Armchair Pundits

Mea Culpa---From Fast To Buffet

As it has been nearly one month since my last post (a sure fired way to kill a blog), I must tip my hat to the loyal readers who kept checking in. I stand in your graces and I can't imagine another such drought anytime soon.

CATCH UP

Craziness has ensued in our household. The normal holiday rush and travels, and my squirreling away as many "spare" moments as possible, in preparation for the EPPP on January 7th. I am glad that it is behind me now and I feel I have my life back to some degree. I won't have my results until mid-February, but I remain cautiously optimistic. Much has happened in the world during the past weeks and there as been a plethora of insightful commentary given in the links contained to the right of the page, so I will not recap.

Congratulations to Christy and Jason, married on January 17th, and to our grandparents who celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary on the same day. Also, a big Happy Birthday to Dana, who is celebrating today, and has a new blog of her own worth reading. Is it just me or has the curse of the Red Sox been shifted to the Vikings? Anyone?

AND NOW...

Tsunami relief has been a major story in the past weeks, and much effort has been put forth to raise support. The potentiality for frauding a concerned public is immense with such an undertaking, which is why Hugh, Captain's Quarters, and others have been strongly adovocating for World Vision. Another worthy organization is Samaritan's Purse, which like World Vision, has a proven track record of ameliortating suffering and already had relief workers/ministries dispatched in the area.

One important aspect of giving to charities is knowing something about who you are entrusting with your gift. I would contend that the larger the organization the more buearcratic it's needs. Thus, we saw scandal at the beloved Red Cross following September 11th, and of course the degradation of a million dollar + CEO salary for the darling of U.S. non-profits, The United Way.

This is exactly the sort of disaster that the United Nations should be poised to handle, but such a propostion is naive and lacks the merit of serious consideration. No doubt, some of you are scratching your head in regards to that last statement, but bear in mind what follows. I've made the assertion elsewhere, that WHO, may in fact be the only good thing to come from the UN; however, confidence iin the UN as a force for moral good, is severely and deservedly shaken. The assembly's incessant and boistrous condemnation of Israel, blind eye to the manifold human rights atrocities in the Arab world, and impotence to effect an end to Rwandan and Sudanese genocides renders it virtually useless. Not to mention, an effective mouthpiece for the islamo-facists. And if such indignities aren't enough to convince you of this point, add on the Oil for Food Scandal and now this.

It is unfortunate that this latest humiliation received as little coverage in the US as it has. Especially, in lieu of the horrific human rights abuses occurring and the implications for human traficking. The Western World is exporting billions of dollars of pornograpic material, and with it rampant destruction. Adulterers, sex addicts, and pedophiles, have been instrumental in spreading AIDS throughout the African and now Asian continent. The resulting destruction of human life is utterly appalling and it continues to spread westward. In our society alone, one in four women have been or will be the victims of sexual abuse. In Thailand & Vietnam, some poor farmers are forced to sell their twelve year old daughters into prostituition to save their land and feed their families. Forgive my sermonizing here, but money for drugs and condoms, while necessary, is small consolation. We need a more effective education program. That is, we need to address the heart issues that drive men toward transformation into celluloid zombies; vacant in soul and compulsive in behavior. The girl on the corner at 3am is there because of demand. It all begins in the same place, the seat of morality and immorality, the heart.

I think it is readily apparent that the church and para-church organizations (such as are mentioned above) are deservedly more capable of attending to human suffering and effectively managing donations. This is true, for no other reason, than they are already there and supplying food, blankets, and medicine. Again, know where your money is going. In a post 9/11 world, where chief of our concerns is the GWOT, does it alarm anyone that Indonesia is predominantly Muslim and unsympathetic to our national interests? To my thinking, the bureacracy and track record of the UN presents ample opportunity for dollars given in good will to end up in the coffers of our enemies; namely anti-American groups, such as Al Qaeda and others. As Michael Barone wrote in a column a few weeks ago, "the voices on the left celebrating the U.N. as a force for human rights and world peace sound increasingly tinny."

posted by Grisby @ 1:21 PM