Howard at Philly Future::
Well, Project H.O.M.E.‘s inaugural Young Friends Event appears to have been a smashing success, going off last night without a hitch. For those who missed it, there are photos, as our resident shutterbug Albert Yee was live on the scene; so were several other members of the Philly Future team. The picture to the right signifies one of several highlights from the evening, as Lasheild Myers read “The Never Ending Story”, an uplifting poem reflecting her experience with Project H.O.M.E.
The list of recognizable faces in the crowd included the likes of City Councilman Darrell Clarke and IBEW Local 98 chief John
Dougherty. But perhaps the largest contingent of local personalities was from Philly’s burgeoning online scene. Among them were five representatives from Philly Future, as well as other online luminaries from sites like Philly1.com, Philly IMC and Young Philly Politics.The program was enlightening, and the silent auction included bidding on everything from gift certificates, sports tickets and memorabilia to a bona fide Mummers costume. And the room was practically buzzing with conversation all night.
But the real message of the night was the one printed across the foot of the banner:
“None of us are home until all of us are home.” Be sure to also check out some Albert’s early thoughts on the evening, as well as his Flickr set of images from the event.
I was thinking yesterday about the federal relief spending going to Katrina victims, as described by Speaker Hastert in his first blog post yesterday:
“Congress has already passed legislation that provided $62.5 billion worth of immediate relief to help the Gulf Coast get back on its feet. Part of that money to made sure that kids have a school to go to, they’re fed, they have power and clean water to drink — basic necessities that we all take for granted. What we don’t need to do is to spend more money now and worry about how to pay for it later. In the House, we’re working on a plan that will include off-sets to pay for any additional spending, eliminate wasteful and inefficient government programs and cuts mandatory spending. But it will keep tax relief in place so that we can create jobs and continue to grow the economy.”
I was wondering why these people deserve such an immense and immediate response while other Americans, through natural disaster, illness, stupidity or plain bad luck, are treated like an obese guy who’s first in line at the $1.99 all you can eat buffet.
Not that Katrina, or Rita or Wilma, victims don’t deserve help from the rest of us, they do, but why do so-called leaders like Denny Hastert think these other people don’t?
hastert’s blog post, since you don’t have markup turned on for comments, is at:
http://speaker.house.gov/journal/051027_firstblog.shtml
Not to be cynical – but it more than likely has more to do with the state he represents – Illinois – and what he thinks will sell to the voters there.