The question for insensitive me is, will individual people be sending aid to Japan? The quake was huge- 8.9. But Japan has modern infrastructure. The quake has left hundreds dead- hundreds, not thousands. Can you imagine what this would have done to a coastal area of China?

At the same time, this is likely to be the most expensive natural disaster in history. The costs to repair will be huge. So will there be an outpouring of aid via the Red Cross? Will we text to donate $5. Or do we decide Japan can afford to care for its own?