Hitting Home

I've started following the news again. Sounds trivial and self-absorbed, but sometimes I just can't do it. I can't know what's happening because I feel so helpless to combat what's happening. There are a few things that have stuck with me lately...

*I was sitting in class yesterday when I read the news that there had been a huge aftershock earthquake in Haiti. I'm overwhelmed by the damage there, the lives that have been lost, not knowing how many are dead/where people are/who is dead, the inefficiency in relief efforts (which doesn't really seem to be anyone's fault), the poverty, etc, etc. Hard to imagine that much chaos amidst such tragedy.


*I was first introduced to Invisible Children when I was teaching at San Ramon. One of my students was actively involved in recruiting people to the cause and his fervor caught my attention. It was only then that I learned about the Joseph Kony's child soldiers. The devastation that one man has caused is deplorable and scary. I was able to research the Kony's army (the LRA) this past fall as part of a project and able to speak out on why we need to get involved. We can ignore it. Right now, Chase Bank is having a contest where you can vote for your favorite charity, and the winner will get a million dollars. Vote and tell other people to vote. Invisible Children is doing work that is critical. They have become the voice for children that cannot speak for themselves.


*This one is much more simplistic, but John Edwards and his breakout news that he fathered a child with his mistress while his wife was battling cancer while he was running for president while....makes me ill. I liked him - not necessarily all his politics, but I liked him. He had potential. Obviously not so much....


*Goldman Sachs is reporting record profits and bonuses that average more than $400,000 per employee. Good thing we used tax payer dollars to bail them and other banks out. (Vanity Fair had a great expose on them, by the way - love the honest reporting about something that is usually so clouded in secrecy.)


Enough of this commentary for now. In the wake of all the sad things, bad things, and everything in between, I am reminded how blessed we truly are and much more involved I need to be.