As U.S. troops arrive in Haiti, they will be forced to become the only police force in the chaotic country.
The troops are being sent to perform a rescue mission, but given the present state of affairs, they will have to establish law and order before any major aid initiative can take place.
With 4,000 hardened criminals roaming the city streets looking for targets to rob and rape, the situation is getting much worse by the minute.
Now armed with machetes and other weapons, the inmates escaped when the local prison collapsed during the earthquake. With the local police nowhere to be seen, the devastated city of Port-au-Prince has become theirs for the moment.
Facing a difficult distribution of food and water, many of the relief agencies now in the city had to retreat to safe places to escape the violence.
There have been reports of famished residents throwing stones at those who are trying to help them. As in New Orleans, the desperation level is now finding an outlet in violent and criminal behavior.
U.S. troops will now be forced to conduct a "compassionate invasion" to establish some kind of order until the local police and Haitian government can gain control
The goodwill of the American people will be tested as the months go by, and many will begin to wonder why the U.S. has to be the policeman and benefactor of the entire world.
During the last 70 years, the U.S. and the United Nations have given billions of dollars in Haiti, and it all has been to no avail. Without a decent government and an economic base, that country cannot survive.
In the meantime, we have 30,000 Haitian criminals in U.S. prisons waiting to be deported. What shall we do with them?
Louis Ginesi Dominguez
Fauquier