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Printer-Friendly ModeAmerican opposition to tsunami relief efforts not surprising
Displeasure with various fundraising disappointing
January 17, 2005 —
The ignorance, arrogance and selfishness of some people in this country never seems to amaze me.
About two weeks ago, while working my absolute favorite (sarcasm intended) 11 am to 7 pm shift at McDonald's, I was listening to WIOG 102.5 FM, because, well, our store radio can't really get anything else worth listening to. It was this day when DJ Eric Chase was advocating for America to begin supporting the aid and relief being provided to the people in Southeast Asia after the massive earthquake and tsunami killed upwards of 131,000 people. I was surprised but pleased that a radio station in the area was trying to aid people half the world away. I was even more pleased when they announced that my favorite employer would be aiding WIOG's cause, and the two would team up for an effort to fund raise for the efforts.
There were several callers to the afternoon show praising Chase, WIOG and McDonald's for their decision. If I hadn't been locked down by, well, my store's "lockdown time," I would have called myself to voice my satisfaction. But before the day was over, the ugly side of this country had to speak up.
Next came a female caller, an idiot if I must say so myself, to voice her displeasure - yes, her displeasure - with Chase and the efforts going towards helping an area that had just lost 130,000 people, hundreds of millions of dollars in property and had just experienced one of the most terrifying disasters this country has ever seen. This woman actually had the nerve to complain that WIOG and American in general wasn't doing enough to help Americans with their own problems. Apparently, she had a family relative that was ill. Apparently, she wanted America to help pay for her unfortunate circumstance. Apparently, she couldn't give one dollar or at least not try to stop those who wanted to. Apparently, she was more important than millions of injured - both physically and emotionally - people. Apparently, she felt she was speaking up for America in this time of such dire straights for someone else. And here's the thing - I wasn't even surprised.
You bet I was mad. Angry. Any word you want to find to describe the feeling. But not surprised. In fact, I was laughing so hard I had to find someone to tell. Too bad Chase didn't laugh her off the air. It would have been appropriate for anyone making such a ridiculous statement, except in this case. It's hard to laugh on air when you have someone spitting in the face of millions of people. I'll give Chase credit - he handled the situation very candidly and bluntly, never going so far as to raise his voice or really start arguing with this moron. Instead, he calmly told her exactly why she was wrong, and, of course, Ms. "Me Me Me" wanted to no part of it.
I would have loved to tell her that her thoughts are exactly why a good majority of the world hates the United States of America.
Props to Eric Chase and WIOG for helping in this time of need for so many people. My only complaint is that the money went to Red Cross, instead of a global fund that hasn't had recent problems with their money distribution, like UNICEF. We all remember the problems that came about after 9/11 with where exactly the money donated to Red Cross was going. But I digress.
It makes absolutely no sense to me how one person could have such a problem with such a great cause. After the country was torn apart by an unfortunate election result, it was a motivating and positive sight to see most of America coming together to support another area of the world. There were organizations all across the country coming together to help support people they don't even know, and to have a problem with that would be like having a problem with other countries helping us after 9/11. I'm sure our infamous caller and others with opinions like hers weren't upset at the assistance we were getting then.
Let's face it. The world changed when those planes went into the World Trade Center, and it changed again when that tsunami hit. Thankfully, many people saw it differently than those too ignorant to know what's really in the best interest of this world.
National Basketball Association star Jermaine O'Neal saw his suspension for his involvement in the Nov. 19 "riot" at the Palace of Auburn Hills reduced by ten games because of his off-court behavior, which has earned him awards throughout the NBA for being a selfless citizen. He backed up that assessment when he contributed $55,000 to UNICEF. O'Neal and six other basketball players pledged to give $1,000 for every point they scored during a select game on the week of January 3. If O'Neal had stayed true to his pledge, he would have donated only $32,000. Instead, he took a game a week earlier in which he scored 55 points and contributed the money accordingly. Too bad Ron Artest wasn't out there to help his teammate, but that's not the point. In total, O'Neal and the six other players represented by agent Arn Tellem donated $208,000. The NBA Player's Association added $500,000, and the NBA itself matched that total.
For the NBA to donate at least $1.2 million to aid those half the world away spoke volume about just how important this disaster was.