I recently read a piece by an ex-Alternatives member that was posted rabble.ca. Entitled "The term ‘NGO' is a misnomer," the article explores the clout of government in the non-governmental world. And while those remaining at Alternatives would presumably disagree with the cut, thrust, and construction of the argumentation and its conclusions, the NGO nomenclature debate is important.

It speaks to the very heart of the dilemma amongst us utopians -- how do you move a pile of excrement without getting any on you? At the very least, you are bound to smell of it.

We are organizing a fair trade enterprise connecting Canadian consumers and Haitian workers. Joegodson lives in Port-au-Prince; Paul in Montreal. Without pretence or illusions about our influence on global affairs, we believe our work is the most moral response to the current crises that face all of us. However, we must be careful. To establish this business, it seems most prudent to promote it as a straight-up exploitation of Haitian workers. If we acknowledge that our enterprise is a co-operative and that Haitians enter as something other than labourers valued at $3 a day, we will have corporate interests, three states, and their thugs on our backs. [A few very poor young men of Cite Soleil that the sweatshop owners buy to foment chaos are characterized in our culture as thugs.

Canadian NGOs have little in the way of positive feedback for Toronto's G8/G20 summits, giving low overall marks when asked to grade the political and fiscal pledges made at the weekend meetings.

"I'd say D-. There was a complete lack of accountability, urgency and shame," said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. "There were several critical commitments we were looking to get and we're walking away without them."

"I'd give them a D. The only saving grace is that Canada did put $1.1 billion toward maternal and child health. Any time you can save some lives, you have to give credit for that," said Dennis Howlett on behalf of Make Poverty History and Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP).

For Elisa Zlami, the burden of her fractured leg just got heavier, literally. The day before, Marc, an ortho-tech at the General Hospital in Port-au-Prince, came immediately to her tent, "Post Op 3," after I asked him to "do something" about Elisa's old split cast that was causing her pain. Haiti's earthquake snapped her shin bone in two, and left an open wound that has finally healed.

Marc expertly rewrapped her leg in a new plaster cast. Despite a day of drying, the new cast must weigh 20 lbs. Yet her leg still hurts along the fracture point. A summoned orthopedic doctor inspects Elisa, and tells her the pain should go away, and Elisa need not stay in the hospital. But Elisa has lost her home, and her family too.