What a fucked up county I live in.

[SeaCat]

We have two stories in the local news today that make me wonder at people. Maybe it's my worldview but I think things are truly fucked.

In the first story a five year old boy supposedly found a loaded handgun, picked it up and shot himself in the foot. Now the police have made the comment that they have not only not been able to find the handgun but they can't even find the scene of the shooting. Someone hosed it down.

In the second story the mayor of one of our towns, (The same one the little boy was shot in,) went to Haiti to check out the conditions there. He returned and immediatly started a campaign to ship food and medical supplies to Haiti. Sounds good doesn't it? Here's the kicker. This same mayor has banned the feeding of the homeless in his town and he is on a campaign to close down the homeless shelters. His view is that all homeless should be rounded up and shipped out of the county.

Maybe I am an anachronism but I believe in taking care of ones own before taking care of others. That starts with your family, make sure those in your family are taken care of. Then it goes to your community, then your nation. After that it goes to other nations. I find it to be not only shameful but dishonorable to be trying to feed so many in other countries when we have people here going without. I find it disgusting that our politicians would have people in other countries have housing when they have people in their own communities who have no place to stay, and I find it even more disgusting that the voters here are more than willing to allow this to happen.

Cat

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

I don't think human folly is unique to this country.

Regarding restrictions on "feeding the homeless," a thing called Bureaucrash has a great youtube on this: http://bureaucrash.com/node/5009

 

[Gizzmotick]

Maybe I am an anachronism but I believe in taking care of ones own before taking care of others. That starts with your family, make sure those in your family are taken care of. Then it goes to your community, then your nation. After that it goes to other nations. I find it to be not only shameful but dishonorable to be trying to feed so many in other countries when we have people here going without. I find it disgusting that our politicians would have people in other countries have housing when they have people in their own communities who have no place to stay, and I find it even more disgusting that the voters here are more than willing to allow this to happen.

Cat

I wholeheartedly agree with you there.

 

[DesertPirate]

Cat,
As usual you hit the nail on the head. Now if someone would hit the mayor...

 

[cloudy]

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

It saddens me that we spend so much effort, so much money taking care of the problems in other countries when we have children going hungry here, children that are homeless, people that just need a couple of breaks.

Its not that I think we shouldn't help anyone but our own, but maybe we should fix the problems here before we try to fix the problems elsewhere.

 

[TE999]

I used to work for your county's government. Idiots were in charge then and it looks as if the tradition carries on.

 

[starrkers]

I used to work for your county's government. Idiots were in charge then and it looks as if the tradition carries on.

There's something about government - it attracts idiots like dead sheep attract flies.

 

[carrie-on]

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

It saddens me that we spend so much effort, so much money taking care of the problems in other countries when we have children going hungry here, children that are homeless, people that just need a couple of breaks.

Its not that I think we shouldn't help anyone but our own, but maybe we should fix the problems here before we try to fix the problems elsewhere.

I agree, also. People in the US are losing their homes (admittedly some of them through stupidity) and people in our government want to send lots of money to other countries.
Another thing that really gets me is all the MILLIONS AND MILLIONS of dollars that the Presidential candidates are raising. That money could go to much better use than commercials and advertising slamming the other person!

 

[rgraham666]

There's something about government - it attracts idiots like dead sheep attract flies.

I worked my entire life in the private sector. Government has no monopoly on morons.

To be honest, there is no practical difference between the upper levels of government or the upper levels of business. The people in both places go to the same schools, come from the same places. They often go back and forth between the two spheres.

Also, there's a great deal or religion involved in our attitude towards the poor. If you regard what we call 'Capitalism' as a religion. Which many people do. In that religion if you are smart, honest and work hard, you will get ahead and become successful.

This makes the poor sinners. They aren't smart or honest, they don't work hard. The faith is clear and since the poor don't act according to the faith they are sinning. Religious societies are never kind to sinners.

And helping the poor in other countries makes sense in this mindset. It's missionary work, spreading the faith. The poor in other countries are helped because helping shows how great the faith is and will convert to it.

The poor in our countries are sinners and so not deserving of help. They've made their choice to deny the faith. The poor in other countries are pagans, who have not learned of the faith and so can be helped. They won't deny the faith once they learn of it.

 

[Liar]

In the second story the mayor of one of our towns, (The same one the little boy was shot in,) went to Haiti to check out the conditions there. He returned and immediatly started a campaign to ship food and medical supplies to Haiti. Sounds good doesn't it? Here's the kicker. This same mayor has banned the feeding of the homeless in his town and he is on a campaign to close down the homeless shelters. His view is that all homeless should be rounded up and shipped out of the county.

To Haiti, perhaps? What a moron.

I general I agree with you Cat.

But I have to ask, to what degree should it be "me and mine first"? It's an easy argument to be misused into never helping others. Because there's always something you can help those closer to you with instead.

Here's an extreme example:

If the children in Somalia have no drinking water, does the situation for the local homeless people (who definitely are having a hard time, but probably is in no risk of immediate death), give us a moral right not to help the Somalis?