resulting in few deaths. There were many improvements in building design after the earthquake. NPR has two reporters in Sichuan that are now covering the quake, there story today on the school that collapsed is heart breaking.

China's leadership is being very active in the quake areas to put the best face forward. Chinese leadership is often judged on how well they handle natural disasters, such as the storm during Chinese New Year. If not handled well, this is seen as an omen that a change in government is needed, since they have lost Heaven's Mandate. On that vein of thought, this is interesting - Tibetan tectonics triggered China quake I wonder how long till somebody connects the Chinese actions in Tibet to this quake.

Labels: China's Government