A brief quote, from the very end: "Everyone you speak to is appalled at the Catholic Church and its lack of character or morality regarding these child molestation cases by priests. But these same people don’t agree on anything when it comes to the fact that government and big businesses are raping the environment, our pockets and our well-being. I just don’t get it..."
"letter 'A sad state of affairs' [6/5/2010] - The Daily Freeman Opinion Serving the Hudson Valley since 1871(DailyFreeman.com)"; Stephanie R. Aivaz; http://www.dailyfreeman.com/articles/2010/06/05/opinion/doc4c06897a36b3b429353041.txt ]
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I also read an article about how low the confidence in our government has gotten:
"'Primaries from Calif to SC measure voter anger' - Road Runner"; http://www.rr.com/news/topic/article/rr/9009/13312740/Primaries_from_Calif_to_SC_measure_voter_anger
And although I didn't read this article in any depth - the issue of "voter anger" caught my eye - for sure.
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I'm no expert on anything - to be sure - and if life was a baseball game I would have been struck out a zillion times by now...
But can't someone else out there hit the ball? Can't someone else out there find the courage to tackle the real issues?
Ah yes... there are a lot of bandaids being applied. I see that.
But when you are dealing with a flood of blood [dramatic, but applicable...] --- a bandaid just isn't going to solve the problem [s] --- and the bandaids themselves start to become [in every sense of the word] too expensive.
I am grateful for the positive things that I see [locally] going on - like the [much publicized] investigation of the "Safety Net" issue, the "Kingston Neighborhood Watch" efforts, the "Block by Block" [Do I have that right?] efforts, the improvements at the Waterfront, etc...
But there is far too little discussion about national issues - if you ask [You didn't, but here it is...] me.
Why wasn't the last Presidential Administration [in part or in full] ever held accountable for the damage [Is this still "alleged" damage?] they [my opinion] did to this country?
Why has there been no "bail out" [so to speak / of any real significance...] for the working class? The middle class?
Where are we headed when almost everyhing I pick up in a store [at least everything that is affordable...] is labeled "made in China?"
When are we [Or are we ever?] going to address the "not-for-profit" versus "for profit" [The economic scales seem very tilted in favor of the (This is not targeted at any specific organization) "not-for-profits..."] issue?
Has the suggestion - put forth by a few people, locally [and by at least one more prominent polititian] - that this issue [the "not for profit" issue"] be investigated - ever been taken seriously around here?
How many times did MaryAnne Parker [who has also addressed the "not for profit" issue] have to bring up the "Safety Net" issue [I heard her bring it up at meeting after meeting after meeting...] before it was finally taken seriously and [still ongoing] investigated?
Haven't folks found "that" [the "Safety Net" investigation] to be worthwhile? Wouldn't it be a good idea [just maybe...] to take what the citizens have to say [in general...] more seriously - before "it" [whatever the issue might be...] becomes [at least in some instances] an avalanche?
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Just thoughts.
My mood always dips when there are thunderstorms in the offing --- and although I love a good party or parade as much as anyone [Lord knows, we need our distractions!] --- shouldn't the state of our city, county, state and country be [Yes, it is a drag to think deeply about all of this...] addressed collectively --- at all [Yes, "we the people" (even poor people) have thoughts....] levels...?
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BTW, you might get a lot more participation in political fundraisers, activism groups, etc. if they were affordable to the average [and struggling...] citizen. I, for one, have seen many events that I would like to attend - but cannot afford to - and I'm sure there are others in the same position!
Money? Yes, you need a lot of money...
No doubt about it.
But maybe (?) we have reached a point in time [when it comes to the voting booth] where the respect of one's constituents [How accessible are you? Do you listen? Do you respond? Do you take the people's concerns seriously? Do you make it possible for citizens to actively engage in the political process? Are average citizens (Please take the state of the economy, the average family income around here and the proliferation of poor people into account...) welcome at your "parties?"]
Might this not be - or become - just as important - or even more important - than the "all mighty buck?"
A drinking water source and a few bags of chips and cheese doodles... That would work (I could even afford to bring a bag...) for me.
