Given your anecdote, sure, we don't need to feel that sorry for Sandy.

But the generalization to everyone seems a bit hasty. Isn't everyone in large part just reaping what they sowed? How many people can truly say that they extracted every bit of education possible from school and college? That they never wasted money on anything--not on snacks, not on alcohol, not on going out for movies, nothing? And so on? That when the opportunity came to move to India, with a drastically lower cost of living, they took it?

If people have good options and aren't taking them, no particular reason to feel sorry. But if they make typical human choices and end up in a tough spot, we should have the same compassion for them as anyone who ends up in a tough spot via making typical human choices.