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Consider the less fortunate this season
Today, many Cherokee County residents, along with much of the rest of America, will be kicking back with family and friends, watching football on TV, and enjoying the leftovers from Thanksgiving feasts.
On such a happy occasion, most of us don’t want to think about the less fortunate: those who, even in our own city, went without food this Thanksgiving Day. Or perhaps some of these folks did eat Thursday, courtesy of our local charities or churches, but a day later, they’re wondering where their next meal will come from.
To say “America has much to be thankful for,” as some well-meaning but not-so-thoughtful talking heads, ministers and other soapbox-speakers tend to do during the holiday season, is to stretch reality. Some Americans do, indeed, have much to be thankful for, but those who count ourselves among that number should never forget our less fortunate neighbors.
Many will agree with that sentiment, but may ask what they can do beyond donating a couple of cans of food and saying a heartfelt prayer. The answer: Write your congressman.
That may sound like another strip of elastic being taxed to the hilt, but it makes sense – and a growing number of churches and Christian organizations are offering the same advice to their members.
It’s not that the U.S. doesn’t have the resources to feed its hungry; it’s just a matter of where we, as a country, place our priorities. And right now, our priorities don’t seem to be serving the needs of our people. (Those who disagree need to recall what happened Nov. 7.)
Take the Iraq war, for instance. That campaign, which even Henry Kissinger has now acknowledged is unwinnable, is costing us nearly $200 million a day. Those who believe this astronomical sum is being used to make our soldiers more comfortable, more efficient and safer need to think again. Very few soldiers are “toeing the party line” anymore; they just want to come home. (See any number of soldier-run blogs on the Internet.)
Ask yourself what YOU could do with $195 million a day. Well, as it turns out, the U.S. could be doing plenty with it, too.
Based on our government’s own figures, which are available online, one day in Iraq could feed all the starving children in the world almost 4-1/2 times over. Furthermore, on Monday, we could buy 63.1 million gallons of whole milk, and on Tuesday, buy 166.6 million cartons of eggs. On Thursday, we could deliver the goods to the needy, because that day’s war chest would pay for gasoline consumption for 97,500 Americans.
Not only could we alleviate hunger, we could put a big dent in poverty. We could kick off the second week of “savings” by providing unemployment benefits for nearly 722,000. Tuesday’s take could be funneled into that day’s retirement benefits for more than 6.75 million seniors. On Wednesday, we could afford to give paid sick leave to half-a-million workers for a year, and on Thursday, 380,900 uninsured children could receive a year’s health insurance coverage. Friday would be payday, and every minimum wage worker in the U.S. could get a $3.34-an-hour raise.
A day in Iraq would pay for a year at a public university for 17,100 students; fund more than 79,000 Pell grants; put 27,000 kids in Head Start; and hire between 4,027 and 4,269 school teachers. That day could also boost Homeland Security tremendously; we could chose to pay for 4,919 firefighters, 4,222 police officers, 7,052 paramedics/EMTs, or 1,101 border patrol agents for each day of war. Or, we could buy 6,290 bomb-detecting robots, 1,332 explosive trace detection portals, 3.97 household emergency readiness kits, 780 firetrucks or 9,750 port container inspection units every day.
The cost of the war in Iraq in terms of human lives is immeasurable, but those who think only in terms of dollars should consider the Pentagon’s recent request for a $160 billion supplemental appropriation for the war. That’s 800 times what we’re already spending every day!
Even for those who aren’t mathematically inclined, it’s obvious this money could be put to better use, but without bringing pressure to bear on the proper politicians, nothing will be done.
So this holiday season, along with offering thanks for your own blessings, and a special prayer for all those in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan, think about where you really want your tax dollars spent – on war, or on the real pro-life issues so many of us claim to support.
