His point, hammered home over and over again, is that humanitarian aid is a cosmetic Band-Aid on the really horrible things that some human beings do to others.

Shortly after we returned, Haiti erupted into chaos. It was no secret that forces inside and outside Haiti wanted to get rid of President Aristide. Rebels in new uniforms, well armed, and rumored to be supported by the Central Intelligence Agency surfaced, first in Gönaives, then in Cap Haitien, and finally in the central plateau. Many were former army veterans hoping to restore the armed forces banished by Aristide. Several of the rebel leaders had a history of human rights violations during the Duvalier era. They had been hanging out on the other side of the Dominican border, making occasional forays into the Central Plateau. They had passed through Thomonde several months before, frightening the Thomondois. Worse yet, they stopped some Zanmi Lasante volunteers traveling from Cange to Las Cahobas, forced them to abandon their supplies and vehicle, and later killed two security guards at the dam at Lac Péligre.