Quote From: lilacmessThank you for saying it. I agree completely. And the same people who right now are giving money hand over fist to help the welfare citizens misplaced by Katrina (many of them are on this board right now) will, in a few months after all of this has died down, return to complaining about the welfare system and people living off the state, living off the rest of us who actually work for our livings. The truth is that when people give to charity, they do it primarily because it makes them feel good about themselves. It gives them an inflated sense of self-importance. Very few people give because they truly want to help others. They give to makes themselves feel good. So I'm sure we'll both get a lot of backlash from this board. But we know the truth so we'll hang in there.
I have worked at the Astrodome in Houston, helping storm survivors since the Thursday before Labor Day. We have received nothing but overwhelming appreciation and gratitude from the people we have served, and many of our city's guests (that's what we call them, by request of our city's wonderful Mayor), have moved out of the shelters into apartments, started new jobs, and enrolled their children in school. Many of the folks in our shelters - storm victims - have become volunteers at the shelters, just to find a way to give back some of the help that we've given them. I'm sure there are some "welfare sucking" people in the thousands of people Houston has welcomed to our city - they exist in every city in our country. I haven't encountered anyone like this, and everyone has been incredibly patient and accommodating during the process of getting so many people resettled for the time being.
I am very embarrassed and dismayed at the raw bigotry I am seeing on this board. These people didn't choose for this to happen, nor did they choose to be poor. Yes, the looting and the chaos at the Superdome was horrible - but how do we know how people in our cities would behave in similar circumstances? We do not have an "equal opportunity" in this country - in every city, schools in low-income areas are underfunded and provide a much lower level of education, and low-income people do not have access to higher education (even many middle-income families cannot afford university education for their children). Poor families do not have access to stable living environments, they struggle for food, the list goes on. Yes, there are people who live off the system, and believe that they're entitled to benefits. But - it is not fair to paint everyone in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama with the same brush. The poor people from New Orleans are mostly low-income working people - taxpayers like you and me. There are plenty of middle and upper income families in these areas who are trying to gain assistance from FEMA and the Red Cross, as well - it's not just the poor who are expecting assistance from the government....which we all pay for with our tax dollars. I am very sad for the hateful people on this board who think that this horrible disaster is "good" for the people of New Orleans, and who feel that they don't deserve help right now.
And, by the way - I'm a white, educated, professional.
Dr. Phil's coverage in the devastating wake of Hurricane Katrina continues. In Part 1, they’ve helped thousands of hurricane victims make their way to safety, but who is going to help the rescuers? Dr. Phil offers his advice to hurricane relief workers for coping with the horrors they’ve witnessed. Then in Part 2, see heartwarming reunions, and hear stories of tragedy and triumph as the city begins the slow process of rebuilding and recovery. Join the discussion.
