D Wednesday, January 20, 2010 mail 17 The pious plunge: A man plunges into the icy waters of the Moskva River in Moscow during Orthodox Christian Epiphany celebrations. Orthodox believers mark the Epiphany by immersing themselves in icy waters, regardless of the weather Picture: Reuters The Big Picture Is poverty to blame? The dollar: Behind every disaster? Mary from Wicklow blames America, its foreign policy and its multinationals for the state of Haiti following the earthquake. How easy the responsibility gets passed around, yet nobody ever seems to step up and take responsibility. If 98 per cent the disaster in Haiti is attributable to poverty, why was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake (which, according to Marys maths, is only two per cent responsible for the devastation) needed to suddenly draw attention to the insufferable plight of Haitians? By her rationale, a government can only assist its people if there is no poverty. So why has the Haitian government not been attempting to resolve its poverty issues, not to mention its security and economic issues since the fall of the Duvalier regimes? To blame multinationals for paying poor wages is just a cop-out at least those firms are investing in the country. Where that investment goes once it is in the governments coffers is out of the hands of Washington, and the firms investing in Haiti. Blaming the US is too easy. Perhaps people shouldnt be so quick to jump on the blame-bandwagon and rather see the forest for the trees. And no, Im not American. RM Ahem, Ridley S, have you actually seen Avatar? The way you completely slated it would seem to suggest you havent! While The Hurt Locker may have been a fantastic film, to say Cameron Dublins best-read letters page Mailbox E-mail letters to mail@metroherald.ie with a name. Or text us. Text MAIL followed by comment and name to 53131. *Texts cost 30cent per message + standard network charges. SP. Opera Telecom, Hospitality House, Cumberland Street South, D2. Customer service number 0818286606 talk to us Organ shame: Am I the only one who found it really sad to read that the 270 organs donated by generous people last year was headlined record numbers? I know there are medical reasons why some donated organs are not acceptable and religious reasons for some of us not donating. But for the majority of us here in Ireland, is it really that much of an effort to pick up a donor card in the chemist and fill it in if it means it could save a persons life? M RT rant: Im appealing to RT to stop making programmes on, or with, Eamon Dunphy. Do they not think they show enough of him on sports shows without having to make a programme about him? It just shows how bad the station is, making cheap time-fillers instead of decent programming. Lets get rid of old wrinkle-face and bring in some younger presenters who know about present-time football, not the football of yesteryear! GR Swoon: A sincere thank you to the kind people who came to my aid when I fainted on the Bray commuter just outside Howth on Monday. Their kindness and generosity in helping a lone female was very much appreciated. JW In Brief threw out any aul science fiction tosh is misguided at best. Avatar is phenomenal, and Cameron deserves all the accolades he gets for finally giving audiences a film where the 3D is an integral element, instead of most previous 3D efforts (Up and Coraline being two obvious exceptions) which have extended only as far as the directors throwing stuff to make us jump. The technological leaps and bounds which took place during Avatars 11- year gestation will change the cinematic landscape and for that alone, never mind its great story, Avatar was a worthy winner. Elaine I agree that The Hurt Locker was a very good film, but its not a film Id rush out to see again. However, Ive now seen Avatar three times... Avatar may not have the most original story ever, but as a visual treat, its the most impressive thing Ive seen in the cinema for about eight years. For me, its been a very, very long wait to finally see a film that lives up to all the hype! James C Sendusyour txt Feral, perhaps Brad Pitt is growing his beard for his latest movie in the same way he grew a moustache for his role in Inglourious Basterds. Sometimes you have to think outside the box... Dan Brian, you dumbass, I was the one saying 3 should be using Waterford hurlers instead of models! And Mac, if you think more people in Ireland know who those models are, then youre an idiot. Niall S Steven from Bray, the only reason we put Bray Head there is so we wouldnt have to look at Bray. Jay, Greystones Both my brother and I agree with Risn who thinks the Lotto is a fix. Just like the Three Stars: all country winners every week, never Dubs. Derek How come when a company that makes sausages does a survey about the things people think are most important to a home, the answer ends up sausages? Alain, Killiney txt MAIL to 53131* The best pictures are in Metro Herald index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html